A Long Walk to Water
By Linda Sue Park
1) What is the name of the girl going to fetch water with a plastic bucket in 2008? Pg1
Nya
2) How old is Nya? Pg 1
Tall for her 11 years
3) How old is Salva in 1985? Pg1-2
11
4) What official language of the Sudanese government is Salva learning in school at age 11?
Arabic
5) What language does Salva speak at home? Pg 2
Dinka
6) Why didn’t Salva attend school all year? Pg 2
Because during the dry season his family moved away from their village
7) What position does Salva’s dad hold? Pg 2
Village judge
8) What are Salva’s sisters’ names? Pg 2
Aleit and Agnath
9) Do his sisters go to school? Pg 2
No
10) At what age do boys go to school? Pg 2
10
11) What are Salva’s brothers’ names? Pg2
Ariik, Ring, Kuol
12) What game do the boys challenge each other with when they play? Pg 3
Who can make a better cow out of clay
13) Who tends to the cows now that Salva is in school? Pg 3
Kuol
14) What did Salva’s mother give to him to keep his belly full until suppertime when he came home from school? Pg 4
A bowl of fresh milk
15) When there is gunfire outside the school, the teacher first orders the children to hit the floor. What does he then tell them to do? Pg 5
Run into the bush and hide, do not go home
16) Why is the war starting? Pg 6
The government from the North wants them to follow Islam
The government from the south is made of many different religions
17) During her trips to get water, what did Nya have to worry about? Pg 8
Heat, time, thorns
18) What was the name of the village Salva was from? Pg 9
Loun-Ariik
19) People who ran away begin to sort themselves how? Pg 9
By villages
20) They encounter a group of rebel soldiers. What do the rebels do? Pg 10
Sort them, men vs women and children
21) Which group is Salva put into? Pg 12
Women and children
22) They sleep in a barn. What does Salva find in the morning? Pg 13
The women abandoned him in the night, he is alone, no one wants to help him
23) What does Nya use to balance the water bucket on her head? Pg 14
Cloth donut
24) When Nya returns home from the well, what time is it? Pg 14
Already noon
25) Salva sees an old woman by a pond as he walks alone. How does he know she is from his Dinka tribe? Pg 15
The scar patterns on her forehead—so she is not from the Nuer tribe
26) Which tribe has the Dinka fought with in the past over water? Pg 16
Nuer
27) What does this old woman give Salva to eat? Pg 16
Peanuts, and also a dried gourd to carry water
28) What does Salva call her? Pg 16
“Auntie”
29) After a few days she sends him away. What does she advise? Pg 18
Walk away from the fighting
30) Why couldn’t Salva go with her? Pg 18
The soldiers will leave her alone
31) What is the Dinka pattern that was a sign of boys becoming men? Pg 19
v-shaped scars on their foreheads
32) Nya eats a bowl of what in-between her two daily trips to the water? Pg 20
Boiled sorghum
33) What is the name of her 5 year old sister who must accompany her to the well on the second trip? Pg 20
Akeer
34) Wht did Nya’s mother want her to take Akeer with her to collect water? Pg 20
She had to learn
35) How many trips did Nya make to the pond for water each day? Pg 20
two
36) Salva walks on and eventually finds a group of Dinka. They are soon joined by members of the Jur-chol tribe. Whatis the name of the young man he begins to walk with and befriend? Pg22-23
Buksa
37) Sometimes Nya has to dig up clay out of the lake to get to water. It is very muddy water. Who fights over this little bit of dirty water? Pg 26
Dinka and Nuer tribes
38) How far was the big lake from Nya’s village? Pg 26
Three days walk
39) How long did Nya’s family live at the big lake? Pg 26
5 months, during the dry season
40) When Buksa finds honey to eat, where does Salva get stung? Pg 27
In the eye- area and it swells shut
41) Salva meets another boy looking for his family. What is his name? pg30
Mariel
42) Where are they walking to? Pg 30
east, to Ethiopia
43) In the Dinka language, what were the Atuot people called?
