What is the What Part 4 (Chapters 20-22)

What does Commander Secret tell the boys? How is the day split up nowadays in Pinyudo?

1. No matter what, never speak to an aid worker (black or white) 2. If questioned about the SPLA you know NOTHING!! The days are for nutrition and school, and the nights are for the SPLA and misbehaving boys to get canned.

Who is Gop Chol (Mr. Gop)

Valentino's teacher in Kakuma. He insists Val study alot b/c him and the other educated boys are the future of an independent Sudan. (It was hard for Val to study though b/c dust was everywhere-food, pens, matresses,etc. and he blacked out many times a day)

Who does Valentino think Duluma got his "idea" from?

A man in Michigan killed his wife, daughter, then himself once the two girls got back from a trip to visit family in Athens, Georgia that he had not allowed. It is believe that the change from Sudan to America is cause for this, as men don't adjust to the ways of life (rights).

Achak gets close to the age of becoming a soldier, but something keeps him from becoming one. What is it?

A massacre. Ethiopian soldiers start to attack the camp so they must leave. The government had been overthrown and President Mengistu was gone. As they scramble to cross the Gilo river, they are being shot at and crocodiles attack. With Duts help, Achak manages to swim across the river without being injured. Once they make it to the other side they lie on their stomachs till dark, where Dut leaves Achak once he sees Achor Achor. This is the last time Achak sees Dut. Achor Achor and Achak join two other, older, boys running to Pochalla.

How had Achak and Achor Achor been separated at Golkur?

Achor Achor was being treated for dehydration is a Save the Children Medical tent, and Achak was sure he was going to die, and couldn't stand the thought, so he left with one of the first groups for Kenya, without saying goodbye.

What eventually happens to Moses?

An uncle who had been in Cairo located him and aranged for him to go to a boarding school in Nairobi, Kenya. Valentino wouldn't hear from him until ten years later, when they found out they were both in North America. Val in Atlanta, and Moses IN the University of British Columbia. "Nothing about Moses could be defeated."

How does work get harder at Pinyudo.

At announcements they are given an assigned job to do once school and lunch are over. They could be assigned jobs such as building an outhouse, planting seeds, or building a pen for an elder or SPLA officer's relations and were not allowed to ask for anything, not even water.

What was the policy with dying boys in the schools at Kakuma.

Many boys got illnesses, b/c their bodies wanted to grow but they didn't have the nutrients. At first when a boy died there would be a 1/2 day, but too many boys were dying so this 1/2 day policy stopped. Many boys simply decided not to attend school. Out of 68 boys in Val/s junior high class, only 38 went on to highschool.

When does Achak get to stay home all day?

Every 12th day. He cooks, and since he is the leader he tries to make soup that is slightly different, NOT lentil again. One day Achak is told by a neighbor boy named Gor that the U.S. has invaded Kuwait and Iraq, and that this is good news for them, when indeed, it didn't make too big of a difference.

How many of the Elleven die from joining the SPLA?

Four

Explain what happens as Gop's family arrives.

He and Val see a red cross car coming to their house and know it is them. Mr. Gop starts running like a crazy man screaming but when his wife looks disgusted, he sneaks in the back of the house and changes so she won't know it is him. His wife's name is Ayen (She wears a beautiful green), and his daughters, Abuk, Adeng, and Awot. They reconstruct the house with a bedroom for the girls, the parents, and Valentino. They decide they will take in Achor Achor and three other boys to share Valentino's room with him. Eventually, Val must conduct his own recycling trip taking clothes to trade for goats on the way to then trade once back in the camp for shillings.

Explain what Valentino does as he first arrives at his home after walking from the hospital.

He debates whether he can handle going in, but finally decides to do so. Then, after getting the keys for his car decides to drive somewhere where he can sleep till it's time to go to work. He goes to the Newtons but quickly decides it is insane for him to knock so he drives up the road to wait for 30 mins and then can go into his jobs pro shop and get cleaned up before starting his shift.

Valentino talks about how many different places he has traveled to in the U.S. He then mentions spending time with Tabitha in Seattle at the mall. When talking about concerns with Duluma, he decides to do what? What is Valentino's regret with Tabitha?

He decides to call Duluma and talk to him. He believes it goes well. Later he focuses on how much he regrets waiting to spend time and be with his love. He says "It is no way to live, to wait to love."

When walking to Kakuma from Narus (after the Gilo river, Pochalla, and Golkur) what health condition starts to harm Achak?

He gets nyintok (an infection in his eye) and it gets swollen, he cannot see. He hopes this will qualify him to get to be carried by an aid truck to Ethiopia, but it doesn't, as his legs still work.

What does Valentino do at the beginning of chapter 21?

He leaves the hospital, and since it is 3:44 am he walks home, hoping he will be able to make it to work at 5:30 am on time, and plans on calling back for MRI results. While walking home, he ponders whether it is worth living.

Summarize Valentino's recycling trip in chapter 22.

He leaves, having to bribe already 3 officers. Eventually, he makes it to Loki then sleeps there in the Save the Children tent. When he awakes a man named Thomas is there. He gives him 50 shillings and gets him a ride to Sudan. When he gets in the van it is filled with mostly dead ppl and a few injured. He for just less than an hour is stuck with all the dead bodies and the driver and a potentially SPLA man mess with him the whole time. When the van stops at the Lopiding Hospital Val quickly gets out meeting a man named Abraham who gives him a mask. When the possible SPLA man from the van tries to get val to get back in for the ride to sudan, Abraham makes sure he doesn't go, b/c they will trick him. Abraham gets val food (he is a doctor who makes prostetics). Evenually, Achak is sent back towards Kakuma, knowing the further journey would't be worth it. As this happens, a man convinces him to trade everything for 700 shillings. He takes the stuff then says he will come back with the money. Val falls for it, and is now empty handed.

