Many people have expressed interest in discussing a book together. Equal numbers of folks want to do this online and face to face, so we will see how it works to do both!

While we are working out the details, we have decided to read Small Loans, Big Dreams by Alex Counts. Order your copy now so that you can read with us throughout May.

In his book Small Loans, Big Dreams, Alex Counts looks at the lives of micro-lending borrowers from the Grameen Foundation who live in Bangladesh and Chicago. All of the borrowers are women of little-to-no means struggling to gain financial independence. In Bangladesh, the women face monsoons, poor living conditions and a male-dominated society. In Chicago, the women face crime and other hurdles that come with life in the inner-city.

Small Loans, Big Dreams examines the impact that Muhammad Yunus and his concept of micro-lending had on these two communities, and how Yunus and micro-lending were able to change the lives of the women as they achieved financial independence. Counts demonstrates how micro-lending can significantly affect foreign-aid policies toward impoverished countries and help with the alleviation of poverty in the United States.