The Blue Sweater - Jacqueline Novogratz

Blue Sweater by Jacqueline Novogratz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

The subtitle for this book is "Bridging the Gap Between Rich and Poor in an Interconnected World." You can tell Jacqueline Novogratz has done that very thing with her life.

This book is a wonderful and spell binding story of the beginnings of the Acumen Fund and Ms. Novogratz's journey from International Banker to being a world leader in helping the poor. Not just giving them a hand out, but truly giving them a way to pull themselves out of poverty through entrepreneurship.

I've read several books in this vein and it's clear to me that blind charity, money thrown at a problem, will not fix it. A plan, that includes helping the poorest of the poor find a way to build on their own initiative is the only way to bring lasting change.

Particularly poignant is the section regarding the Rwanda genocide. Ms. Novogratz worked in Rwanda prior to the genocide and truly gives an insiders view to what happened including interviews of some women in prison for contributing to the massacre.

For anyone interested in helping the poor, the "least of these", this is definitely a book you must read.

More here: http://www.acumenfund.org/bluesweater/

Simply,

Tim



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