'What is the What' is essentially a novelistic autobiography of Valentino Achak Deng, one of the thousands of Sudan's 'Lost Boys'--small children who walked the breadth of Sudan alone to escape a vicious civil war. Some of the lucky children were eventually rehomed in the West but many mainly boys but some girls spent years living in refugee camps, relying on foreign nationals for all their needs, never knowing if their other family members were alive or dead.

The book opens with Achak undergoing a home invasion by an American black couple in his adopted home of Atlanta, Georgia. The story that follows is a series of mental monologues between Achak, his present oppressors and a hospital receptionist who delays treating him of his injuries because he is uninsured, bit by bit telling them and us, of his ardous journey up to that point and some of the extraordinary people he met along the way.

Some of the minor characters and conversations are fictional, however, the book also reminds us of the incredible resilience of the survivors and that not all refugees are granted asylum whilst giving some background in to a now almost forgotten civil war.

Despite the author describing some really grim events his prose retains a relatively light touch, allowing both humour and sorrow. This isn't and easy read and I had a few minor quibbles. I felt that the editing could have been better as at times it felt a little unbalanced nor was I totally sure as to believe some parts of it, even the author admits many of the refugees' tales sound remarkably alike, but overall I found this a fascinating and enlightening piece of writing about a conflict that I was only vaguely aware of. This is my first experience of the author's work but I hope that it won't be my last.

It took me a million years to finish reading this book. Even up to the very end, 30 pages from the end, then 20, then 10, then 5, I kept thinking, "Isn't this over yet?" I keep wondering if not being crazy about this novel makes me a bastard, because not only does the book aim to educate people about the staggering crisis in southern Sudan, but Dave Eggers donated 100% of the proceeds to help build schools, public libraries, etc., in the protagonist's war-torn village. It just struck me as being very monotonous... which, again, seems like a horrendous thing to say. The guy was forced to live in a refugee camp for ten years, so monotony was what defined his life for a very long time. I can't figure out if it was the actual events that I found boring (which would make me a soulless ghoul for sure), or if it was the narration. Looking at other reviews, it does seem that some other readers struggled to finish this book as well. I find discussing the book more interesting than the actual reading of it, namely, debating about Eggers's decision to write the book as a work of fiction despite the fact that the protagonist is a living person. Eggers said in numerous interviews that he initially started writing this as a work of nonfiction, but his own voice kept getting in the way, and it was only after deciding to write it as fiction that he felt sufficiently freed up to let Valentino Achek Deng's voice shine through (whuh?). But some reviewer who clearly has an axe to grind with Dave Eggers (how can anybody be pissed at Dave Eggers, by the way? It'd be like hating Wally Cleaver) cited a paragraph from this book and compared it alongside a paragraph from A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, and there were undeniable similarities - I say "some reviewer" because I no longer have any recollection, but I seem to remember it being a "real" reviewer writing for a "real" publication... I would Google it, but I need to shower for the first time in days (I couldn't before now because I had to finish this book - I swear, it was frickin' arduous)... anyway, debates about the author's decisions aside, I have to pitch in my lot with all the people who were less than over the moon about this book. Although I will say that those people seem inordinately, illogically pissed at Dave Eggers himself, and my theory is that they're overcompensating in an attempt to alleviate their guilt because in the end, if you don't like this book, you're a bastard. By extension, if you don't read this book, you're a bastard. So there! Welcome to the club!

