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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, War
2015 Reading Challenge- Book by and African Author
My high school history teacher, Mr. Coffey (AP US History and AP Euro History), was a big supporter of non-profits and NGOs that spread awareness about and provided support for child soldiers. He told us to read this book, and I believe even provided us some copies of certain pages to demonstrate the horror of child soldiers.
I can't believe I didn't read this book until now.
Firstly, I should mention that Ishmael did not fight for the RUF- the rebel group who tried to overthrow the corrupt government. Secondly, the way the book is set up is that Ishmael is running from rebels and fighting for about the first half of the book, the next 15% is his actual time in the army, and the rest of the book is his recovery (with a few army flashbacks/stories), first at a rehabilitation center, then at his uncle's home.
The way he tells the story, I believed the rebel groups were horrible and malicious (they were), but when he was inducted into the Sierra Leonean government army, I quickly found out that neither side was the good side. Both sides used child soldiers, both brainwashed the children and fueled their soldiers with unknown white pills "for energy", cocaine, brown brown (which is cocaine mixed with gun powder), all the violence they craved, and war movies. In this sort of situation, both sides are wrong to do what they do, and at that point, all the fighting seemed to continue simply because that was what they had known for the last 10 years or so. No good change ever came about from the fighting. And as Ishmael points out later, revenge only spurs more revenge and never actually gives you back what you have lost.
By the end of the book, violence has descended upon the capital of Sierra Leone (Freetown) and Ishmael must escape with his life. I was so angry at all the fighting and corruption and violence and anger and revenge and lack of empathy that I couldn't seem to contain it. Luckily, the chronology at the end of the book soothed me a bit by informing me that peace has been established, as well as a president who strongly believes in peace and used to work for the UN.
Ishmael is a good writer, if a bit of a simplistic one. He tends to state facts and events matter-of-factly, and is very candid about his feelings. This style was good for this story in that it didn't feel like it was trying to manipulate your feelings like those Sarah McLaughlin animal ads, and it shows how Ishmael's brain changes throughout events: scared while running, numb and desensitized while fighting, angry and traumatized while recovering.
Everyone should read this book to a)learn about something other than a Eurocentric history b)be aware of atrocities happening in other countries and c)join the movement to end child soldiers and fighting in other countries. The atrocities of war, let alone usage of child soldiers, is something that most Americans or middle class Europeans will never have to face, so it is on us to educate ourselves about other events and how to fix them.
My high school history teacher, Mr. Coffey (AP US History and AP Euro History), was a big supporter of non-profits and NGOs that spread awareness about and provided support for child soldiers. He told us to read this book, and I believe even provided us some copies of certain pages to demonstrate the horror of child soldiers.
I can't believe I didn't read this book until now.
Firstly, I should mention that Ishmael did not fight for the RUF- the rebel group who tried to overthrow the corrupt government. Secondly, the way the book is set up is that Ishmael is running from rebels and fighting for about the first half of the book, the next 15% is his actual time in the army, and the rest of the book is his recovery (with a few army flashbacks/stories), first at a rehabilitation center, then at his uncle's home.
The way he tells the story, I believed the rebel groups were horrible and malicious (they were), but when he was inducted into the Sierra Leonean government army, I quickly found out that neither side was the good side. Both sides used child soldiers, both brainwashed the children and fueled their soldiers with unknown white pills "for energy", cocaine, brown brown (which is cocaine mixed with gun powder), all the violence they craved, and war movies. In this sort of situation, both sides are wrong to do what they do, and at that point, all the fighting seemed to continue simply because that was what they had known for the last 10 years or so. No good change ever came about from the fighting. And as Ishmael points out later, revenge only spurs more revenge and never actually gives you back what you have lost.
By the end of the book, violence has descended upon the capital of Sierra Leone (Freetown) and Ishmael must escape with his life. I was so angry at all the fighting and corruption and violence and anger and revenge and lack of empathy that I couldn't seem to contain it. Luckily, the chronology at the end of the book soothed me a bit by informing me that peace has been established, as well as a president who strongly believes in peace and used to work for the UN.
Ishmael is a good writer, if a bit of a simplistic one. He tends to state facts and events matter-of-factly, and is very candid about his feelings. This style was good for this story in that it didn't feel like it was trying to manipulate your feelings like those Sarah McLaughlin animal ads, and it shows how Ishmael's brain changes throughout events: scared while running, numb and desensitized while fighting, angry and traumatized while recovering.
Everyone should read this book to a)learn about something other than a Eurocentric history b)be aware of atrocities happening in other countries and c)join the movement to end child soldiers and fighting in other countries. The atrocities of war, let alone usage of child soldiers, is something that most Americans or middle class Europeans will never have to face, so it is on us to educate ourselves about other events and how to fix them.
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
A tough read, but a necessary one.
The story was very informative and moving for me, but ended far before I wanted it to. I expected it to tell up until the writing of the book and it ended abruptly without a real conclusion. obviously though, Beah is not trained in writing and is simply telling his own incredibly tragic story. I'd definitely recommend it.
A Long Way Gone is a memoir, a telling of Ishmael Beah's teenage years during the Sierra Leone Civil War in which he lost his family and became a soldier at the age of 13. This is one of the first books I've read in some time where I've thought that my own writing ability was actually more or less comparable to the author's. This sounds like a criticism, and it partly is, but of course you don't have to write like Hemingway to write an emotional salient, important book, and I think this is a great example of that. Beah is a good writer, not an exceptional one, but he does have an exceptional experience to tell about, and I'm glad he did.
