Survival and Adaptation: A Review of 'A Long Walk to Water'

A Long Walk To Water Crossing unknown territories, going through brutal desert conditions, starving, losing everything that means the most to you, battling everyday for your life, and nearly dieing over ten times; all achieved by Salva Dut. In the book A Long Walk To Water, Linda Sue Park tells the story of who started off as a young boy, that turned into a man before he knew it, struggling everyday in the harsh wilderness. Salva is a true survivor; he lost all his loved ones, overcame dangerous and life-threatening obstacles, and adapted to a new culture, all things an average person wouldn’t be able to handle. On Salva’s quest to different refugee camps, he lost all his loved ones, including his entire family except his father. Salva was at school when the unthinkable happened: an ambush. Out of nowhere, all they heard was “Crack! Pop-Pop-Crack! Ack-Ack -Ack! Gunfire!

One of those challenges was crossing the Gilo River, as Salva thought, “Swollen by the rains, the Gilo’s current would be merciless. The Gilo River was well known for something else, too. Crocodiles” (75). After finally reaching a refugee camp, the Ethiopian government collapsed, so people came in shooting at all the refugees, forcing them to cross the death-seeking river. Sudan is a desert, therefore meaning that it is excruciatingly dry and unbearably hot, so everyday Salva thought, “...his body cried out for huge gulps of thirst-quenching, life-giving water” (53). Salva was lucky if they could find water, clean water especially; but after Uncle’s death, he would be even more lucky if the group shared it with him. Lion Country was an obstacle too; one that Marial didn’t survive. “Salva, we will soon be out of Lion Country” (41). Uncle had told Salva what is said in the quote above, and it happened- him and Salva had survived Lion Country. Although Salva encountered life-threatening obstacles, he