Disclaimer upfront: I thought A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius was overrated, and And They Shall Know Our Velocity was atrocious. So overall, not a huge fan of Eggers and don’t think him this leader of contemporary fiction so many others do. What is the What, however, is the best of the 3 Eggers books I’ve read, and it is a fine work. This book is a detailed glimpse at the life of one of the Lost Boys of Sudan – a fictionalized account of the actual life of Valentino Achak Deng, a Sudanese refugee now living in America. Eggers apparently spent a lot of time speaking to Achak and getting his life story: how he lived, why he fled, how horrific his flight to Ethiopian refugee camps was, what life was like in that camp, his transition to living in America, etc. Eggers also uses an interesting narrative trick: Achak narrates his story to different people around him in the book. At the beginning of the story, Achak is robbed in his Atlanta home and then bound and gagged. A young boy named Michael is assigned to watch over him. The first third of Achak’s story is narrated to Michael. Achak is then taken to a hospital to treat his wounds, and he narrates some of his story to the registration nurse at the hospital while he waits. This is a great device, as it feels like Achak is aware that people around him are staring at him and judging him, and he has so much of his experience to share with others around him that explain who he is and what he has been through that he mentally details his life to them. The prose in this book is first-rate because of this structure and unique voice. My only problem with this book was that it was nearly 500 pages long and it feels it. Unlike Special Topics in Calamity Physics that didn’t feel its length, this book does. Eggers (through Achak) early on states that the Sudanese like to speak (and speak and speak). You can imagine these interview sessions between Eggers and the real-life Achak, and picture Achak talking for hours. So Eggers captures all of the very many details and experiences related by Achak to us. I understand that, but this book still felt a bit too long. Minor gripe; Eggers deserves the praise he’s getting for his book this time.

This was the most amazing book I've ever read. There were times I just wanted to put it down, some of the events were just too much to handle and I wondered whether it was worth being brought down to such dark depths. But even through the unbelievably sad and shocking things that happened to Achak, the narration is so incredible and personal. I couldn't stop reading, and I couldn't stop thinking about him. In the past few weeks that I've been reading this, Achak is always on my mind, he's with me wherever I go, telling me his story. It's incredible that someone could go through so much and continue to maintain the will to live. Despite the risk of depression, I think this book is incredibly important to read. It's one of those stories that forces you to recognize what an unfathomably huge place this world is, and that things happen every day that would be almost impossible for most of us to even imagine. A big part of the story deals with the fact that something this horrific can be happening to so many people, and most of the world is almost completely unaware. Reading a book like this puts my own life into perspective, and although it's not feasible to constantly maintain a downward comparison (because let's face it, no matter who you are, there's always someone who's worse off), it forces you to recognize that your own problems are so insignificant in the grand scheme of things.

Dave Eggers did an incredible job telling Achak's story - his narration is so simple and easy to read, but very eloquent and powerful at the same time. I've read reviews that say differently, but I swear I really believed that this was the voice of Achak telling his story. So although it was exhausting to go through one horrible incident after another, it was still difficult to put it down.

The last page is one of the most beautiful things I've read and it moved me to tears, the whole concept that we're all on this earth together and we should all recognize each other's existence and love each other, because in the end through all of our differences, we have this incredible thing in common, which is life.

I'm having trouble coming up with the right word to describe reading this book. "Enjoyed" is definitely not the right word - although the book is well-written, it's hard to call it enjoyable, nor is it trying to be. Moving? Something seems facile and reductionist about that, to reduce the story to something that affected me briefly, as if it is all about me.

Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.

In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook

Alhoewel ik (nog steeds) geen grote fan ben van de schrijfstijl van Eggers gebruikt hij voor mij denk ik wel een ideaal register om dit verhaal te vertellen, dus in die zin was hij mogelijks de ideale schrijver voor het gefictionaliseerde levensverhaal van Valentino Achak Deng. Soms heel sober, met vleugjes humor en vaak droge beschrijvingen van situaties die voor ons enkel het onderdeel zijn van onze nachtmerries. Het verhaal is zwaar en ik las tussendoor enkele andere 'lichtere' boeken (wat een luxe) maar het is helaas nog steeds zeer actueel (zeker gezien de huidige situatie in Zuid-Soedan, maar evengoed Gaza). Niet alleen de gruwel van een burgeroorlog wordt weergegeven maar ook: wat gebeurt er daarna met wie het overleefde als de thuis die ze kenden gewoonweg niet meer bestaat. Een must-read dus wel voor mij. 1

I liked this book and I do feel guilty for not loving it; I thought that I would. It’s my kind of book. I adore Dave Eggers. I was moved by Valentino Achak Deng’s story and the stories of the various other Sudanese refugees, and was interested in learning more about the events of the war in Sudan. I’m delighted that the proceeds from this book go to good causes: to fund the college education of Valentino Achak Deng, with distributions to other Sudanese refugees in America, and to rebuilding southern Sudan, in particular Marial Bai, where Deng is from.

