A Long Walk to Water - Linda Sue Park
I usually only read fiction, but this one was recommended to me by Monika.
Book Cover: Nya is going to the pond to fetch water for her family - there and back, twice. She walks for eight hours every day.
Salva is walking away from his ruined village to find safety - if there is any safety in his war-torn homeland. His journey across Africa to Ethiopia and then to Kenya and beyond will take many years.
Two young people...two stories. One country: Sudan.
This mesmerizing dual narrative by Linda Sue Park shows us that in a troubled country, determined survivors may find the future they are hoping for.
This was a very moving story about two individuals who dealt with many difficulties in their young lives. The story made me think about how much we take the little every day necessities, like water, for granted. We just turn on the faucet and, voila - there is water. We waste it every day and don't think twice about how many ice cubes we put in our glass, how long our shower takes, how much we use to wash our clothes or the car, how it quenches our thirst whenever we want it.
Salva now uses his resources to help dig wells in Southern Sudan - how rewarding for him to be able to help others, when he struggled to stay alive with little help from anyone. And today, the news headlines read that Southern Sudan has become an independent nation and will now hopefully be free of war and killing.
Finished: July 9, 2011. A book that should be read by all Americans, especially those who think life is terrible if we don't get everything we want.
Book Cover: Nya is going to the pond to fetch water for her family - there and back, twice. She walks for eight hours every day.
Salva is walking away from his ruined village to find safety - if there is any safety in his war-torn homeland. His journey across Africa to Ethiopia and then to Kenya and beyond will take many years.
Two young people...two stories. One country: Sudan.
This mesmerizing dual narrative by Linda Sue Park shows us that in a troubled country, determined survivors may find the future they are hoping for.
This was a very moving story about two individuals who dealt with many difficulties in their young lives. The story made me think about how much we take the little every day necessities, like water, for granted. We just turn on the faucet and, voila - there is water. We waste it every day and don't think twice about how many ice cubes we put in our glass, how long our shower takes, how much we use to wash our clothes or the car, how it quenches our thirst whenever we want it.
Salva now uses his resources to help dig wells in Southern Sudan - how rewarding for him to be able to help others, when he struggled to stay alive with little help from anyone. And today, the news headlines read that Southern Sudan has become an independent nation and will now hopefully be free of war and killing.
Finished: July 9, 2011. A book that should be read by all Americans, especially those who think life is terrible if we don't get everything we want.
I also read this book and blogged about it. It wouldn't have been a book I chose either, but it was recommended and I loved it. Quick read, but very thought provoking. It is amazing what we take for granted.
ReplyDeletehttp://literacyzone.blogspot.com/2011/05/long-walk-to-water.html