Twenty-Seven Dollars and a Dream: How Muhammad Yunus Changed the World and What It Cost Him

Twenty-Seven Dollars and a Dream: How Muhammad Yunus Changed the World and What It Cost Him tells the riveting story of Muhammad Yunus's life-long struggle to end global poverty. When Muhammad Yunus lent $27 dollars to 42 women in rural Bangladesh, he sparked what became the microcredit movement that has empowered millions of poor women in nearly 100 countries. Yunus was awarded the Nobel Prize for Peace in 2006, the US Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2009 and the US Congressional Gold Medal on April 17, 2013. Social psychologist Katharine Esty paints a cool-eyed and richly textured portrait of this charismatic and controversial hero of our time.

Twenty-Seven Dollars and a Dream captures the drama of Yunus's story- the challenges, betrayals and astonishing successes from his founding of the Grameen Bank in 1983 to his removal from his position at the Bank in 2011. Undaunted by his ouster, Yunus is using his celebrity status to promote social businesses around the world. Katharine Esty shows how it happened that one person has been able to change the world and she provides guidance for all those who wish to make a difference themselves.

The book is filled with fascinating stories about Yunus from his colleagues, his family and his critics. Katharine Esty's personal impressions of Muhammad Yunus and her experiences in Bangladesh add additional spice to Twenty-Seven Dollars and a Dream. This book is a wonderful way to learn about microcredit and it provides insight into the strategies and patterns of actions that undergird Yunus's ongoing successes.