But something was missing for me in my experience of this book.

I always have a difficult time enjoying novels that are basically biographies; I appreciate knowing what is real and what is fiction.

Also, I didn’t enjoy Egger’s technique of having the protagonist (Deng) tell his story to the many various people in his vicinity or those on his mind. I’m not sure why as I love the storytelling form. But it didn’t work for me here. I felt distance vs. intimacy.

And when it came down to it, while I was interested in the man and the events in his life, the book felt too long to me. That’s never a good sign. Usually, I hate it when a book ends and I wish it was longer and I had more to read. Maybe better editing would have helped?

I know that I’m in the minority here; most seem to love the book. Maybe in retrospect I will or maybe I my views will shift after my book club discussion.

Ik zou meer als 5 sterren willen geven! Een gruwelijk meeslepend verhaal vertelt vanuit een naïve en onschuldige jongentjes blik. Het leven over opgroeien in Soedan, vluchten voor een burgeroorlog, opgroeien in vluchtelingenkampen om ten slotte als vluchteling in de Westerse wereld terrecht te komen.

ugh.... I had read Heartbreaking Work and did not enjoy it, but I thought I'd give Eggers another chance. I'm plodding through this book and have been since March. I'm sad about it, because I'm interested by the subject matter. Oh well, lots of people disagree with me, so "you don't have to take MY word for it!"

I give it 4 stars out of 5, maybe a 4.2 if it was possible.
How could I give anything less than 5 stars for this?
It was just ... too damn long.

Trauma Book Rule #1: Keep it mercifully short!

Can you really achieve the catharsis benefit that is to be had if you don't write down the whole thing? Maybe not. So, write as much down as necessary. Keep a copy. Then, edit liberally if you hope to effectively reach a wider audience. Give them the gist, and let them ask for more. Don't force too much on them.

Reading trauma is a select audience. Those who have never faced trauma tend to look away from it. They can't really endure it. For those unfamiliar with any experience of trauma, it has to be doled out in small doses amidst something adequately distracting in some other direction. Such a person probably couldn't last long with this story. This story was thoroughly epic scale trauma, ... and you just couldn't tell half this story to most people.

I sat next to a Lost Boy on a flight many years ago and--long story short--I got some of his story out of him. It was ... unfathomable. His story was not the same as this book. Maybe he gave me a mercifully short version. We talked much of the flight, but there is a too long point to be honored, and I think we both felt that point and relented. I picked this book up, wanting to know more about the history. This didn't really convey that to me well, but better than he did. Minor deduction there on the overarching history. Anyway, I thought it would be rough, because his story was unfathomable, ... and yet I didn't realize this trauma was going to be even half the sh@$%t show that it turned out to be. Absolutely unbelievable trauma. How can a human being take that much and still put one foot in front of the other? It defies belief.

It is those of us, who've faced trauma, ... perhaps a fair bit of it ... that truly empathize with such material. We've seen trauma. We ... can't stop thinking about it ... try as we might. We can't hardly look away. We invariably gravitate back to its orbit. This is a story of incredible, complex trauma. However, we do suffer will it never end syndrome. Let us see your story. Let us empathize. But, please don't belabor it. Be very select on the rabbit holes. Don't give it short shrift or a superficial treatment ... but be merciful. A difficult/impossible balance to strike? Maybe. But when it's interminable, or seems that way, we won't be able to finish, and then we won't rate it, or we won't rate it well, and we won't tell others to read it. And, this story should be heard. This story should be known. I don't talk about it much, but no one I have talked to about it had any prior knowledge that this was a thing.

This was an incredible story. However, the framing within the context of a home invasion and assault in America was ... odd. I did not like that ... not the way it was told. It isn't really clear what did or did not actually happen in this book, and ... I thought it was 100% a true story when I started. Was disappointed to learn it might be otherwise. Some clarification on that front is critical and wasn't there. In any case, while being assaulted in America is traumatic too, ... it seemed like this must have been the focus from the outset for a particular reason that somehow adds value to the story ... but that good reason never materialized. No where ... America included ... is some ideal paradise. I'm not butt hurt that my country is not portrayed as perfection. Switching back and forth may have been a mechanism to offer ... relief ... from too much trauma, ... but switching from one trauma to the other trauma really misses the mark.

