Who is Salva Dut? Why is Salva forced to flee from the schoolhouse at the beginning of the novel? Why does he run into the bush rather than back to his home and his family? Why does the group Salva starts out with leave him behind, and why is the second group reluctant to take him with them? Why does the old Dinka woman he calls Auntie refuse to take Salva with her when she leaves her home?

Why must Nya make two long walks every day from her village to the pond to fetch water? Why does Nya's family move to the lake camp every year during the dry season? Why does Nya like the camp? Why does her mother dislike the camp? What is it about the water Nya collects from the lakebed that makes her sister Akeer sick? What must be...