A Long Walk to Water

A Long Walk to Water (sometimes shortened to ALWTW) is a short novel written by Linda Sue Park and published in 2010. It blends the true story of Salva Dut whose story is based in 1985, a part of the Dinka tribe and a Sudanese Lost Boy, and the fictional story of Nya whose story is based in 2008, a young village girl that was a part of the Nuer tribe. Park used this book as a platform to support Dut's organization, Water for South Sudan.

First edition (publ. Clarion Books)

Characters

Salva

Avoiding rebels, lions, and other threats, Salva, from the Dinka tribe, and his group go to the Itang Refugee Camp he is then run out towards the Gilo River and ran into Kenya. He becomes the leader of 1,500 Lost Boys and takes them to another camp. He is taken to America and gets a new family. Eventually he becomes the founder of a non profit called Water For South Sudan (WFSS). Schools can fundraise for Salva to dig wells in South Sudan.

Nya

Nya [Ny-uh] is an 11-year-old girl who walks eight hours every day for seven months of the year to fetch water from the pond. She and her family live in South Sudan in 2008. Her family home is far from the nearest pond, where she walks twice a day to support her parents and younger sister, Akeer. She also has a little brother that her mom takes care of at home. Throughout the story, her sister, Akeer, gets sick and is told that the water was contaminated. Later, in 2009, a well is built in her village so she will not have to walk so far and drink unsafe water. A school is built along with the well and Nya is overjoyed by this. She then introduces herself to Salva Dut at the end of the book, because she was confused by the fact that Salva, a Dinka, would help her Nuer village as the Dinka and Nuer tribes have been in conflict for many years.^[1] Nya's story is fictional, and Park interviewed travelers who saw water wells being drilled in villages like Nya's. She also examined their photographs and videos.

Water for South Sudan

Water for South Sudan is a non-profit organization created by Salva Dut which drills wells for villages in South Sudan.^[2]

Reception

A Long Walk to Water has received generally positive reviews from critics.

On Common Sense Media, Kate Pavao rated the book five stars. Pavao praised the book for Salva's courage and perseverance through his struggles.^[3] Reviewing the book for The Newcastle Herald, Stacey Dombkins praised Park's execution of the dual narrative, stating that the book's "unsurprising but very satisfying ending" successfully shows how Salva's hope and determination brought positive changes to those residing in Sudan.^[4]