WHAT IS THE WHAT

One of the best ways to begin the new year was by reading what was one of the best and most unexpected Christmas gifts given to me this year – WHAT IS THE WHAT, the autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng – a novel by Dave Eggers. For those of you in the know, re: Eggers, this is not another foray into post irony, nor is it lathered in self-consciousness, waspy humor, or the angsty introspection of a upper middle class gen-x’er. Not to say I dont love all those things in his previous novels. They are, in fact, what make them so great. Instead, WHAT IS THE WHAT is written in the voice of the real life Valentino Achak Deng, who, well, Ill just let Valentino say it himself:

This book is the soulful account of my life: from the time I was separated from my family in Marial Bai, Sudan to the thirteen years I spent in Ethiopian and Kenyan refugee camps, to my encounters with vibrant Western cultures, in Atlanta and elsewhere.

As you read this book, you will learn about the two and a half million people who have perished in Sudan’s civil war. I was just a boy when the war began. As a helpless human, I survived by trekking across many punishing landscapes while being bombed by Sudanese air forces, while dodging land mines, while being preyed upon by wild beasts and human killers. I fed on unknown fruits, vegetables, leaves, animal carcasses and sometimes went with nothing for days. At certain points, the difficulty was unbearable. I hated myself and attempted to take my own life. Many of my friends, and thousands of my fellow countrymen, did not make it through these struggles alive…

And yet Valentino lives, and lives a story that is both heartwrenching and uplifting, despairing and inspiring. I could go on and on about the book, but would never do it justice. Just read it. Please, please read it.

For more, check out this report from NPR, or go to Valentino’s website.