What Is the What

In a heartrending and astonishing novel, Dave Eggers illuminates the history of the civil war in Sudan through the eyes of Valentino Achak Deng, a refugee now living in the United States. We follow his life as he's driven from his home as a boy and walks, with thousands of orphans, to Ethiopia, where he finds safety -- for a time. Valentino's travels, truly Biblical in scope, bring him in contact with government soldiers, janjaweed-like militias, liberation rebels, hyenas and lions, disease and starvation -- and a string of unexpected romances. Ultimately, Valentino finds safety in Kenya and, just after the millennium, is finally resettled in the United States, from where this novel is narrated. In this book, written with expansive humanity and surprising humor, we come to understand the nature of the conflicts in Sudan, the refugee experience in America, the dreams of the Dinka people, and the challenge one indomitable man faces in a world collapsing around him. Dave Eggers is the author of A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, You Shall Know Our Velocity!, and How We Are Hungry. He is the editor of the literary quarterly McSweeney's and the founder of 826 Valencia, a San Francisco writing lab for young people. He lives in Iceland and California. Veteran actor and narrator Dion Graham currently appears on The Wire on HBO and narrates The First 48 on A & E, as well as various projects for the BBC and PBS. He has performed on and Off-Broadway, internationally, in films, and in several hit television series. Critically acclaimed, his performances and narration have been praised as thoughtful and compelling, vivid and full of life.