Bound To Stay Bound

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School Library Journal - 11/01/2014 Gr 4–7—This youth edition of the original adult book of the same title has been skillfully adapted for middle grade readers. Kamkwamba recounts a period from his childhood living in a small Malawi village. His family was poor, but they got by working as farmers. Kamkwamba was in elementary school, about to graduate to secondary school, when the drought and famine of the mid-2000s upset the patterns of local life. The author deftly describes the devastating effects upon his family: they ate insects, and rations were reduced to only a single mouthful daily. Many around them suffered even worse. Somehow, the family struggled through until the rains returned to nourish a new crop, but they couldn't afford Kamkwamba's school fees. He farmed with his father but also discovered a local library, where he taught himself to engineer a windmill to draw water to irrigate the fields. Those around him thought he was crazy as he salvaged motor parts, a PVC pipe, his father's broken bicycle, and anything else he could find. Kamkwamba did successfully harness the wind, managing to light his family's house, charge community cell phones for a small income, and pump irrigation water. A school inspection team saw the windmill and brought educators to see the teen engineer, who was invited to speak at the African TED conference and given a scholarship. This is a fascinating, well-told account that will intrigue curious minds, even the somewhat anticlimactic closing chapters describing Kamkwamba's education. There is also a picture book version of this tale (Dial, 2012), making it of interest to all-school reading programs. An inspiring, incredible story.—Dorcas Hand, Annunciation Orthodox School, Houston, TX - Copyright 2014 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.

Booklist - 12/15/2014 By now, Kamkwamba’s story about his ingenious windmill is well-known—his 2009 memoir was a New York Times best-seller—and this young reader’s edition of that memoir brings his story to a middle-grade audience. It’s a good fit, especially since, at 14, Kamkwamba was not much older than his target age group when he set out to build “electric wind.” After a devastating famine kept him out of school, he taught himself electrical engineering, and—equipped with insatiable curiosity and ample brains—Kamkwamba succeeded in building a windmill out of junk and found materials to electrify his home. Though some of the descriptions of the electrical components might go over the heads of most middle-grade readers, his inspirational story about determination and a deep love for science will nonetheless strike a chord with aspiring inventors, and the stark descriptions of famine-stricken Malawi will open young readers’ eyes to the hard realities of life in a Third World country. Many kids will find a kindred spirit in Kamkwamba. - Copyright 2014 Booklist.

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