It seemed ... too much ... like the author was just piling on by having the truck crash, 9/11 happens at the most perfectly wrong time, and the home invasion happens too. I don't know what was fiction and what wasn't. I really, really don't like the ambiguity there. It's not that all that can't happen. I've seen people unable to believe 1 trauma, let alone 2, or 5, or ... well, forget going higher ... people just don't make it very far. I know a lot of mixed and different trauma can happen to a person. I just didn't know what was true and what wasn't. I'd hate to feel manipulated. Some historical fictions ... for example, The Four Winds ... just make it up and pile it on. I'd hate to think that was happening here. That would seem unnecessary. I just don't know where the fiction begins and ends ... and that's problematic. They really need to explain that in a prologue. Let's say, all of the traumatic stuff is true, ... and there's just a few fill-in-the-blank conversations that were inserted occasionally to keep the story from being fragmented. Even then, ... too much oxygen was taken up by the home invasion narrative. It doesn't have to be skipped per se, but ... is the story not about Sudan? Because almost half the oxygen was taken up in America, and that didn't feel right. Also, keep the good/bad balance. No, America doesn’t have to be all good, but the switching narratives needs to give relief. Switch from the good in America to the bad in Sudan, ... and when things are relatively stable on the African side, let it be the good side and visit the bad side in America. Then, the switching gives an emotional relief. Somehow ... it just seemed out of balance. So, ... 1 star lost for the writing, framing, and editing.

Thanks for sharing the essence of the story though. Tremendous.

The audio narration for very good. I’m not sure that was really a Sudanese accent, which is one of my favorites, but it did still achieve a certain positive vibe that I feel hearing an Sudanese accent, and was far better than a straight read.

I like Dave Eggers but I avoided this one for years because I didn't really like the idea of him taking another man's intensely personal true life story and changing it into a novel just so that he could embellish it with stylistic elements and details and whatnot. But after reading it, I understand why they made this choice. The book is totally engrossing, and the addition of so many thoughtful conversations and details gave it a very personal feel, even if the scenes were enhanced or reconstructed. Of course, the author wouldn't be able to clearly remember all the details of his early life as a small child in Eastern Africa, but if the book had only the moments he remembered in vivid detail, it would have been a very different book. Not necessarily better or worse, but different.

I have heard some people say it needed better editing, but I was interested in every scene from start to finish. Also, I'm shocked at how much genuine joy and humor was included in a book about such devastating tragedy. I loved it-- recommended to everyone.

I loved this book. I learned so much about the collective Lost Boys of Sudan, through the particular journey of Valentino Gone-Far Sleeper Achak Dominic Deng. In the past I have had my quibbles with the writer Dave Eggers, but all is absolved with his undertaking of this project which goes so far beyond the mere novel!
http://www.vadfoundation.org/
http://www.voiceofwitness.com/
http://www.826national.org/
http://www.mcsweeneys.net/

Not only did I learn and weep in empathy, but I got great advice for one of my 7-year old twins who has trouble getting to sleep some nights, on page 33: "Imagine your favorite morning! Now your favorite lunch! Your favorite afternoon! Your favorite game of soccer, your favorite evening, the one you love most! He said this while walking along our line of sitting boys, talking to our heads. Now create in your mind the best of days, and memorize these details, place this day center in your mind, and when you are the most frightened, bring forth this day and place yourself within it. Run through this day and I assure you that before you are finished with your dream-breakfast, you will be asleep. I tell you, this method works. It slows your breathing, it focuses your mind."

In addition, I gleaned advice for good, obedient, well-trained girls who may one day I fear be taken advantage of in this cruel world, for precisely those very traits: "Reach upward, attempt to do better... Always be grateful for what pleasures you have enjoyed, what joys you have yet to experience. Do not take opportunities as they come, but at the same time, do not trust too easily. Look past who is at the door before opening it. Try to be fierce. Argue when necessary. Be willing to fight. Do not smile reflexively at every person you see. Live as a good child of God, and forgive him each time he claims another of the people you love. Forgive and attempt to understand his plans for you, and do not pity yourself."