Best Selling Books by Bryan Mealer

In All Things Must Fight to Live, Bryan Mealer takes readers on a harrowing two-thousand mile journey through Congo, where gun-toting militia still rape and kill with impunity. Amidst burnt-out battlefields where armies still wrestle for control, into the dark corners of the forests, and along the high savanna, where thousands have been slaughtered and quickly forgotten, Mealer searches for signs that Africa''s most troubled state will soon rise from ruin. At once illuminating and startling, All Things Must Fight to Live is a searing portrait of an emerging country facing unimaginable upheaval and almost impossible odds, as well as an unflinching look at the darkness that continues to exist in the hearts of men. It is non-fiction at its finest-powerful, moving, necessary.

A journalist chronicles his Texas family’s century-long saga of faith and fortune seeking in this acclaimed memoir: “a Texas version of Hillbilly Elegy” (Bryan Burrough, author of Barbarians at the Gate). In 1892, Bryan Mealer’s great-grandfather leaves Georgia to seek his fortune in the open country of Texas. But the family soon loses their farm to drought just as the region experiences one of the biggest oil booms in American history. They eventually settle in the small town of Big Spring, where fast oil fortunes are being made. For the next two generations, the Mealers labor in cotton fields and on drilling rigs, weathering booms and busts. During the Great Depression, they ward off despair by embracing Pentecostalism. But for young Bobby Mealer, the author’s father, the search for spiritual peace leads him to a rebellious move away from Big Spring. Then in 1981, Bobby’s old friend Grady Cunningham entices him back home with the promise of millions. While drilling wells for Grady’s oil company, Bobby and his wife embrace the honky-tonk high life. But beneath the Rolexes and private jets is a reality as dark as the crude itself. As Bobby soon discovers, his return to Big Spring is a backslider’s journey into a spiritual wilderness, and one that could cost him his life. A masterwork of memoir and narrative history, The Kings of Big Spring is an indelible portrait of fortune and ruin as big as Texas itself. And in telling the story of four generations of his family, Mealer also tells the story of America came to be.

William Kamkwamba was born in Malawi, a country where magic ruled and modern science was mystery. It was also a land withered by drought and hunger. But William had read about windmills, and he dreamed of building one that would bring to his small village a set of luxuries that only 2 percent of Malawians could enjoy: electricity and running water. His neighbors called him misala—crazy—but William refused to let go of his dreams. With a small pile of once-forgotten science textbooks; some scrap metal, tractor parts, and bicycle halves; and an armory of curiosity and determination, he embarked on a daring plan to forge an unlikely contraption and small miracle that would change the lives around him. The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind is a remarkable true story about human inventiveness and its power to overcome crippling adversity. It will inspire anyone who doubts the power of one individual''s ability to change his community and better the lives of those around him.

In a town deep in the Florida Everglades, where high school football is the only escape, a haunted quarterback, a returning hero, and a scholar struggle against terrible odds. The loamy black “muck” that surrounds Belle Glade, Florida once built an empire for Big Sugar and provided much of the nation''s vegetables, often on the backs of roving, destitute migrants. Many of these were children who honed their skills along the field rows and started one of the most legendary football programs in America. Belle Glade’s high school team, the Glades Central Raiders, has sent an extraordinary number of players to the National Football League – 27 since 1985, with five of those drafted in the first round. The industry that gave rise to the town and its team also spawned the chronic poverty, teeming migrant ghettos, and violence that cripples futures before they can ever begin. Muck City tells the story of quarterback Mario Rowley, whose dream is to win a championship for his deceased parents and quiet the ghosts that haunt him; head coach Jessie Hester, the town’s first NFL star, who returns home to “win kids, not championships”; and Jonteria Willliams, who must build her dream of becoming a doctor in one of the poorest high schools in the nation. For boys like Mario, being a Raider is a one-shot window for escape and a college education. Without football, Jonteria and the rest must make it on brains and fortitude alone. For the coach, good intentions must battle a town’s obsession to win above all else. Beyond the Friday night lights, this book is an engrossing portrait of a community mired in a shameful past and uncertain future, but with the fierce will to survive, win, and escape to a better life.

Now a Netflix film starring and directed by Chiwetel Ejiofor, this is a gripping memoir of survival and perseverance about the heroic young inventor who brought electricity to his Malawian village. When a terrible drought struck William Kamkwamba''s tiny village in Malawi, his family lost all of the season''s crops, leaving them with nothing to eat and nothing to sell. William began to explore science books in his village library, looking for a solution. There, he came up with the idea that would change his family''s life forever: he could build a windmill. Made out of scrap metal and old bicycle parts, William''s windmill brought electricity to his home and helped his family pump the water they needed to farm the land. Retold for a younger audience, this exciting memoir shows how, even in a desperate situation, one boy''s brilliant idea can light up the world. Complete with photographs, illustrations, and an epilogue that will bring readers up to date on William''s story, this is the perfect edition to read and share with the whole family.

