April 27, 2007 | Donnell Library | New York City
Valentino Achak Deng is a refugee of the Sudanese Civil War of the 1980s and ’90s. His is a common but largely invisible story of African turmoil and its ravages on the lives of children. Dave Eggers fictionalized Valentino’s story in his novel What Is the What.
Discussed: how to become a U.S. citizen; the American short attention span; leaving home and returning on a cargo plane; and a reading from What Is the What
PHOTO GALLERY
Copyright © 2007 Beowulf Sheehan/PEN American Center
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• Entire conversation (53:09)
From the PEN Blogs
• Catherine Texier:
Valentino Achak Deng had a surprise for the hundreds (at least, it looked like hundreds) of people waiting on line to see him and Dave…[More]