I read a bit about this book after I finished and learned that there's been some controversy as to the accuracy of historical details and the alignment of Beah's testimony with the actual historical record. Some have also said that it is very likely that certain aspects are exaggerated and sensationalized, in particular the scene in the latter half of the book at the UNICEF rehabilitation camp when Beah details a violent skirmish that allegedly resulted in six deaths between two groups of boys after they discovered they fought for different sides in the Civil War (with Beah and his friends having fought for 'the army,' loyal to the presiding government, and another group of boys having fought for the Revolutionary United Front, or RUF). Of course, the boys have no notion as to what their fronts stand for or who they stand behind—it's all just tribalism, being told that their side is the good side and that the others are murderers and traitors. It seems like there is no official record indicating that such an incident happened and that, even if it had actually happened, people are doubtful that the deaths of six boys could have been swept under the rug so easily and hidden from international media.
I'm of a fairly ambivalent mind as to whether or not I care that certain details in this book are refuted. The absolute truth, even if it were somewhat less shocking and sensational, might be more powerful to those who care enough to look into the finer details of Beah's timeline in relation to the larger chronology of the Sierra Leone Civil War, but maybe A Long Way Gone wouldn't have had the mass appeal and popularity that it did had it not been a bit embellished. It's unfortunate that Beah might have considered the very essential and undeniable aspects of his story (i.e., having his family killed and becoming a child soldier) not extraordinary or tragic enough to capture a wider audience, that he might have felt compelled (or that his publisher might have goaded him) to make it more sensational. With that said, if he had to stretch the truth to some extent to reach the audience that he did, then I'm comfortable and content with that—the way I see it, it would have been worth it.
I find it hard to give this book more than 3 stars, for the reasons I've mentioned above, as well as in terms of general enjoyment. I always have this problem, though, when I start thinking and writing about a book that I think is unremarkable or which I didn't enjoy all that much: I generally amplify the things I liked about it and which I respected and feel bad about giving it a lower rating. This way of thinking doesn't convince me that I liked it more than I did (generally), but it will make me say dumb shit like "well, I respected the author's vision" and give the book a rating that seems otherwise incongruous with my level of enjoyment. After all, there's no way I could write anything of the caliber of any book I've read, so who am I to criticize? Of course, this is an entirely unhelpful way to think about criticism, the exact reason why I've been such a certifiably bad peer reviewer in the past. But, altogether, A Long Way Gone is pretty deserving of a 3, and I'll stick to my guns.
I read a bit about this book after I finished and learned that there's been some controversy as to the accuracy of historical details and the alignment of Beah's testimony with the actual historical record. Some have also said that it is very likely that certain aspects are exaggerated and sensationalized, in particular the scene in the latter half of the book at the UNICEF rehabilitation camp when Beah details a violent skirmish that allegedly resulted in six deaths between two groups of boys after they discovered they fought for different sides in the Civil War (with Beah and his friends having fought for 'the army,' loyal to the presiding government, and another group of boys having fought for the Revolutionary United Front, or RUF). Of course, the boys have no notion as to what their fronts stand for or who they stand behind—it's all just tribalism, being told that their side is the good side and that the others are murderers and traitors. It seems like there is no official record indicating that such an incident happened and that, even if it had actually happened, people are doubtful that the deaths of six boys could have been swept under the rug so easily and hidden from international media.
I'm of a fairly ambivalent mind as to whether or not I care that certain details in this book are refuted. The absolute truth, even if it were somewhat less shocking and sensational, might be more powerful to those who care enough to look into the finer details of Beah's timeline in relation to the larger chronology of the Sierra Leone Civil War, but maybe A Long Way Gone wouldn't have had the mass appeal and popularity that it did had it not been a bit embellished. It's unfortunate that Beah might have considered the very essential and undeniable aspects of his story (i.e., having his family killed and becoming a child soldier) not extraordinary or tragic enough to capture a wider audience, that he might have felt compelled (or that his publisher might have goaded him) to make it more sensational. With that said, if he had to stretch the truth to some extent to reach the audience that he did, then I'm comfortable and content with that—the way I see it, it would have been worth it.
I find it hard to give this book more than 3 stars, for the reasons I've mentioned above, as well as in terms of general enjoyment. I always have this problem, though, when I start thinking and writing about a book that I think is unremarkable or which I didn't enjoy all that much: I generally amplify the things I liked about it and which I respected and feel bad about giving it a lower rating. This way of thinking doesn't convince me that I liked it more than I did (generally), but it will make me say dumb shit like "well, I respected the author's vision" and give the book a rating that seems otherwise incongruous with my level of enjoyment. After all, there's no way I could write anything of the caliber of any book I've read, so who am I to criticize? Of course, this is an entirely unhelpful way to think about criticism, the exact reason why I've been such a certifiably bad peer reviewer in the past. But, altogether, A Long Way Gone is pretty deserving of a 3, and I'll stick to my guns.
dark
emotional
informative
fast-paced
Very powerful and moving. So sad to think this stuff really happens
challenging
emotional
informative
slow-paced
The only aspect that makes this book readable is that you know that the author survives. What a gut-wrenching read. I don't think you can read this book without imagining yourself in Beah's shoes (or, often, his bare feet), and that's no light task. Beah takes you through the most tumultuous years of his life, from when the rebels attack his village to when he finally gets out.