- Welcome to POV.
I'm Pete Schwaba, host of PBS Wisconsin's Director's Cut.
"Library books smell particularly nice."
That is a great quote from one of the characters
in tonight's documentary How to Build a Library,
a film featuring two Kenyan women
who set out to restore Nairobi's storied McMillan Library.
The McMillan library opened in 1931
when Kenya was still a British colony.
It's a beautiful Neoclassical-designed structure,
but unfortunately, Black Kenyans were not allowed
inside the establishment until 1958.
Even though Kenya achieved its political independence in 1963,
scholars to this day claim there are still remnants
of deep-seated colonialism in the country.
Despite that, the library has been a beacon for Kenyans
and played a prominent role in the 1970s
during the country's emerging intellectual movement.
Protagonists Shiro Koinange and Angela Wachuka
are charismatic access characters
who exude resilience and passion
as they navigate the local political field
while also raising money
for the restoration of the crumbling building
and in effect, bringing an entirely new attitude to Kenya.
Koinange and Wachuka were so committed to their mission,
they left their professions to take on the task
of making an old, formerly whites-only library
a cultural community hub of new activity in Nairobi.
How to Build a Library is directed
by husband-and-wife team Maia Lekow and Christopher King.
Lekow is of Kenyan descent and also a musician,
and King is a native Australian filmmaker
who has lived in Nairobi since 2006.
Lekow and King met this dynamic duo eight years ago
when Maia was working in the music business with Shiro,
and Chris was doing some filming with Waschuka
when she was an editor
for Africa's most contemporary publishing house.
The women told the directors it was their dream
to renovate the old colonial library in downtown Nairobi,
and the cameras started rolling.
Chris King says a nice subplot of the film
was showing people how exciting modern-day Nairobi is
and showing a side of the city
that most people have never seen.
King says what's really exciting
is taking the film to different communities
to show the struggles overcome by these two women
who say they are trying to change their world
to what they want instead of what they've inherited,
adding that their biggest challenge
was to decolonize the libraries themselves,
as most of the books populating the facility
were written by white men.
Thanks to our protagonists, before long,
the library shelves were stocked with books
by African and international writers.
When Lekow and King were asked in a recent interview
what books they are reading, Lekow said, "Not many,"
as the couple now has two young children.
When they're ready to start reading again,
I'm sure they'll know exactly where
they can get some great books.
How to Build a Library starts now on PBS Wisconsin,
your home for independent film.