What It Is

by Brian Howard

It feels strange to say it, but I've been reading Dave Eggers for most of my adult life. I was a huge fan of long-gone satire mag Might (and bought a lifetime subscription the issue before it shut down for good) in that wasteland known as the mid-'90s. I collected the early years of his McSweeney's literary journal. And I reviewed his first book, A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius — Eggers' literary coming-out party — back in 2000. My fanboy assessment was that the self-consciously footnoted memoir of him and his younger brother growing up after their parents' cancer-related deaths was, if I recall correctly, "a little self-indulgent, but, like, totally awesome." Eggers knew he could write. And he had a hell of a story to tell. His follow-up, the novel You Shall Know Our Velocity, felt autobiographical even if it wasn't.

Which is why What Is the What, Eggers' novelization of Sudanese Lost Boy Valentino Achak Deng's journey on foot through jungle and desert from his ravaged village of Marial Bai to a refugee camp in Ethiopia and then America in the wake of Sudan's civil war, has been such an eye-opener. I realize I'm the last person on Earth to weigh in on 2008's One Book, One Philadelphia selection. (Actually, I wish that were true.) But what's striking is how completely Eggers disappears. Perhaps it's reverence. Or that Valentino's story — losing parents young and growing up quick — parallels his own. Some critics have balked, calling the fictionalized autobiography "post-colonial arrogance." But even if What Is the What isn't Valentino's true voice, it certainly isn't Eggers'. And, honestly, the story being told transcends such picayune delineations. That Valentino has survived is miraculous. That so many others did not is devastating. That history is repeating makes me cringe.

In collaboration with the Free Library, we've been bringing you "Lost and Found," a series of interviews with Sudanese refugees in Philadelphia. It has focused on men, like Valentino, who were victims of the civil war in the early 1980s. However, this week's installment, "Things to Take Home," focuses on Garelnabi Abusikin, a survivor of the current atrocities in Darfur. The crazy part? He's going back.

What's more troubling is that this history's been repeating for decades. From Franz Fanon's The Wretched of the Earth to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart to V.S. Naipaul's A Bend in the River, the literature of post-colonialism is fraught with tales of power struggle and agony. Valentino, Eggers and Mary Williams are at the Free Library tonight, March 20. Achebe will be at the library March 27 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the publication of his novel. (Check out our full round-up of upcoming author events.) What's the takeaway? Colonialism leaves a nasty wake and always has. Makes you wonder why anyone would make a go of it in this day and age.

Odds and Ends

On a (much) lighter note, I'm excited to make a couple of announcements. First, a few weeks back we brought you a cover story on Philly's inaugural Beer Week. We launched a little toy we dubbed the Beeramid that pitted 16 local beers in a bracket-style scrum. Well, we have a winner: Nodding Head's Grog. Take a bobbly bow, guys. (Visit citypaper.net/clog, category: Beeramid to retrace the steps.) Second, we're unleashing Agenda Editor Monica Weymouth, in an official way at least, on Philly fashion with a new column we're calling Shopping Spree. When we first discussed it, I'd shorthanded it "Feeding Frenzy for boutiques." Monica sums it up better:

Shopping spree is a biweekly Agenda column dedicated to Philly's many trunk shows, sales, boutique openings, fashion shows and every damn party Topstitch throws. There will be a focus on local designers and boutique owners, but if Jimmy Choo comes through, you can bet we'll be there. Tips about upcoming events are appreciated; buying up the last pair of size 9 pumps is not.

Hit her with the good stuff: monica@citypaper.net.

(bhoward@citypaper.net)