“The people of the lion”
44) Why is Nya’s mother afraid when Dep (her brother) and father go out to hunt? Pg 33
They might run into Dinka tribesmen and get hurt
45) What did Nya like about the lake camp? Pg 33
She did not have to make two long trips to the pond every day
46) What did Nya’s mother hate about the lake camp? Pg 33
They had no house and had to sleep in makeshift shelters, they could not bring their things, afraid of fighting with the Dinka
47) Salva runs into his uncle in the land of the Atuot people. What is his name and how are they related? Pg 34
Uncle Jewiir, his father’s younger brother
48) Why has Slava not seen his uncle for 2 years? Pg 34
His uncle has been in the army
49) Uncle Jewiie will now look after Salva. Why does he become a leader of the group? Pg 35
He has a gun, he has been in the army for 2 years
50) What does Uncle Jewiir have that make people respect him? Pg 35
A gun
51) What does Uncle Jewiir kill for them to eat? Pg 36
A topi, and they all vomit b/c they haven’t eaten in so long and their stomachs cannot handle food
52) Who was the chief of Nya’s village? Pg 39
Nya’s uncle
53) What grabs Mariel in the middle of the night and eats him? Pg 40
A lion
54) What were the symptoms of Akeer’s illness? Pg 39
Cramps, stomach ache, diarrhea, sometimes fever
55) What is the longest river in the world? The mother of all life in Sudan Africa? Pg 42
The Nile
56) When Salva’s group reaches the Nile river, what must they make to cross it? Pf 43-44
They must make papyrus-reed boats
57) How long did it take to make enough canoes for everyone to cross the Nile? Pg 44
Two days
58) Akeer becomes very sick and they make the long walk to the clinic. What does the dr tell mother? Pg 45
She got sick from the water, boil it for a count to 200
59) Why are mother and Nya concerned about boiling water for that long? Pg 45
There is hardly any and boiling it that long will make it boil down and disappear/evaporate
60) Salva has memories of his father bringing them what type of fresh fruit from the market? Pg 48
Mangoes
61) When Salva was on the island in the middle of the river, what types of food did the villages have? Pg 47
Fish, hippo, crocodile meat, they grew: cassava, sugar cane, yams
62) When the sun touched the horizon, why did the fisherman abruptly go to their tents? Pg 49
Mosquitoes
63) Which mosquito bites did Salva think were the worst? Pg 50
In the exact middle of his back, where he couldn’t reach to scratch
64) Now that Salva has crossed the Nile, what must they cross next? Pg 50
Akobo Desert
65) How long will it take them to cross the terrible Akobo desert.
66) How long must Salva make the water last in his gourd carrier? Pg 53
3 days… and he is so thirsty
67) What clothing items falls apart on him as he travels this desert? Pg 53
His sandals
68) What happens when Salva stubs his big toe in the desert? Pg 53
The whole toenail rips off and he cries
69) What is Salva’s full name? pg 53
Salva Mawien Dut Ariik
70) Who uses Salva’s full name to encourage him to take more steps through the desert? Pg 53
Uncle Jewiir
71) What is Salva’s full name? pg 53
Salv Mawien Dut Ariik
72) When men collapse and are dying of thirst in the desert, what do the women do to try to help? Pg 55
Wet their lips with wet rags
73) How many men die on this trip through the desert? Pg 58
5
74) What does Uncle Jewiir tell Salva happened to his village? Pg 58
The village was burned and people fled. No one can find them.
75) Where will Uncle Jewiir take Salva? Pg 60
To Ethiopia and then Uncle Jewiir will go back to fight the war
76) Who does the group encounter when they reach a muddy pond? Pg 62-5
Nuer men
77) What are they ordered to do? Pg 62
Get undressed and hand over clothes. Salva can keep his clothes b/c he is a child and his clothes do not fit the men
78) What do the men do to Uncle Jewiir? Pg 62
they tie him to a tree, take his gun and shoot him 3 times
79) Why doesn’t the group want to help Salva anymore? Pg 66
The leader (uncle Jewiir) is dead and he is just a child who will slow them down
80) They reach the Itang refuge camp. What do they find? Pg 66
Thousands of refugees, mostly boys and men
81) What color head scarf did Salva’s mother wear? Pg 68
orange
82) How does Nya reference the tall drill brought to her village? Pg 70
iron giraffe, a red giraffe
83) Why are rocks collected? Pg 70
Women collect rocks and others pound them into gravel. This will be used in the well.
