'What is the What'

by Dave Eggars,
the lifestory of Valentino Achak Deng - one of Sudan's 'Lost Boys'

A harrowing account of a child's life in Sudan, forced from his homeland and family: a survivor of horror and violence, until ending up in a refugee camp in Kenya and from there onto America, where he has succeeded in achieving success out of the chaos of his earlier existence, despite continuing disappointments and failures shadowing his efforts. A testament to his spirit and his amazing acceptance of life's hard knocks, but with a steely determination to struggle towards a better existence.

A cleverly constructed story, with the narrative Achak's conversation with the individuals he comes across in America, re-calling his experiences as he fled from bloodshed and terror, and made all the more poignant by the contrasting realities between then and now. Difficult to put down.