«UNA HISTORIA CONMOVEDORA Y EJEMPLAR», Al Gore, premio nobel de la pazWilliam nació en una aldea remota de Malaui. Fascinado desde niño por la electricidad, deseaba estudiar ciencias, pero una terrible hambruna devastó las pocas pertenencias de su familia y los convirtió en indigentes de la noche a la mañana. William tuvo que dejar los estudios y ayudar a sus padres, pero se negó a abandonar sus sueños... Con unos pocos libros de ciencias hasta entonces olvidados abordó un osado plan: proporcionar a su familia electricidad y agua corriente. Con chatarra, piezas de tractor, algunos trozos de bicicleta y un entusiasmo sin límites fabricó un molino de viento. Una extraordinaria narración de cómo el esfuerzo, el optimismo y la inventiva humana pueden cambiar nuestro destino

一個人的力量能有多大？ 夢想能帶我們到多遠的地方？ 十四歲的馬拉威失學小男孩，用想像力與創造力， 造了一座風車，帶來的電力不僅照亮自己的未來， 而且富足了家鄉，將來更會改變整個國家。 他的故事證明，不管處境如何困頓， 個人堅定的力量，的確可以把自己帶到夢想的遠方！

El sueño de un niño puede cambiar el mundo entero. Esta es una inspiradora historia, basada en la vida real del autor, sobre el poder de la imaginación y la fuerza de la determinación. Cuando una terrible sequía asoló la pequeña aldea donde vivía William Kamkwamba, su familia perdió todas las cosechas y se quedó sin nada que comer y nada que vender. William comenzó entonces a investigar en los libros de ciencia que había en la biblioteca en busca de una solución, y de este modo encontró la idea que cambiaría la vida de su familia para siempre: construiría un molino de viento. Fabricado a partir de materiales reciclados, metal y fragmentos de bicicletas, el molino de William trajo la electricidad a su casa y ayudó a su familia a obtener el agua que necesitaba para sus cultivos. Así, el empeño y la ilusión del pequeño Willy cambió el destino de su familia y del país entero.

William Kamkwambas bewegende Geschichte neu aufgelegt William wächst auf einer Farm in Malawi auf, einem der ärmsten Länder der Welt. Nur kurz kann er zur Schule gehen. Dennoch baut er mit 14 Jahren ein Windrad, mit dem er Strom erzeugen kann. So erfüllt sich der wissbegierige Junge trotz vieler Hindernisse einen Traum und verändert damit das Leben seiner Familie und der Menschen in seinem Dorf. Diese wahre Geschichte ist die Vorlage für den erfolgreichen Netflix-Film. Eine moderne Heldensaga, die zum Staunen anregt und Mut macht.

Quando uma terrível seca atingiu o pequeno vilarejo onde William Kamkwamba vivia, no Malaui, sua família perdeu todas as safras da estação, ficando sem ter o que comer ou vender, impossibilitando também a continuidade dos estudos de William. Assim, o garoto começou a explorar os livros de ciências na biblioteca de sua aldeia e foi lá que teve uma ideia que mudaria a vida de sua família para sempre: construir um moinho de vento. Construída com ferro-velho e peças usadas de bicicleta, a incrível criação de William levou eletricidade para casa, o que ajudou a família a bombear a água de que precisavam para cultivar a terra.

Persoonlijk verslag van een man uit Malawi, die op veertienjarige leeftijd eigenhandig met afvalmateriaal een windturbine bouwde en zo zijn geboortedorp van energie voorzag.

Né en 1987 au Malawi, l''un des pays les plus pauvres d''Afrique, William Kamkwamba aspire dès son plus jeune âge à un autre avenir que celui de son père agriculteur et souhaite étudier les sciences. Mais, en 2001, sa région est frappée par une terrible sécheresse, et William est contraint d''abandonner l''école pour aider sa famille à survivre. L''adolescent refuse malgré tout de renoncer à ses rêves. A l''aide de quelques manuels de sciences poussiéreux, il se lance dans un projet audacieux : construire une éolienne afin d''offrir à sa famille l''électricité, un luxe auquel seuls 2 % de la population malawite ont accès... Le Garçon qui dompta le vent est le récit incroyable d''un jeune autodidacte qui, à force d''ingéniosité et de ténacité, est parvenu à dépasser les obstacles les plus insurmontables afin de construire une vie meilleure pour lui et pour les siens. Une belle leçon d''espoir pour l''avenir de l''Afrique. William Kamkwamba suit les cours du lycée panafricain de Johannesburg, et participe régulièrement à des conférences à l''étranger. Bryan Mealer, coauteur du livre, est un ancien correspondant de guerre pour Associated Press. Il a publié un ouvrage relatant son expérience de reporter en République démocratique du Congo.

Le Malawi. Un petit pays d''Aurique australe coincé entre le Mozambique, la Tanzanie et la Zambie. Espérance de vie : 49 ans pour les hommes, 51 ans pour les femmes. C''est l''une des régions les moins urbanisées du continent africain. A 14 ans, William Kamkwamba n''a malheureusement plus le temps d''aller à l''école. Il doit aider ses parents aux champs. Dès que les travaux agricoles lui laissent un peu de répit, il file à la bibliothèque du bourg, une petite pièce sombre où sont rangés quelques livres. L''un d''eux attire son attention. Ce n''est pas un roman. C''est un manuel technique, Using Energy, dans lequel il découvre le schéma d''une éolienne. William est bien décidé à en fabriquer une. "Eolienne" est peut-être un bien grand mot pour parler d''une roue de vélo, d''un câble et d''une dynamo de bicyclette. Mais c''était suffisant pour fournir de l''électricité et de l''eau à son village. Le bruit s''est répandu dans la région, le pays, puis le monde : un adolescent venait de trouver une solution très simple à l''un des problèmes les plus complexes de l''Afrique.