84) What type of equipment do the men bring? Pg 70
The drill, plastic pipe, trucks
85) Why does Salva think he sees his mother in the crowd at the refugee camp? Pg 71
He sees a woman with an orange headscarf, but it is not his mother
86) What does Salva start to feel about his state of loneliness? Pg 72
That he is the only one left of his family
87) Someone tells Salva he will stay in the camp for a long time. How long? Pg 73
6 yrs
88) What happens to the Ethiopian government? Pg 74
It starts to collapse
89) A truck arrives. What do the soldiers on the truck order the refugees to do? Pg 74
Leave immediately
90) What chaos ensues? Pg 74
People are running, screaming, there is a stampede. Soldiers drive them on with their guns
91) Where do the soldiers force them to go? Pg 75
Gilo River, the border between Ethiopia and Sudan. The river is filled with crocodiles
92) Why does Nya wonder why they need water to find water? Pg 76
They need water to run the drill. The villagers must bring it
93) What color overalls did the drilling crew where? Pg 76
blue
94) Salva enters the river and he sees some people eaten by crocs. A boy grabs his neck. What happens? Pg 78
The boy eventually releases his grip… the boy had been shot
95) How many people died crossing the river? Pg 79
At least 1,000
96) Where do the survivors decide to go? Pg 82
Kenya…there is another refugee camp there
97) How many survivors are there from crossing the river? Pg 82
1,200 boys and young men
98) How long does it take for them to get to Kenya? Pg 82
A year and a half
99) How many days does the drill run in Nya’s village before they hit water? Pg 83
3
100) What does Nya notice about the water and why does she frown? Pg 83
It is full of mud, but it is mixed with the water the villagers brought to run the drill
101) When Salva hits age 22, how long has he lived in refugee camps IN KENYA? Pg 84
5 years
102) Which two camps did he stay at in Kenya? Pg 84
Kakuma, then Ifo
103) How many refugees were at Kakuma? Pg 84
70,000 and it is surrounded by barbed wire
104) Why does Salva leave Kakuma to go to Ifo? Pg 84
Misery
105) How long did it talk Salva to walk to Ifo? Pg 84
Months
106) What is a major problem at Ifo? Pg 85
No food
107) Salva meets an aid worker from Ireland. What is his name? pg 85
Michael
108) How many letters are in the Arabic Alphabet? Pg 87
28
109) What does Michael teach Salva? Pg 86
To read English and play volleyball pg 86-7
110) 3,000 boys will be chosen to go live where? Pg 88
U.S.A.
111) Why is Salva always broken hearted? Pg 88
His name is never on the list to get chosen
112) FINALLY, he is chosen. Where is Salva headed to? Pg 89
Rochester, New York
113) What are the refugees called once they are in the USA? Pg 91
Lost Boys ( they lost their homes and families)
114) How many other boys were traveling to America with Salva? Pg 91
8
115) What is he given before his trip? Pg 92
Clothes to put on - his are worn out. Given underwear, socks, sneakers, long pants, a tee shirt, and a long sleeved shirt to wear on top of it. He cannot believe he is to wear them all at the same time!
116) What does Salva drink on the plane as he flies out of Nairobi? Pg 92
Coca-Cola
117) Which three cities did he have to fly to? Pg 92
Frankfurt, Germany then NY City, New York, then Rochester, New York
118) Describe the new family that meets him in Rochester pg 95
Chris- dad, Louise- mom, 4 kids
119) What do they give him to wear? Pg 95
A big puffy winter coat, gloves, hat