Book Review of “A Path Appears” – Lighting a Path

A Review of A Path Appears by Sam Shaw, UWD Intern. Salem College ’20.

“Hope is like a path in the countryside. Originally, there is nothing – but as people walk this way again and again, a path appears.”

—Lu Xun, Chinese essayist, 1921

In the New York Times bestseller “Half the Sky”, Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn wrenched our hearts and inspired us with the struggles and victories of girls and women all over the world. However, in “A Path Appears” they share how well-intentioned altruism affects us. They take “Half the Sky” to a whole new level, sharing research, stories, and examples of the people who are working to find that new path to a better world.

I first ead “Half the Sky” when I was in high school, and my class watched the documentary. It made an amazing impression on so many of us; inspiring us to give, grow, and search for ways to support our sisters around the globe. We collected menstrual products to send abroad, raised money to buy, transport, and resell products made by entrepreneurial women in developing nations, and we donated to all kinds of GoFundMe operations in hopes we might make a difference.

Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn make it clear in all of their writing that one person, one organization, and one family can make a difference. But, now as a college student, I’ve been reading “A Path Appears” and it has become abundantly clear that this ‘one’ entity has to know what they’re getting themselves into. When we sent menstrual products abroad, I couldn’t tell you if they were being donated freely, resold at an egregious price, or even snatched up by the distributors. I can’t promise that the money we used to buy products made by women went back to expand their work or into their husbands pockets for drinking money.

“A Path Appears” opened my eyes to the dangers of well-intentioned but ill-placed altruism. More than that warning, though, this book shares the stories of awe-inspiring people working hard (some of whom might be in our own backyards) to make successful change. They take funds and put it into programs that send nurses out to the homes of young mothers, they support early childhood education, and they work with programs like ‘Cure Violence’ founded by Dr. Gary Slutkin. His program fights inner-city violence in the U.S. by promoting nothing more than the principles of public health.

This book, substantiated by significant research, shows that finding these new paths is truly up to the citizens. We, all of us, must turn the world around. Despite the mistakes this book unearthed that I might have made with blind altruism in the past, “A Path Appears” offers hope. It is a beacon of light and a promise that, with preparation and practice, we will be able to make significant change. The boats will heed our lighthouses. The moths will fly to our flames. But, first, we must strike a match and be the light.

Find more information on “A Path Appears” can be found here on its official website and here on Amazon. Additionally, you can look into the documentary here.