The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind: Creating Currents of Electricity and Hope by William Kamkwamba and Bryan Mealer

If you want to make it, all you have to do is try.

When William Kamkwamba was fourteen he had to leave school after his parents could no longer afford to pay his tuition. To help his family earn money, he assisted with the planting and harvesting of their crops of corn and tobacco. All the while, Kamkwamba remained hopeful that he would return to school and took it upon himself to visit the his local library every day so that he could continue to study. During one visit he discovered a book on electricity and became inspired to learn all that he could. In no time he was building and repairing radios for his neighbors. With this success, he was encouraged to build a windmill, something that would be of great help to his family. He envisioned having light and being able to listen to the radio after dark. He also was eager to set up a pump that would bring clean water to his family from a nearby river. Although many in his village thought him to be a mad man and he faced many obstacles, Kamkwamba never gave up.

One of the strengths of this book for me is the description of the flood, drought and famine that plagued Malawi in 2002 and how desperate everyone felt as their food supply dwindled. I was also fascinated with Kamkwamba’s description of Malawian social life and customs. This book was about so much more than windmills and I loved it.

That Bird Has My Wings: The Autobiography of an Innocent Man on DeathRow by Jarvis Jay Masters

No matter what their neighborhood, no matter what their race, every child matters.

When Jarvis is a young boy he and his four siblings are taken away from their drug addicted, neglectful mother and placed in separate foster homes. Jarvis was fortunate to be placed in a loving home with the Prockes, a caring elderly couple who loved and nurtured him. Things began to fall apart when he is removed from the home due to the Prockes age and declining health. He is then placed in an abusive home with foster parents who are in it only for the money. They torture and abuse him. Feeling hopeless when no one believes what is happening to him in the home, Jarvis runs away only to end up in one group home after the next. Eventually, he is reunited with his family, but that is not necessarily a good thing. At the age of nineteen he ends up in San Quentin State Prison for armed robbery. While serving his time he is implicated in the death of a guard and ends up on death row. I found this to be a compelling story about the foster care system. One cannot help but to feel sorry for young Jarvis and all the other children who are in a similar situation. I highly recommend this gripping account of one man’s journey to coming to terms with his life and finding freedom while behind bars.