The Office of Undergraduate Studies is pleased to present all new students with a copy of What Is the What by Dave Eggers. A novelized biography of a real Lost Boy, Valentino Achak Deng, the book chronicles the story of those who had to flee during the Second Sudanese Civil War.

Young boys walked from South Sudan to Ethiopia and finally to Kenya to escape the violent conflict that was waged by government and rebel forces in their villages. It is estimated that two million people died in this conflict. After as many as ten years in a refugee camp, many of the Lost Boys were resettled all over the United States. Told in the first person, Eggers recounts Deng's story from his life in a southern Sudanese village to his struggles as a new immigrant in Atlanta, Georgia.

Harrowing, grimly humorous, terrifying and inspiring, What Is the What dramatizes the power of community amidst the chaos of civil war in a part of the world often overlooked and neglected.

More about the First Year Book program

Faculty members interested in reviewing the book for inclusion in their courses may pick up a copy in 2130 Mitchell Building.

First Year students will receive their copy of What Is the What at the Terp Market on Sunday August 30th (Grand Ballroom, STAMP) 3-5pm. After this date, students may pick up a copy at the front desk of the Undergraduate Studies office in 2130 Mitchell Building.