Walk Toward the Rising Sun: From Child Soldier to Ambassador of Peace
Written by Ger Duany
and Garen Thomas
Published by Random House Children's Books
The amazing autobiography of a young Sudanese boy who went from a child soldier to an international peace activist, a struggling refugee to a Hollywood actor.
Ger Duany’s days of playing with his brothers and sisters on the banks of the Nile were cut short when, at the age of six, his village was attacked by the North Sudanese military. Thus began a long journey into the unknown: never staying in one place too long for fear of the enemy, repeatedly experiencing the loss of loved ones, braving dangerous conditions to gain an education, taking up arms alongside his father and brothers, and eventually boarding a flight without his family to seek refuge in a foreign country.
Arriving in Des Moines, Iowa in the 90s to live with previously unknown relatives, Ger worked tirelessly to adjust to a new life that, while easier in some ways, came with its own challenges. He battled the effects of PTSD and endured a new kind of racism in America, yet he also found solace in basketball, in friendships and relationships, and eventually in acting and activism. While Ger found and built communities in each place he lived in the US–Des Moines, LA, NYC–he never lost sight of his home and his family still in Sudan. Ger’s story is one marked not only by great resilience in the face of constant change but also by an enduring sense of compassion and moral duty.
Primary ISBN: 9781524719401
Available As: Hardcover
Memoir, Age 12 or older
Community Represented: South Sudanese/South Sudanese American
Themes: Discrimination: Racial, Family Separation: Living with Other Family or Friends, Human Rights Violation: Child Soldiers, Loss of Childhood, Own Voices/Lived Experience, Refugee Journey, Refugee: War/Conflict
Setting: South Sudan, United States
Character’s New Arrival/New American Status: Refugee
Book Creator(s) Connection to the Community Represented: Own Voices/Lived Experience
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