Engaging characters and interesting historical context. ( )

This long but rewarding book is not particularly well written, but it's a compelling story (or set of stories), with complex characters dealing with a set of important issues. Most of the main characters are involved in providing aid to Sudan, plus two characters directly involved in the conflict, one a Muslim tribal headman who fights on the side of the government, and a nominally Christian rebel leader. All of the characters act out of some kind of faith, even if it's a secular faith. Most are unequivocally convinced that the end justifies the means, and all have to deal with the unintended consequences of their "acts of faith," especially a single-minded aid provider and an evangelical Christian from Cedar Falls, Iowa (unfortunately a stereotyped Iowa town). The author effectively juggles these overlapping stories, but perhaps excessively drives home his point about the dangers of single-minded faith commitments. In its conviction that God & the Devil are one & the same in Africa, it takes religion with deadly seriousness at the same time that it fundamentally questions it as a valid motivation for action. In this and in its implications for Americans' roles in the world at large, it is reminiscent of Graham Greene's The Quiet American. ( )

Much to my surprise, this is a very good book. I read it expecting to be disappointed, because I was there during the period and events in which this book is set and they are rarely described accurately.

I was the director of one of the independent aid agencies working outside the UN umbrella, although fortunately not one of those described in the book. Despite the routine disclaimer that all characters are fictitious, I recognise many of them. I have often flown in the Caravan with "Tara" and sat in the jump-seat of the Gulfstream with "Wesley". I've drunk too much with the "defrocked Catholic priest". I've landed at Zulu 2 and visited many of the real locations named in the Nuba Mountains. I helped the real German Emergency Doctors with their logistics when they first moved into Sudan. "Quinette" has echoes of Emma, and it was "Doug" who first told me about this book when I bumped into him in one of his coffee shops in Nairobi recently.

I tend to read books about places and events I know very critically, looking for errors, but in this case I found myself giving it the benefit of the doubt. The general background was very good indeed and the fiction seemed to grow easily from it. Most of the general scenario is true, almost true, or at least plausible. It's only in the last fifty pages or so that the book moves into areas which are pure fiction.

Of course there are errors. No non-UN operator could ever have landed in government-controlled Malakal without being arrested, even with a damaged aircraft. We had engine problems once on a flight to the Nuba Mountains on an ancient DC3 but fortunately were able to land in Panyagor, which was SPLA-controlled, where our South American crew patched up the offending engine and eventually got us to Zulu 2. I remember the hump in the middle of that airstrip rather than the rough patch at one end in the novel. Caputo's treatment of the SPLA is very shallow. Interestingly he has tried to understand the murahiliin more than most observers. He ascribes far more professionalism to "Friends of the Frontline" than I would to their real life counterparts.

His treatment of the slave redemption business is very good.

I like the way he has portrayed the contradictions of the aid industry. It is very dysfunctional indeed, and yet few are inclined to really challenge it. Evaluations and assessments tinker around the edges, make superficial changes, expose occasional scandals or wrong-doing which can be dealt with self-righteously, but it is rare to find challenges to the aid culture as a whole. In my oft-expressed view, the aid industry needs fundamental and radical change. It won't happen - there are too many vested interests, mixed motives and keen young aid workers, as depicted in Caputo's book. ( )

A compelling and highly readable account of a large cast of characters working in various ways to bring relief to the Sudan. The book is well researched and highly educational, and successfully portrays an extremely complex struggle. But perhaps its greatest asset is the rich character development at the heart of the novel; no group of saints, this cast of characters displays a wide array of motivations and convictions. Fascinating from start to finish. ( )

Set in Sudan, Acts of Faith tells the story of relief workers from NGOs and pilots who work in and fly supplies (and weapons) into this proverbially war-torn part of Africa. It begins as a compelling read (although it fades as it progresses) based on Caputo's long experience as a war correspondent. I much prefer Caputo's earlier novel, "Horn of Africa," an updated "Heart of Darkness" tale of how a mercenary goes mad during a covert mission. ( )