A Hare in the Elephant's Trunk

Starred review from January 15, 2011

Jacob Deng was 7 years old when the northern militia invaded and destroyed his village in Southern Sudan, sending Jacob and thousands of other boys on an exodus to Ethiopia. The "never-ending chain" of boys followed the rising sun to safety, braving lion and crocodile attacks, mosquitoes and malaria, poisonous snakes, scorpions, gunfire and bombs. After three years in Pinyudo Refugee Camp, the refugees were chased out of Ethiopia and walked on to the Kakuma Refugee Camp in Kenya, where Jacob began to sense his place in the world as a storyteller, translator and writer. Inspired by Jacob's true story, Coates writes vividly and poetically, establishing a clear historical context for her inspirational tale. One sketchy map is included, but a series of good maps would have helped young readers better visualize Jacob's journey. A good match with Linda Sue Park's A Long Walk to Water (2010) and Mary Williams' picture book Brothers in Hope, illustrated by R. Gregory Christie (2005). From the beginning, Jacob Deng embodied the spirit of Wadeng, the faith that tomorrow will be better, and by the end of the tale, Jacob as storyteller and writer is poised to enter a wider world, where "there are as many books in the world as there are stars in the African sky." (Historical fiction. 12 & up)

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May 1, 2011

Gr 8 Up-In 1987, seven-year-old Jacob Deng's world explodes into chaos and confusion; his village in Southern Sudan, Duk Padiet, is attacked and destroyed by the Northern militia. The boy is suddenly left to wander the continent on his way to a refugee camp in Ethiopia and, later, Kenya. Jacob does not, however, wander alone. He is one link in a "never-ending chain" of boys. Lions, malaria, guns, and war threaten these "lost boys" at every turn. Throughout his tremendous and harrowing journey, Jacob thinks about Mama and strives to find those things that will lift him from the murk of war and tumult. And he learns to read. This novel, based on the life of the real Jacob Deng, provides insight into the struggles of the Sudan as well as a strong, clear voice. Coates gives an unflinching and poetic glimpse into the life of a boy who chose hope in the face of adversity. An interview with Deng is included.-Naphtali L. Faris, Youth Services Consultant, Missouri State Library, Jefferson City, MO

Copyright 2011 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

January 1, 2011
Grades 9-12 Drawing on the true story of one child who fled southern Sudans brutal civil war, this novel is told from the viewpoint of a Lost Boy, Jacob, who is just seven years old when he is forced to leave his home and family in 1987. After a perilous trek, he eventually finds refuge in United Nations camps in Ethiopia and Kenya, and, at age 12, he achieves his dream of going to school. As in Lost Boy, Lost Girl: Escaping Civil War in Sudan, by John Bul Dau and Martha Arual Akech (2010), and many other similar, personal accounts of Sudans conflict, this novel describes the brutal journey and the bliss, for some, of finding food, fresh water, and shelter, as well as the pressure the boys feel to join the army. Along the way, Jacob nurtures a younger kid, and his explanations to the child about the struggle to find peace again also put the events in context for readers. Teens will be moved by the unsparing survival story and the climax, when Jacob learns to read.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)