A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah Reviewed by Eduardo Prado
A Long Way Gone specifies the true story of a child named Ishmael Beah, who became a soldier due to the Sierra Leone’s Civil war. The story begins with Ishmael at 12 years old, living with his mother and two brothers in a village called “Mattru Jong” located in Sierra Leone, West Africa. He loved rap music and dancing. One day Ishmael and his older brother attended a rap concert that was being held out of town. While his brother and him were away, rebels attacked their village. Soon after, his family disappears leaving them alone to look out for themselves. Beah spent months wandering Sierra Leone, trying to escape from civil war, and looking for his family. During those months he experienced horrible things, chaos, murder, and he learned how to survive. He then finds a group of boys all from different villages that were going through the same situation. They went from village to village looking for their families. After a while, they find a village that was protected by the government. The boys were welcomed to stay but they had to help fight against the rebels. Not long after their first training Beah and his friends are taken into the fields to fight. As expected from a 12-year-old boy, he is struck by fear, he panics when he sees people dying in front of him, he constantly hears people yelling for help. He sees two of his friends agonizing, their bodies showered in blood. With courage and anger, Beah builds up strength and picks up his AK47and starts killing enemies. After that encounter, Beah was never the same anymore. He constantly had nightmares, he starts doing drugs to relief his pain. Like the rest of the soldiers he becomes addicted to drugs. By 15 years old Beah’s life was drastically changed that "my squad was my family, my gun was my provider and protector, and my rule was to kill or be killed" was the only thing in his mind. He had forgotten about his family. When a group of UNICEF workers arrive at the camp where Beah was located, he is one of the many boys chosen to be taken to a rehabilitation center to start a new life. He struggles with an addiction to drugs and nightmares that would bring back the horrible things he had seen during the civil war, it was also difficult for him to learn how to live a life that no longer involved killing or being killed.
This is an intense book that takes you into the life of children’s whose lives have been altered by war, a war that they are forced to fight. It shows how powerful courage is, how it can make a good person capable of brutal things. Reading about the horrible things Beah experienced made me think twice about the things I complain about today. It amazes me how a 12-year-old boy survived through what I would call hell.
Reviewed by Eduardo Prado
A Long Way Gone specifies the true story of a child named Ishmael Beah, who became a soldier due to the Sierra Leone’s Civil war. The story begins with Ishmael at 12 years old, living with his mother and two brothers in a village called “Mattru Jong” located in Sierra Leone, West Africa. He loved rap music and dancing. One day Ishmael and his older brother attended a rap concert that was being held out of town. While his brother and him were away, rebels attacked their village. Soon after, his family disappears leaving them alone to look out for themselves. Beah spent months wandering Sierra Leone, trying to escape from civil war, and looking for his family. During those months he experienced horrible things, chaos, murder, and he learned how to survive. He then finds a group of boys all from different villages that were going through the same situation. They went from village to village looking for their families. After a while, they find a village that was protected by the government. The boys were welcomed to stay but they had to help fight against the rebels. Not long after their first training Beah and his friends are taken into the fields to fight. As expected from a 12-year-old boy, he is struck by fear, he panics when he sees people dying in front of him, he constantly hears people yelling for help. He sees two of his friends agonizing, their bodies showered in blood. With courage and anger, Beah builds up strength and picks up his AK47and starts killing enemies. After that encounter, Beah was never the same anymore. He constantly had nightmares, he starts doing drugs to relief his pain. Like the rest of the soldiers he becomes addicted to drugs. By 15 years old Beah’s life was drastically changed that "my squad was my family, my gun was my provider and protector, and my rule was to kill or be killed" was the only thing in his mind. He had forgotten about his family. When a group of UNICEF workers arrive at the camp where Beah was located, he is one of the many boys chosen to be taken to a rehabilitation center to start a new life. He struggles with an addiction to drugs and nightmares that would bring back the horrible things he had seen during the civil war, it was also difficult for him to learn how to live a life that no longer involved killing or being killed.
This is an intense book that takes you into the life of children’s whose lives have been altered by war, a war that they are forced to fight. It shows how powerful courage is, how it can make a good person capable of brutal things. Reading about the horrible things Beah experienced made me think twice about the things I complain about today. It amazes me how a 12-year-old boy survived through what I would call hell.