Official Review: The man from South Sudan by Deng Atak Ken

[Jaime Lync]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The man from South Sudan" by Deng Atak Ken.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Deng Atak Ken was born in Aweil, Sudan in January 1981. Sudan has been ravished by war and political unrest for many years and unfortunately, he and his family suffered greatly because of their country’s dilemma. After facing some difficulties, Deng was able to escape Sudan in 2003. After spending a little over 1 year in Egypt, he was able to go to Australia and eventually become a citizen there. However, as his autobiographical book title suggests, Deng Atak Ken is The man from South Sudan.

This was a very informative and motivational read for me. The openness with which the author pens his life story kept me interested throughout. As mentioned before, the author and his family faced many hardships. Sadly, some of these include discrimination due to skin tone and religious beliefs. Deng was accused to be a thief and punished several times just because he is of a dark complexion. Every time, it was later verified that he did not steal anything. It was saddening to read about Egyptians using the word ‘Samara’ (black) as an insult. It was even more disappointing to learn about the 1998 presidential order by the Islamic government to destroy the churches in Khartoum, Sudan’s capital. Deng recounts how even Muslims turned out to protest the destruction of his church. These are just a few of the stories that the author shares.

In the latter part of the book, we are informed about the author’s political thoughts. He includes the 2005 peace treaty speech of Dr. John Garang de Mabior, leader of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army (SPLA). This peace treaty concluded the Second Sudanese Civil War (1983-2005) and was key to the formation of South Sudan in 2011. The speech took up about 8 out of the 23 chapters.

The only demerit that I could mention about this book is that there were a few grammatical and editorial errors that make me question if it was professionally edited. The worst of these is a sentence that had all the words stuck together. Fortunately, these errors did not deter me from enjoying the book and pinpointing the valuable lessons that could be learned from the author’s life.

In conclusion, I rate The man from South Sudan 3 out of 4 stars. I recommend it to persons who are interested in Sudan and South Sudan’s history as well as those avid readers who are looking for a motivational autobiographical book.

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The man from South Sudan
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Like Jaime Lync's review? Post a comment saying so!

[Kemunto lucy]

Nice book. The racism part saddens though. Thanks for the review.

[liftedbooks]

This sounds like a really good book. Thank you for the great review.

[Manang Muyang]

I am glad that Deng has found his place in the sun. I only wish that people can be kinder. The golden rule applies to all, regardless of color, religion, gender, ability, or weight (and all other reasons besides).

[crediblereading2]

This book has a very interesting plot. I am always intrigued by African stories. I am sorry about the flaws in the material though. Thank you for your splendid review as usual.

[Samidha Goel]

I love it already! The alliteration of the title is fun! Since you say that you couldn't helping laughing, I want to pick this up just for the fun of it! I don't have kids, but I like to be a kid at heart! Thanks for the cute story!