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A Stranger's Map Meryl McQueen Sometimes, it takes a stranger to lead us home.
In Sudan, nineteen-year-old Ayen returns home after gathering water with her child to find their village destroyed by soldiers. The overcrowded refugee camp is not much safer, but Ayen takes a job in the infirmary, using skills her father taught her. While protecting her toddler during an attack, Ayen is left unconscious and badly burned. Dreaming of her father, Ayen reaches out her hand. She is not alone.
Across the world in Australia, Thomas McAllister wrestles with paralyzing guilt over his son’s suicide and his daughter Kathryn’s unresolved anger. To escape the disintegration of his family, Thomas travels to Africa to volunteer in a camp hospital, where he encounters a comatose victim of the most recent raid. As his eyes trace the raw cigarette burns on the young woman’s skin, Thomas thinks of Kathryn. The patient grips his fingers. More than two years pass before they meet again, reconnecting by chance in Sydney.
Set in 2002 and spanning three continents, A Stranger’s Map is the emotional, optimistic story of love, loss, and redemption between a father and two daughters: on one hand, blood ties severed by family tragedy, and on the other, an unlikely surrogate bond that transcends devastating grief and a fight for survival. |
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Slave: My True Story Mende Nazer, Damien Lewis, Damien Lewis Mende Nazer lost her childhood at age twelve, when she was sold into slavery. It all began one horrific night in 1993, when Arab raiders swept through her Nuba village, murdering the adults and rounding up thirty-one children, including Mende.
Mende was sold to a wealthy Arab family who lived in Sudan's capital city, Khartoum. So began her dark years of enslavement. Her Arab owners called her "Yebit," or "black slave." She called them "master." She was subjected to appalling physical, sexual, and mental abuse. She slept in a shed and ate the family leftovers like a dog. She had no rights, no freedom, and no life of her own.
Normally, Mende's story never would have come to light. But seven years after she was seized and sold into slavery, she was sent to work for another master—a diplomat working in the United Kingdom. In London, she managed to make contact with other Sudanese, who took pity on her. In September 2000, she made a dramatic break for freedom.
Slave is a story almost beyond belief. It depicts the strength and dignity of the Nuba tribe. It recounts the savage way in which the Nuba and their ancient culture are being destroyed by a secret modern-day trade in slaves. Most of all, it is a remarkable testimony to one young woman's unbreakable spirit and tremendous courage.
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They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky: The Story of Three Lost Boys from Sudan Benjamin Ajak, Benson Deng, Alephonsian Deng, Judy Bernstein Benjamin, Alepho, and Benson were raised among the Dinka tribe of Sudan. Their world was an insulated, close-knit community of grass-roofed cottages, cattle herders, and tribal councils. The lions and pythons that prowled beyond the village fences were the greatest threat they knew. All that changed the night the government-armed Murahiliin began attacking their villages. Amid the chaos, screams, conflagration, and gunfire, five-year-old Benson and seven-year-old Benjamin fled into the dark night. Two years later, Alepho, age seven, was forced to do the same. Across the Southern Sudan, over the next five years, thousands of other boys did likewise, joining this stream of child refugees that became known as the Lost Boys. Their journey would take them over one thousand miles across a war-ravaged country, through landmine-sown paths, crocodile-infested waters, and grotesque extremes of hunger, thirst, and disease. The refugee camps they eventually filtered through offered little respite from the brutality they were fleeing. In They Poured Fire on Us From the Sky, Alepho, Benson, and Benjamin, by turn, recount their experiences along this unthinkable journey. They vividly recall the family, friends, and tribal world they left far behind them and their desperate efforts to keep track of one another. This is a captivating memoir of Sudan and a powerful portrait of war as seen through the eyes of children. And it is, in the end, an inspiring and unforgettable tribute to the tenacity of even the youngest human spirits. |
