The Journey of the Lost Boys

by Joan Hecht

Imagine you’re a young boy—maybe as young as three or four—separated from your family by civil war, traversing deserts and mountains with little food or water, no medical care, and no protection from wild animals. Imagine watching hundreds of boys perish around you from hunger, disease, or attacks by enemy soldiers and wild animals. To most of us, it is unimaginable, but this was reality for “The Lost Boys of Sudan,” thousands of young boys who were separated from their families and forced to walk approximately 1,000 miles to reach safe refuge from war and certain death. For the first time, “The Journey of the Lost Boys” offers readers a chronological timeline of the epic journey taken by these children, beginning in their rural villages of Southern Sudan and ending with their arrival as young men to the United States. Narrated through the voice of Joan Hecht, one of their American mentors, whom they lovingly call “mom” or “Mama Joan;” “The Journey of the Lost Boys” is a compelling story of courage, faith and the sheer determination to survive by a group of young orphaned boys. Because of Ms. Hecht’s personal relationship with them, she is able to portray their story in a way that most famous reporters and authors cannot. “Each page,” says Ms. Hecht, “is written from the depths of my heart and filled with my love and admiration for these young men whom many call the Lost Boy’s of Sudan, but whom I proudly call my son’s.” In addition to Ms. Hecht’s extensive research of the political and historical events surrounding this long lasting civil war, are the heart-rending personal stories of the boys themselves. “It is a story like no other story I’ve ever heard,” says Ms Hecht. “I only hope that I have given it the respect and recognition it deserves."