A LONG WALK TO WATER is two interlocking stories, taking place in Sudan more than 20 years apart. In the first, 11-year-old Salva runs into the bush when his village is attacked during the civil war. He spends years walking to overcrowded refugee camps in bordering countries, seeing friends and family die at the hands of armed men as well as from attacks by a lion and crocodiles, wondering if he will ever see his parents or siblings again. In the other story, 11-year-old Nya spends her days collecting water for her family, often making two trips a day to a dirty pond. When strange men arrive in her village, they begin working on a project that could not only change her daily duties but also her life.