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Explorers of the Nile: The Triumph and Tragedy of a Great Victorian Adventure Tim Jeal Between 1856 and 1876, five explorers, all British, took on the seemingly impossible task of discovering the source of the White Nile. Showing exceptional courage and extraordinary resilience, Richard Burton, John Hanning Speke, Samuel Baker, David Livingstone and Henry Morton Stanley risked their lives and their reputations in the name of this quest. They journeyed through East and Central Africa into unmapped territory, discovered the great lakes, Tanganyika and Victoria, navigated the upper Nile and the Congo, and suffered the ravages of flesh-eating ulcers, malaria and deep spear wounds. Using new research, Tim Jeal tells the story of these great expeditions, while also examining the tragic consequences which the Nile search has had on Uganda and Sudan to this day. "Explorers of the Nile" is a gripping adventure story with an arresting analysis of Britain's imperial past and the Scramble for Africa. |
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Another Man's War: The True Story of One Man's Battle to Save Children in the Sudan Sam Childers A gun-toting preacher, a rebel army led by a madman, and entire villages slaughtered just because they were in the way. In Another Man's War, follow Sam Childer's remarkable transformation from violent thug to a man of faith, and his ongoing battle to save children in one of the world's most lawless areas. "Another Man's War is about true terrorism . . . against more than 200,000 children in northern Uganda and Southern Sudan. Sam Childers-a fighter and a preacher (some call him a mercenary)-tirelessly leads a small militia into the jungle, daring to fight against a vicious army outnumbering him one thousand to one. One man can make a huge difference. Sam Childers certainly does." -- Peter Fonda, actor/filmmaker, best known as star of Easy Rider "The Reverend Sam Childers has been a very close friend to the government of South Sudan for many years and is a trusted friend." -- President Salva Kiir Mayardit of South Sudan "The Reverend Sam Childers is a long time devoted friend to our government and his courageous work is supported by us." -- President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda "Sam Childers is one of those rare men [who is] willing to do literally whatever it takes to promote the message of Jesus Christ and save children from the tyranny of evil men." -- John Rich, lead singer and songwriter, Big & Rich |
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The Translator: A Tribesman's Memoir of Darfur Daoud Hari I am the translator who has taken journalists into dangerous Darfur. It is my intention now to take you there in this book, if you have the courage to come with me.
The young life of Daoud Hari–his friends call him David–has been one of bravery and mesmerizing adventure. He is a living witness to the brutal genocide under way in Darfur.
The Translator is a suspenseful, harrowing, and deeply moving memoir of how one person has made a difference in the world–an on-the-ground account of one of the biggest stories of our time. Using his high school knowledge of languages as his weapon–while others around him were taking up arms–Daoud Hari has helped inform the world about Darfur.
Hari, a Zaghawa tribesman, grew up in a village in the Darfur region of Sudan. As a child he saw colorful weddings, raced his camels across the desert, and played games in the moonlight after his work was done. In 2003, this traditional life was shattered when helicopter gunships appeared over Darfur’s villages, followed by Sudanese-government-backed militia groups attacking on horseback, raping and murdering citizens and burning villages. Ancient hatreds and greed for natural resources had collided, and the conflagration spread.
Though Hari’s village was attacked and destroyedhis family decimated and dispersed, he himself escaped. Roaming the battlefield deserts on camels, he and a group of his friends helped survivors find food, water, and the way to safety. When international aid groups and reporters arrived, Hari offered his services as a translator and guide. In doing so, he risked his life again and again, for the government of Sudan had outlawed journalists in the region, and death was the punishment for those who aided the “foreign spies.” And then, inevitably, his luck ran out and he was captured. . . .
