The African Diary by Bill Bryson NF

African Diary by Bill Bryson
This little book (50 pages) is record of the humorous travel writer, Bill Bryson’s, account of his experiences to Kenya sponsored by the humanitarian organization “Care”. It is a delight combination of humour, personal anecdotes, and a factual account of the conditions that he encountered on his brief tour. It is another occasion on which are conscience can be jolted by the living conditions of those in developing countries, and the opulent good fortune that we have living in North America.

It is acknowledged that progress for the poor and deprived in this once significant country is slow but there is hope. With every small advance of providing clean water, safe living conditions and adequate food lives do change. “And so by such means, do people’s lives improve, little by little.”

The profits from the book sales go directly to support the work of “Care”. Their philosophy is not to give the money to the country and hope that it is not lost within the corruption that exists everywhere. It is to invest in small innovations and allow the people themselves to make decisions and experience the success of their own entrepreneurship. As is stated in the book , “It’s not about spending large amounts of money, but about spending smaller amounts intelligently.”

The book ends with an understated success about one individual farmer whose life has been changed markedly by the work done by the organization. As a result of improving his farming methods , “William Gumbo, in short, is a happy and he has a future. Surely every human being is entitled to at least that much.”