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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Every once in a while, I read a book that leaves a huge impression on me. A book that teaches me things about the world, whether those things are good or bad. This was one of those books. Although it is a novel, I could feel everything that happened to Valentino ... and the atrocities of civil wars is so heartbreaking.
I will do my best to learn more about the Lost Boys and Lost Girls of Sudan.
I will do my best to learn more about the Lost Boys and Lost Girls of Sudan.
I think what struck me most about this book was when it was pointed out that Americans look at refugee camps as temporary. But Deng points out that he quite literally grew up in a refugee camp. That re-framed my view of the entire book.
This was a very powerful book about what it really means to be a refugee, how so many in this world live and conduct lives in these camps, and how being "saved" isn't always the dramatic, life saving event it seems to be.
This was a very powerful book about what it really means to be a refugee, how so many in this world live and conduct lives in these camps, and how being "saved" isn't always the dramatic, life saving event it seems to be.
I felt sorry for Deng in the begining, but as the book wore on I was quite annoyed with his litany of complaints and endless whinging. This sounded like a story of survival that would be fascinating and interesting to read, but I found it quite the opposite.
Not sure what I learned from the book except to gain an awareness of the plight of the Dinka/Sudanese people.
Not sure what I learned from the book except to gain an awareness of the plight of the Dinka/Sudanese people.
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
"The heartbreaking biography of Southern Sudanese refugee Valentino Achak Deng, crafted into a fictional account by Dave Eggers. This is not a happy book, and I'm still unsure as to how I feel about it, other than the atrocities he describes have reminded me not to become complacent. Children are eaten by lions, every character you care about dies, and the much sought-after destinations that the refugees long for bring little respite and new dangers. Selected passages:
The khawaja [white man] is an interesting thing, son. He is very smart. He has things in his head that you would not believe. He knows many languages, and the names of villages and towns, and can fly airplanes and drive cars. The white men are born knowing all of these things. He is powerful in this way, and very useful, very helpful to us. When you see a white man, it means things are going to improve.
Because I was a youth educator, I became well-versed in the language of health and the human body, of sexually transmitted diseaes and prophylactic measures. Often I spoke too informally with young women, and confused the language of health class with the language of love. I once ruined my chances with a young woman named Frances by asking if she was developing correctly for her age. My exact words were: Hello Frances, I have just been to health class, and I was wondering how your feminine parts were developing."
This is an incredible book. It deserves a 4.5, but drat! That's not an option. Since I live in Atlanta, Achak's story was immediately relevant (and kind of amusing that he survived the Sudanese Civil War, but his thoughts on Atlanta? Now THAT'S somewhere you don't wanna be). Piedmont Hospital, North DeKalb Mall, Georgia Perimeter College... all these locations are part of my everyday lexicon and life and helped me relate to Achak and his experience all the more. It brought Sudan HERE. To America. To my everyday life. I don't think any other book I've ever read has so successfully connected me with the conflict of a foreign nation and helped me to understand and empathize with it.
I listened to the book on audiobook (uploaded from CDs to my iPod), which caused some problems because the discs would sometimes run out of order and I got confused because the book would jump around from different time periods and places so it wasn't immediately clear to me when I was listening to the wrong disc. This probably cut down some of my enjoyment, understanding, and appreciation of the book, by no fault of its own. Dion Graham's reading is spot-on and engaging.
The voice in which Dave Eggers writes and the dialogue he's reconstructed read as genuine (for the most part). I would be interested in a sequel actually written by Achak Deng in his own words to see how accurately Dave Eggers depicted him.
Overall, a powerful, heartbreaking, inspiring book.
**SPOILER (kind of)**
The What is Achak's Matrix-like choice to leave what he has been given (Sudan and the conflict) and the unknown. The What is unpredictable, scary, maybe is even sometimes worse than the cows of Sudan, but allows for that bright light of POSSIBILITY.
I listened to the book on audiobook (uploaded from CDs to my iPod), which caused some problems because the discs would sometimes run out of order and I got confused because the book would jump around from different time periods and places so it wasn't immediately clear to me when I was listening to the wrong disc. This probably cut down some of my enjoyment, understanding, and appreciation of the book, by no fault of its own. Dion Graham's reading is spot-on and engaging.
The voice in which Dave Eggers writes and the dialogue he's reconstructed read as genuine (for the most part). I would be interested in a sequel actually written by Achak Deng in his own words to see how accurately Dave Eggers depicted him.
Overall, a powerful, heartbreaking, inspiring book.
**SPOILER (kind of)**
The What is Achak's Matrix-like choice to leave what he has been given (Sudan and the conflict) and the unknown. The What is unpredictable, scary, maybe is even sometimes worse than the cows of Sudan, but allows for that bright light of POSSIBILITY.
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I had a hard time making it through this book because of the injustice and the unfairness, and thinking about my son who is Achak's age at the beginning of the book living through this. It was very difficult. However, it is good to better understand what it is like to be a refugee, and to get a good slap in the face of what really is important in life.