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A review by bethpeninger
A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park
3.0
South Sudan has a long, hard history. Life is not easy in South Sudan and hasn't been maybe ever.
In 1985 Salva ran from his school into the bush when rebels started attacking his village. All young boys were encouraged to run and hide lest they be snatched up and forced to become soldiers for the rebels. There are two groups of Lost Boys - those who ran, successfully hid, and escaped to refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya and those who were captured by rebels and forced to become child soldiers and do unspeakable things. Salva fell into the former, thankfully.
In 2008, Nya's life consisted of walking to water, gathering water, and delivering water back to her family home. That's all she did every single day. She did not go to school. She did not have playtime. She only got water, necessary for living, day in and day out. But the water she retrieved was muddy, filthy, and made some people like her toddler sister very ill. During the wet season, she walked to and from the pond - a two hours walk each way - twice a day every day. During the dry season, she dug in a clay pit for water underneath and that took all day.
After escaping to a refugee camp in Ethiopia, a harrowing, terrifying, and sad journey, Salva spent the next decade plus living as a refugee in Ethiopia and then Kenya. He hoped to go to America one day. And in his early 20s, Salva's name appeared on the list. He was finally going to America. His American family helped him learn English and get an education and Salva hoped that maybe someone in his family was still alive. One day he received an email from a cousin and it resulted in Salva traveling back to South Sudan for the first time in 6 years. As a result of that visit back to his home country, Salva had an idea to bring water to the people.
In 2009 some strange men, who spoke a strange language, came to Nya's village. They claimed there was water under the ground. How ridiculous, thought Nya. I know every inch of this land and there is no water under the ground, it's not possible. But the men knew something Nya didn't and soon they returned with strange machines and loud noises. One day water came from under the ground! The men were right! And because Nya and her people could get water right there in the village and not have to travel miles each day, a school was built and Nya was going to get an education. It was a dream come true, Nya could be more than just a water carrier.
A simple and quick read, Park was still able to convey some of the more distressing experiences Salva had in escaping Sudan for Ethiopia. She was able to provide a realistic picture of what life is like for girls who live in villages where there is no well and water is hours away by foot. They get no education, no childhood, there is no purpose to their life except to keep retrieving water. It's another reminder of how life-giving and essential water is, not just for physical life but for LIFE.
In 1985 Salva ran from his school into the bush when rebels started attacking his village. All young boys were encouraged to run and hide lest they be snatched up and forced to become soldiers for the rebels. There are two groups of Lost Boys - those who ran, successfully hid, and escaped to refugee camps in Ethiopia and Kenya and those who were captured by rebels and forced to become child soldiers and do unspeakable things. Salva fell into the former, thankfully.
In 2008, Nya's life consisted of walking to water, gathering water, and delivering water back to her family home. That's all she did every single day. She did not go to school. She did not have playtime. She only got water, necessary for living, day in and day out. But the water she retrieved was muddy, filthy, and made some people like her toddler sister very ill. During the wet season, she walked to and from the pond - a two hours walk each way - twice a day every day. During the dry season, she dug in a clay pit for water underneath and that took all day.
After escaping to a refugee camp in Ethiopia, a harrowing, terrifying, and sad journey, Salva spent the next decade plus living as a refugee in Ethiopia and then Kenya. He hoped to go to America one day. And in his early 20s, Salva's name appeared on the list. He was finally going to America. His American family helped him learn English and get an education and Salva hoped that maybe someone in his family was still alive. One day he received an email from a cousin and it resulted in Salva traveling back to South Sudan for the first time in 6 years. As a result of that visit back to his home country, Salva had an idea to bring water to the people.
In 2009 some strange men, who spoke a strange language, came to Nya's village. They claimed there was water under the ground. How ridiculous, thought Nya. I know every inch of this land and there is no water under the ground, it's not possible. But the men knew something Nya didn't and soon they returned with strange machines and loud noises. One day water came from under the ground! The men were right! And because Nya and her people could get water right there in the village and not have to travel miles each day, a school was built and Nya was going to get an education. It was a dream come true, Nya could be more than just a water carrier.
A simple and quick read, Park was still able to convey some of the more distressing experiences Salva had in escaping Sudan for Ethiopia. She was able to provide a realistic picture of what life is like for girls who live in villages where there is no well and water is hours away by foot. They get no education, no childhood, there is no purpose to their life except to keep retrieving water. It's another reminder of how life-giving and essential water is, not just for physical life but for LIFE.