Want to learn the ideas in Mighty Be Our Powers better than ever? Read the world’s #1 book summary of Mighty Be Our Powers by Perseus here.

Read a brief 1-Page Summary or watch video summaries curated by our expert team. Note: this book guide is not affiliated with or endorsed by the publisher or author, and we always encourage you to purchase and read the full book.

Video Summaries of Mighty Be Our Powers

We’ve scoured the Internet for the very best videos on Mighty Be Our Powers, from high-quality videos summaries to interviews or commentary by Perseus.

1-Page Summary of Mighty Be Our Powers

Overview

The most famous people in the world have accomplished something creative, intellectual or entrepreneurial. However, less common are those who use their skills to bring about peace and end a war. Leymah Gbowee did just that by fighting for peace during Liberia’s civil war. She tells this story of how women can change the world when men fail to do so.

Gbowee’s life was filled with hardship. She had to fight for peace in Liberia, and she endured domestic abuse. However, she persevered through it all and ended up on the red carpet with Robert De Niro.

Big Idea #1: Leymah Gbowee’s pleasant life and bright future were interrupted when war broke out in Liberia.

The author, Leymah Gbowee, recalls her high school graduation party. She was seventeen years old at the time and lived with her family in a beautiful African city called Monrovia. Her parents had steady jobs that allowed them to send their four daughters to good schools in Monrovia. The author was excited about going to university where she would study biology and chemistry so that she could become a doctor one day.

They lived a simple life, but they had their own house, car and TVs. They were part of a close community that made sure no one went homeless or hungry.

But, when the war broke out in Liberia, everything changed for them. It all started in 1990.

A war broke out in Liberia between a group of rebels and the government. The NPFL (National Patriotic Front of Liberia), led by Charles Taylor, was trying to overthrow Samuel Doe, the president at the time. The NPFL wanted to take over Monrovia because that’s where Doe held power. At first, it seemed like they would be successful since their goal was within reach. But then another rebel force called LURD started attacking them from behind and caused them to lose ground against Doe’s forces.

Two groups were fighting against the government. They also fought each other. Soon, soldiers began to hold executions in the streets and electricity stopped working. Food became scarce as well.

Suddenly, Gbowee’s Future Uncertain

Big Idea #2: Gbowee’s family fled to Ghana, but when they returned, nothing was the same.

After the rebels arrived in Monrovia, Gbowee would wake up every morning with fear. She was thankful to be alive, but she couldn’t help but feel afraid.

Her family was lucky to find a place in the US embassy. However, they were later relocated on a cargo ship. Her father stayed at the embassy while her mother and sisters moved onto the boat with her. The boat took them from war-torn Liberia to Ghana where they ended up at a refugee camp in Buduburam, thirty miles away from Accra. Although it was safer there than in Liberia, conditions were still bad due to heat and mosquitoes.

News reached them that the president had been captured and tortured to death by rebels. However, it wasn’t safe to go back home until May of 1991 when peacekeeping troops were able to install a new interim government.

Gbowee returned to Monrovia with her family, but it was difficult for her to restart her life. The city had been destroyed by the war and its university as well. She could no longer pursue medical school.

Gbowee’s future changed when she began dating Daniel. She was nineteen and they were just having fun, but then she found out that she was pregnant.

Gbowee was born in Liberia and had a son named Joshua. She then got married to Daniel, who later became abusive towards her. Because of this, she sought work with Unicef as a social worker to help counsel people who were traumatized by the war. It was here that she learned how to be an effective communicator and counselor for those affected by war.