Life takes a strong toil when war strikes. People start to lose hope in survival and start believing in the wrong source of power. Revenge and world domination. Nevertheless, it takes one to realize what truly matters, and that is life. Consequently, there are factors to lead to one’s survival and hope for a better path. In the novel that Linda Sue Park had written; a Long Walk to Water. Tells a story of compassion, bravery, and a little bit of luck, during one of the worst times in Southern Sudan. Told from a perspective of a young boy named Salva. Moreover, throughout the book, Salva had many factors that made survival possible for him, they include; Marial, Uncle, some luck on the way. These are the factors that helped him survive, even when tomorrow did not seem possible. One survival factor that was key to Salva’s survival was Marial. Conversely, Marial was there to make Salva feel better and to give him something to look forward to when the war was hopefully over. When life was at the hardest for Salva. In Southern Sudan in 1985, the group that Salva was in, was getting larger as the days passed. One evening Salva accidentally steps on another boy’s hand. The boy turned out to be Dinka, but from a different village than Salva’s. The boy was angry, notwithstanding he quickly softens up. And introduces himself as Marial. A quote from a Long Walk to Water comes from chapter five, pages 29-30, the author writes, … ‘“Your family?” Salva shakes his head, and the boy says,