Yahoo Lifestyle ‘How to Build a Library’ Review: Compassionate but Uneven Documentary Tracks the Reinvention of a Colonial Era Library in Kenya
How can one tackle the effects of colonialism on indigenous African people more than half a century after most nations on the continent got their independence? In “How to Build a Library,” directors Maia Lekow and Christopher King choose a straightforward, methodical route. Their doc follows two Kenyan women as they try to transform a colonial era derelict library in downtown Nairobi. This humongous task demands patience, tenacity and a willingness to confront the past. Lekow and King bring the same skills to their film, but their task remains too vast and complicated for easy answers.
Shiro (a writer) and Wachuka (a publisher) are first seen in 2018, taking on the project of caring for the McMillian Library, a historical institution privately built by British settlers and currently owned by the government. It’s in horrific shape. Shiro and Wachuka seek to modernize it into something contemporary Kenyans can benefit from. To accomplish that, they must also tackle what to get rid of and what to preserve from Kenya’s colonial past under British rule. Most of the books, documents, photos and art in the library have not changed since before Kenya’s independence.
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With grit and a lot of resilience, Shiro and Wachuka take on the painstaking work of bringing this library back to life. They have to raise funds, run social media campaigns and hold events. They know next to nothing about architecture and rehabilitation of old buildings. Above all, they have to battle government bureaucracy. Every step forward comes with two steps back as allegiances and political power shift.
Wachuka and Shiro are naturals in front of the camera, often lookings straight down the lens and talk passionately about their project. The filmmakers give them the space to express their ideas and backgrounds. They are captured, sometimes, in unguarded moments, revealing more than they intended. Particularly affecting is their expression of the emotional toll of this project on their lives and friendship. There’s still humor and laughter between them, but also tension and strain. The camera remains sensitive when capturing conflict. There are no big dramatic moments; rather, many feelings bubble under a facade of calm and comradeship.
Another source of tension in the narrative is that these two women are new to the library. They are considered outsiders by the group who has been working there before they arrived. In a tense scene, Wachuka and Shiro ask for feedback for their proposals. They try to engender collaboration by framing the session as a conversation, but still get nothing in return. Lekow and King linger on the unsmiling and silent faces on the other side of the conference table. While this is a strong moment in the narrative the filmmakers do not give the audience a sense of who the rest of the employees are. Only the main librarian is given much screen time. This feels like an unexplored part of the story: a thread discarded quickly, lessening its impact.
The filmmakers interview a few people in the community they call “library users.” These short interviews are meant to illuminate who the protagonists want to serve. There are also community meetings where academics and other intellectuals talk about the impact of the colonial era and what they hope the library will stand for after the rehabilitation ends. Again, these offer glimpses into a wider story but never cohere into a full narrative. The focus remains on Wachuka and Shiro, charismatic protagonists with lots of good intentions. But the community they are supposed to be serving never comes to life in “How to Build a Library.”
By ignoring the community, the filmmakers do not offer any answers about colonialism and its current effects on the infrastructure and culture of Kenya. In contrast, their portrait of Shiro and Wachuka is rendered with great empathy. The story of all the obstacles they encounter, particularly with government red tape and corruption, engender sympathy for them and sheds a light on Kenya’s current political situation.
This part makes the film a microcosm of Kenya itself after independence. However, it comes so late it acts as just a coda rather than an integral part of the story. Lekow and King are compassionate filmmakers with a clear eye for Nairobi, the city they call home. However in the end, “How to Build a Library” feels like only half of a well-told story.
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