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4.13 AVERAGE
4.13 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This book totally made me rethink my position on Dave Eggers. I really hated A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius but when not writing about himself Eggers is very effective. This is an incredibly moving, engrossing true story about one of the Lost Boys from Sudan, and Eggers clear, simple prose style and narrative devices work incredibly well. And reading the little about the author blurb in the back reminded me that Dave Eggers has done a lot of really good things with his money and notoriety. Rock on Dave!
I love Dave Eggers, but this is my least favorite of his books that I've read. I do think it's important for people to learn about the Lost Boys of Sudan, but be prepared to get extremely depressed.
This is for my book club. This book is a harrowing account of one of the Lost Boys of Sudan - when his village was attacked, Achak walked hundreds of miles across the Sudan. It also covers his years in refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, and touches on the difficulties he faced once he came to the U.S. Sometimes it was hard to keep reading, knowing that it was going to be bleak - but there are flashes of humor that keep it from all becoming too depressing.
What is the What is one of those books that needs to be explained, reviewed, gushed over in vague, but glowing, buzzwords.
Fascinating.
Harrowing.
Touching.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
It is, indeed, all of these things. And hard to talk about without giving it those, and more, words of praise. None, however, quite capture it though.
What is the What is the fictionalized Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, which causes for some early confusion. Valentino Achak Deng is, in fact, a real person, and the events in this book are, for the most part, real events. However, writer Dave Eggers has shortened timelines, moved events around, and added some literary license to make for a better story. But it’s hard to tell how much is Eggers and how much is Deng. The voice of the narrator is so complete, that it’s easy to buy this as just a straightforward autobiography. Things that I think of as being Eggers-y, sort of a postmodern clown who can add humor and insight to unbelievably sad occurrences, are here, but not in abundance. And even when they do show up, they don’t sound like Eggers. Maybe that’s how the two became friends, they share similar traits. Deng’s story is much sadder and horrific than Eggers’s (Eggers lost both his parents in a short period of time and then became the primary guardian of his 10-year old brother (a story he told in his acclaimed memoir, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.)) Even if it is Eggers’s influence, Deng tells his story of political unrest, violence, and displacement in his home country of Sudan to the culture shock of his move to the United States with more hope and humor than a soul-crushing sadness (which would have been easy, even understandable.)
Deng’s humor in the story isn’t one of naiveté either. He is, instead, capable of a subtle form of observational humor. And the book is an easier read because of this. Neither Deng nor Eggers want to have you bawl your eyes out; they don’t even seem to want anything from the reader. They just want Deng’s story, and all the Sudanese who Deng’s story stands in for, to be told. If it’s sad, then be sad. If it’s funny, then laugh. If it makes you outraged, then be outraged. But it doesn’t ask for you to be any of these things necessarily, it just has the power to illicit them. And that is the mark of solid storytelling.
Fascinating.
Harrowing.
Touching.
A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.
It is, indeed, all of these things. And hard to talk about without giving it those, and more, words of praise. None, however, quite capture it though.
What is the What is the fictionalized Autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, which causes for some early confusion. Valentino Achak Deng is, in fact, a real person, and the events in this book are, for the most part, real events. However, writer Dave Eggers has shortened timelines, moved events around, and added some literary license to make for a better story. But it’s hard to tell how much is Eggers and how much is Deng. The voice of the narrator is so complete, that it’s easy to buy this as just a straightforward autobiography. Things that I think of as being Eggers-y, sort of a postmodern clown who can add humor and insight to unbelievably sad occurrences, are here, but not in abundance. And even when they do show up, they don’t sound like Eggers. Maybe that’s how the two became friends, they share similar traits. Deng’s story is much sadder and horrific than Eggers’s (Eggers lost both his parents in a short period of time and then became the primary guardian of his 10-year old brother (a story he told in his acclaimed memoir, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.)) Even if it is Eggers’s influence, Deng tells his story of political unrest, violence, and displacement in his home country of Sudan to the culture shock of his move to the United States with more hope and humor than a soul-crushing sadness (which would have been easy, even understandable.)
Deng’s humor in the story isn’t one of naiveté either. He is, instead, capable of a subtle form of observational humor. And the book is an easier read because of this. Neither Deng nor Eggers want to have you bawl your eyes out; they don’t even seem to want anything from the reader. They just want Deng’s story, and all the Sudanese who Deng’s story stands in for, to be told. If it’s sad, then be sad. If it’s funny, then laugh. If it makes you outraged, then be outraged. But it doesn’t ask for you to be any of these things necessarily, it just has the power to illicit them. And that is the mark of solid storytelling.
Will get back to it, hopefully! Just couldn't get into it while I'm in a reading slump
Este libro es impactante. La historia de uno de los Lost Boys de Sudán, su recorrido por África para escapar de la matanza junto a otros miles de niños y todos los horrores que tienen que enfrentar.
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
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:
Complicated
Whenever I thought of Sudan I thought of War, starvation and orphans - basically everything I had seen on the news. I had no real understanding of the extremity and magnitude of the situation. Here, Dave Eggers uses his subject and voice of the novel Achak Deng to provide an almost first hand testimonial. Deng's story is a tough one and he has no doubt suffered more than any Westerner like me can comprehend, but it is the fictionialisation of his plight that, for me, causes issues with his message.
I found there to be a surprising lack of heart to the story. This maybe intentional to highlight the disconnection Deng feels from his native land, but it may be a problem of Egger's interpreting Deng. Both Deng and Eggers admit to certain embellishments and it's these embellishments that undermine what is a very important story. Attempting to tie in events in Deng's life to historical events like 9/11 makes it seem a little too neat and strangely almost bordering on farcical.
This is ultimately a rightly hard read, I'm pleased I've read it, pleased to have heard Deng's story but I'm not sure it's entirely successful in its objectives
I found there to be a surprising lack of heart to the story. This maybe intentional to highlight the disconnection Deng feels from his native land, but it may be a problem of Egger's interpreting Deng. Both Deng and Eggers admit to certain embellishments and it's these embellishments that undermine what is a very important story. Attempting to tie in events in Deng's life to historical events like 9/11 makes it seem a little too neat and strangely almost bordering on farcical.
This is ultimately a rightly hard read, I'm pleased I've read it, pleased to have heard Deng's story but I'm not sure it's entirely successful in its objectives