The Translator tells the remarkable story of a man who came face-to-face with genocide– time and again risking his own life to fight injustice and save his people. |
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God Grew Tired of Us: A Memoir John Bul Dau, Michael S. Sweeney "Lost Boy" John Bul Dau’s harrowing experience surviving the brutal horrors of Sudanese civil war and his adjustment to life in modern America is chronicled in this inspiring memoir and featured in an award-winning documentary film of the same name. Movingly written, the book traces Dau’s journey through hunger, exhaustion, terror, and violence as he fled his homeland, dodging ambushes, massacres and attacks by wild animals. His tortuous, 14-year journey began in 1987, when he was just 13, and took him on a 1,000-mile walk, barefoot, to Ethiopia, back to Sudan, then to a refugee camp in Kenya, where he lived with thousands of other Lost Boys. In 2001, at the age of 27, he immigrated to the United States. With touching humor, Dau recounts the shock of his tribal culture colliding with life in America. He shares the joy of reuniting with his family and the challenges of making a new life for himself while never forgetting the other Lost Boys he left behind. |
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Sudan, South Sudan, and Darfur: What Everyone Needs to Know Andrew S. Natsios For thirty years Sudan has been a country in crisis, wracked by near-constant warfare between the north and the south. But on July 9, 2011, South Sudan became an independent nation. As Sudan once again finds itself the focus of international attention, former special envoy to Sudan and director of USAID Andrew Natsios provides a timely introduction to the country at this pivotal moment in its history. Focusing on the events of the last 25 years, Natsios sheds light on the origins of the conflict between northern and southern Sudan and the complicated politics of this volatile nation. He gives readers a first-hand view of Sudan's past as well as an honest appraisal of its future. In the wake of South Sudan's independence, Natsios explores the tensions that remain on both sides. Issues of citizenship, security, oil management, and wealth-sharing all remain unresolved. Human rights issues, particularly surrounding the ongoing violence in Darfur, likewise still clamor for solutions. Informative and accessible, this book introduces readers to the most central issues facing Sudan as it stands on the brink of historic change. |
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Another Man's War: The True Story of One Man's Battle to Save Children in the Sudan Sam Childers The rise of Sam Childers from violent, drug-addicted biker to a man willing to risk everything to rescue the orphans and child soldiers of Sudan "All my life, from birth, it's been a fight. And it always seemed to be another man's war. I always seemed to be fighting for someone else. But it always came back to me. The Word says we're born into sin, and sin always comes back to war." -Sam Childers Sam Childers has always been a fighter. Born to a violent father and a mother of great faith, his life was a contradiction. With an affinity for drugs and women, the angry young man grew into a drug-dealing biker. But that was then. Nowadays Sam-along with the cadre of Sudanese soldiers he employs-spends his time in the most dangerous parts of Sudan and Uganda rescuing the youngest victims of war, orphans and child-soldiers. His mission is simple: save the children, no matter the cost. Endorsements: "Another Man's War is about true terrorism . . . against more than 200,000 children in northern Uganda and Southern Sudan. Sam Childers-a fighter and a preacher (some call him a mercenary)-tirelessly leads a small militia into the jungle, daring to fight against a vicious army outnumbering him one thousand to one. One man can make a huge difference. Sam Childers certainly does." -- Peter Fonda, actor/filmmaker, best known as star of Easy Rider "The Reverend Sam Childers has been a very close friend to the government of South Sudan for many years and is a trusted friend." -- President Salva Kiir Mayardit of South Sudan "The Reverend Sam Childers is a long time devoted friend to our government and his courageous work is supported by us." -- President Yoweri Museveni of Uganda "Sam Childers is one of those rare men [who is] willing to do literally whatever it takes to promote the message of Jesus Christ and save children from the tyranny of evil men." -- John Rich, lead singer and songwriter, Big & Rich |
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Tears of the Desert: A Memoir of Survival in Darfur Halima Bashir, Damien Lewis Like the single white eyelash that graces her row of dark lashes–seen by her people as a mark of good fortune–Halima Bashir’s story stands out. Tears of the Desert is the first memoir ever written by a woman caught up in the war in Darfur. It is a survivor’s tale of a conflicted country, a resilient people, and the uncompromising spirit of a young woman who refused to be silenced.
Born into the Zaghawa tribe in the Sudanese desert, Halima was doted on by her father, a cattle herder, and kept in line by her formidable grandmother. A politically astute man, Halima’s father saw to it that his daughter received a good education away from their rural surroundings. Halima excelled in her studies and exams, surpassing even the privileged Arab girls who looked down their noses at the black Africans. With her love of learning and her father’s support, Halima went on to study medicine, and at twenty-four became her village’s first formal doctor.
Yet not even the symbol of good luck that dotted her eye could protect her from the encroaching conflict that would consume her land. Janjaweed Arab militias started savagely assaulting the Zaghawa, often with the backing of the Sudanese military. Then, in early 2004, the Janjaweed attacked Bashir’s village and surrounding areas, raping forty-two schoolgirls and their teachers. Bashir, who treated the traumatized victims, some as young as eight years old, could no longer remain quiet. But breaking her silence ignited a horrifying turn of events.
In this harrowing and heartbreaking account, Halima Bashir sheds light on the hundreds of thousands of innocent lives being eradicated by what is fast becoming one of the most terrifying genocides of the twenty-first century. Raw and riveting, Tears of the Desert is more than just a memoir–it is Halima Bashir’s global call to action. |