Once Garang leaves, Mr. Potential Food comes to stay permanently. Explain who this man is.

Mayen Ngor. He is an expert in agriculture techniques, and prepares land for the boys to work on, to produce crops. He teaches them how to use different farming tools (these same tools are the ones the boys use to replicate AK-47's when marching before announcements).

Who does Valentino see at Kakuma?

He realizes Achor Achor did make it and sees three of the eleven with him. He also sees Moses and learns what the training he went through was like. Moses swore they were trying to kill them. At first, he said they got him confused with another Moses and tried to punish him, even making him stay in an animal pin. Once, running on a hill, a soldier kicked a boy in training named Daniel and he went flying 20 ft, landing on rocks, ribs poking out of his skin, dead. The trainers told the boys that Daniel had died of yellow fever. Knowing this was a lie, this is when everyone started to try and escape, including Moses.

Briefly note what Dr. Garang says, and somethings that happen once he leaves.

He thanks all the SPLA soldiers everywhere for their tremendous courageous acts and mentions that the boys in Pinyudo are seeds. Later, almost all men from 14-30 go to Bonga to train. Moses wants to go even though he is young and after failing to convince Achack to go with him, he eventually just does it and goes.

At the begining of Chapter 20, who come to visit the camp? What do they do to prepare for their arrival?

John Garang, leader of the SPLA. The boys each clean their own dwellings, then the teachers' dwellings, and the roadway. They even paint the rocks red, blue, and white. Many prepared songs to be chanted as Garang arrived.

Which refugee camp did Achak stay at for 10 yrs (one of his many "lifes")? Explain somethings about this camp.

Kakuma. School existed, zone eight (where people went before dying) existed, and men ans women got married had babies, people worked. Achak's "father" at the camp is Gop Chol Kolong (actually from Marial Bai) who always worried in the mornings. They lived squat shelters for months until given supplies to build more permanent homes to stay in with people from their home regions (in order to keep customs alive). Conflict was inevitable, due to the varying types of cultures and tribe there. They relied on the UN for almost everything.

At a conference for Bob Newmyer, Tabitha calls him, and he has troubles answering. What news does he later learn from Achor Achor?

Tabitha was murdered by Duluma, stabbed 22 times while at her friend Veronica's house. He later throws himself off an overpass, however he was still alive, in the hospital with a broken back.

Who does Valentino silently address after telling the reader of Tabitha's death in chapter 21? What does he talk about.

Tabitha. He talks about the time he tried to die, laying in the road hopeing to let everything go. As the last person walking by came, Maria, she wouldn't let him stay and picked him up, forcing him to continue walking with her.

Explain some things in Kakuma like basketball, Mr. Gop's worries, new refugees, and the census?

The Sudanese because of their bodies were very good at basketball and always beat the other team when they played pick up, leaving them feeling like the kings of Africa again. Mr. Gop gets nervous worrying different scenarios about his wife and daughters arriving. Even after 3 years, refugees KEEP coming and the camp keeps growing, but Val can't find anyone one from Marial Bai. When he hears of a man from around that area, he decided not to talk to him in case he knows for sure all Val's family is dead. This would make it too hard for him. When they found out they would be counted, many worried the UN were being paid to eliminate the Dinka like the holocaust, especially when fences were put up. Once the counting was over, many groups did leave (8,000 ppl), and food rations did get smaller, but no one was killed.

What is Lokichoggio?

The area/ place that would become the staging ground for international aid in the region where one hour to the south was Kakuma.

What happens after the boys see an Ethiopian woman claiming to be their mother?

The two older boys run to her and are shot. Achak and Achor Achor are being shot at but run away from her. They finally find a path not warned by two crossed blades of grass and decide to follow that path. They find an infant whose mother was killed and walk with the quiet baby before giving it to a woman in a group of elders and women. They then join a large group of men and boys and walk to Pochalla with.

In chapter 20 when a rally is called for boys about 6-12 years old, what are they told? What must they watch?

They are told once again they are the seeds. Also, a group of roped men come in and they are told these men are rapists and traitors, as they have told the government info about the SPLA. The men speak out saying it is all a lie and a coverup, but those who speak are struck. Next, they shoot every accused man in the face and chest till they are dead, in front of all the young boys. Sending the boys into a panic and causing the elven to become the 9, as two boys leave the camp.

Note what it is like once the boys get to Pochalla.

They learn 8 of the 9 made it across the Gilo. It rains (this is what they consider to have killed many boys) causing insects to swarm, causing Malaria for many. Achak and Achor Achor make mosquitoe nets but still get bitten. Eventually, the two friends join two other boys from northern Bahr al-Ghazal and built an A-frame hut with them. Achor Achor starts to talk about how it would be better to just find a way to die quickly now. Achak agrees with him but won't admit it.

How did boys avoid the dangerous job of going into the forest?

They refused and accepted the beating. Eventually, they learned a system where boys would get multiple layers of clothing before their caning.

What is recycling?

When a refugee would be given a ration card, then secretly leave the camp, re-entering to get another card, allowing them to get more portions of food for either their own consumption or trade. This is what many did before the census. This ration-card economy by allowing different groups to thrive it created a social hierarchy at Kakuma (Sudanese on top of ladder due to #s and on an individual basis, Ethiopians were on the top- the bottom were lost boys or unaccompanied minors, but they could gain status if living with a willing family).