Young Bol Gai (bowl guy) lived in a peaceful Dinka village in southern Sudan—until the night his whole world changed forever. In a government-supported raid, his community was violently destroyed. He was captured, taken far away, and sold to the highest bidder. But this clever boy devised a way to deal with the brutal reality of slavery. Two things proved to be his saving grace: the lessons he had learned from his mother and his special love for animals.