What Is the What (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780307385901)

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - The epic novel based on the life of Valentino Achak Deng who, along with thousands of other children --the so-called Lost Boys--was forced to leave his village in Sudan at the age of seven and trek hundreds of miles by foot, pursued by militias, government bombers, and wild animals, crossing the deserts of three countries to find freedom.

When he finally is resettled in the United States, he finds a life full of promise, but also heartache and myriad new challenges. Moving, suspenseful, and unexpectedly funny, What Is the What is an astonishing novel that illuminates the lives of millions through one extraordinary man.

"A testament to the triumph of hope over experience, human resilience over tragedy and disaster." --Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times

An absolute classic. . . . Compelling, important, and vital to the understanding of the politics and emotional consequences of oppression. --People

Author: Dave Eggers
ISBN-10: 0307385906
ISBN-13: 9780307385901
Publisher: Vintage
Language: English
Published: 10/09/2007
Pages: 560
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.86lbs
Size: 8.12h x 5.26w x 0.95d

Review Citation(s):
New York Times Book Review 10/14/2007 pg. 32
Entertainment Weekly 10/26/2007 pg. 71
People Weekly 11/12/2007 pg. 59
NY Times Notable Bks of Year 12/02/2007 pg. 12
Entertainment Weekly 02/19/2008 pg. 99

About the Author
Dave Eggers is the author of three previous books, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius, You Shall Know Our Velocity!, and How We Are Hungry. He is the editor of McSweeney's, a quarterly magazine and book-publishing company, and is cofounder of 826 Valencia, a network of nonprofit writing and tutoring centers for young people. His interest in oral history led to his 2004 cofounding of Voice of Witness, a nonprofit series of books that use oral history to illuminate human rights crises around the world. As a journalist, his work has appeared in The New Yorker, Esquire, and The Believer. He lives in the San Francisco Bay area with his wife and daughter.