I finished reading What is the What today. I couldn't stop reading this book- it was such a compelling read. Since I've taken a liking to US History, history lessons have no longer been as boring as they used to be, so I enjoyed reading about the history of Sudan and other countries around it. It helped me understand a lot of my childhood and world events that occurred during that time such as 9/11. All I remember is waking up one morning before school and watching the news with my parents. I knew that planes had crashed and I was amazed at the destruction but I did not comprehend how dangerous it was or how dire the situation was at that time. It was also the first time I realized that airplanes could crash. I realize that is a naive thought, to think that airplanes could never crash, but that is what my third grade mind used to think before September 11.
So many things were explained and revealed in Book III so I could not stop reading. I was always hoping that his friends would live and that they would not die. When Noriyaki died in the car accident, it broke my heart. The way Valentino described his friendship with him made me truly adore him, too. I wanted so much for him to be able to return to his fiance and to finally marry her and rejoin his family. I wanted exactly what Valentino wanted for him so when Valentino was devastated, I was devastated.
I was very happy when Valentino finally received news of his parents. I was so relieved that his mother was alive because I felt a stronger connection to her. I like how she now has a dress that is the color of a "faded yellow, the color of a tired sun." The dress is no longer vibrant and it seems to describe how his mother is tired from the war in Sudan and from all the destruction that tore her family apart. She has toiled for years, waiting to finally live in peace.
After Valentino's trip to the city with his drama group, he describes the ride back like this:
"We flew past all that and back to the howling mess of Kakuma."Now, he is flying again just like he was when he was riding on a bicycle or fetching water for Amath. Usually, he feels free when he is "flying" but this time, it seems to be saying that he is no longer going to feel free when he reaches Kakuma again. I like the language the author uses. It creates a melancholy tone.
Near the end of the novel, when Valentino asks his father if he should go to the US or not, I felt like I had a revelation. For me, the meaning of "the What" was revealed. It is very strange. I felt like I knew the meaning of "the What" but looking back, now that I want to blog about it, I cannot explain it with words. It is very mysterious. In a way, "the What" is what the Dinka never chose to fight for. Valentino doesn't want to go to the US because he feels like he can't get what he is fighting for but his father says, "Yes, the What. Right. Get it. This is it." I still can't explain what was on my mind! I guess what I am really trying to say is: this conversation really spoke out to me and I find it to be very meaningful.
I think the author had a strength with appealing to the audience and pulling us into the story of Valentino, the man who feels like no one can hear him. It is strange because even though in the novel, nobody is listening to his story, here we (the audience) are, reading every word of this book, completely enthralled. I think his weakness is in the way he describes history sometimes. At times, it gets to be very confusing and bores me when the history lesson doesn't stop and keeps on going. When the lessons are small, it is fine. Otherwise, I want the lesson to be over and I want him to continue telling me Valentino's story. I am very happy that this book was on the summer reading list because if it were not, I would never have decided to read it. It is just not the kind of book that jumps out at me but I have grown to love it and I have grown to love the characters in the book.
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