Reviews

What Is the What by Dave Eggers

marielle68's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

elizabethwillett's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

julieodette's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective slow-paced

3.75

a13xander's review against another edition

informative sad slow-paced

2.25

The story of Valentino Achak Deng is amazing and unbelievable. The way Dave Eggers told it was not. It took me almost five months to finish this book and that's even considering I had to skim through some of it, otherwise I firmly think it'd taken me six or seven months. The reason for that is merely the storytelling. 

Throughout this book I found myself thinking this was great and even recommending the book to people - but then it hit me that even though the stories in Achak's life are so incredible, full of pain and distress, and that one can't help but feel sympathy for him and all the people in Sudan -the storytelling was just not up to par, and it made the book so much less enjoyable. 

I do think this needs to be read just to learn about the implications in the story itself, but I would even say watching a documentary on it would be better and far more exciting. Overall I would say it was a poor execution. 

bry_duh's review

adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

lisawhelpley's review against another edition

5.0

A must-read. You learn a lot, learn what you SHOULD already know, and the writing is excellent.

kristenmcsorley's review

dark emotional hopeful inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

aesavage94's review

4.0

Incredibly long, but worth it in the end.

cseibs's review

2.0

Eye-opener. Worth the read if only for the perspective on Sudan.

rebcamuse's review

5.0

To call this a "novel" might underestimate its truth and urgency. This is very much a work of non-fiction. The life of Valentino Achak Deng is representative of thousands upon thousands of lives in Sudan and their tales of struggle and oppression. While the book sensitively addresses a topic that is heartbreaking in and of itself, the narration is not overly sentimentalized. Eggers and Deng weave in humor, joy, and small victories through the tragedies of the Lost Boys of Sudan.

Valentino Achak Deng is both evidence of the resiliency of the human spirit and a beacon of hope for the future. There are moments in the book that call us out of our comfortable existence, and there are moments when we recognize that from which we also seek refuge. It is a compelling read about the human condition and should be compulsory reading for anyone wishing to remain ignorant about the struggles of Africa. To ignore Sudan is to ignore humankind.