A Long Walk to Water

Linda Sue Park's most recent book A Long Walk to Water is the true story of Salva, a boy from the Sudan who walks to Ethiopia, then Kenya where he stays at refugee camps for years before being relocated to America. Salva is one of the lost boys, young men who fled their villages after they were attacked and then walked away from their homes and families hoping to reunite with them in the future, but knowing they needed to get away as quickly as possible, or be killed themselves.


Part of Park's book is Salva's story beginning in 1985, and part is Nya's story. Nya is a girl living in the Sudan in 2008, where she must walk back and forth for water each day - a trip that takes hours of her time. By book's end, Salva's story and Nya's story intersect in a very touching and amazing way.


I have read other novels of the Lost Boys- mostly written for older readers that have included violence and been fairly graphic. This book will still convey the horror that Salva and others went through, but at a level appropriate for middle grade and young adult readers. This is another book I will be adding to my library order.

To learn more about Salva and how he continues to help his country, visit Water for Sudan.