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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
https://untamedshrews.wordpress.com/2017/06/03/review-of-beahs-a-long-way-gone-and-gantoss-hole-in-my-life/
Ah, amazing book. I've never read a book about child soldiers before, so I was interested to read this one. Ishmael's writing was very fluid and easy to follow and he definitely kept my attention throughout the entire memoir. I think he maybe could've made the book even longer, to explain even more what he went through but still, you for sure understood the horrors and pain that was felt all those childhood years. Many times I found it heartbreaking, because being a child soldier really is just that! I think this book is important to read because it wakes us up to the horrors we like to turn a blind eye to. Yes, Canadian children may probably never have to fight in a war, but it doesn't mean that we should forget about the children in the rest of the world who will, and who do currently. This was a great read.
This is a story about a boy who wants to recover the memories that were taken from him, when he only was 12 years old.
This book made me open my eyes and see the world from a whole other perspective. It is amazingly written and captures every aspect of living in an unstable country, being forced to go to war and escaping it, although never completely. the books definitely shows the scars that will stay with child slodiers forever.
Do you remember being a kid? Well, image if that life you had was throw away and instead thrown a gun. What would you do? You’re alone, you’re scared, and now you have only one thing you can do, fight.
I'll start off this review by saying that this was not my favorite book. Albeit interesting, it was truly horrific. Sending you on a ride where one minute you're smooth sailing and the next, hurtling down a 50-foot drop. I'm not exaggerating, there were moments, like a roller coaster, which made me want to throw up. And throw up the characters in the book did. I mean, how could you not when all you see as you walk down the street is dead bodies. Ishmael Beah, our author, and the narrator did not leave anything up to the imagination. "During the fight Mambu had blinded one boy by plucking out his eye with a bayonet." There were elements of the memoir I also enjoyed though. The whole subject of the book fascinated me. Even if I did not like the writing format, the point it was trying to get across was so incredibly moving. Before this book, I had never read about child soldiers. As you might imagine, reading this was a bit of a shock. Especially hearing from the mind of Ishmael, who had to witness so many deaths and killed so many people. His mind got to a place where no one’s mind should ever go.
While others gave this book five out of five stars, there were a couple of reviews I saw that gave the book a lower rating. And these people brought up some incredible points. I'll leave a link here to the original review I saw: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/131336299?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1 But, she brought up some topics that I'll like to discuss. The first being that this should be written differently. I agree. For those of you who have not read the book, don't worry I won't include major spoilers, the ending leaves you on a major cliffhanger. Now, I understand this is because his life was continuing but, he wrote this book way after the end of the memoir. Still agreeing with Jennifer, the setup should have gone something like this. Throughout the book there were flashbacks, but the whole story should have been like that. Him reflecting on his time while seeing glimpses of his life now. After the story ends, we see no life of him after he got out of Sierra Leone. As I'm sure most of us can agree, it would have been fascinating to see him as an adult. But, we never got the chance to because the story ends so abruptly.
While this book had some faults, the message behind Beah’s words was incredibly moving, and I will never forget this story. If you ever have the chance to read this book, go into it with an open mind. Leave any prenotions behind, because this story will completely change your look on the terrible events some children have to go through.
I'll start off this review by saying that this was not my favorite book. Albeit interesting, it was truly horrific. Sending you on a ride where one minute you're smooth sailing and the next, hurtling down a 50-foot drop. I'm not exaggerating, there were moments, like a roller coaster, which made me want to throw up. And throw up the characters in the book did. I mean, how could you not when all you see as you walk down the street is dead bodies. Ishmael Beah, our author, and the narrator did not leave anything up to the imagination. "During the fight Mambu had blinded one boy by plucking out his eye with a bayonet." There were elements of the memoir I also enjoyed though. The whole subject of the book fascinated me. Even if I did not like the writing format, the point it was trying to get across was so incredibly moving. Before this book, I had never read about child soldiers. As you might imagine, reading this was a bit of a shock. Especially hearing from the mind of Ishmael, who had to witness so many deaths and killed so many people. His mind got to a place where no one’s mind should ever go.
While others gave this book five out of five stars, there were a couple of reviews I saw that gave the book a lower rating. And these people brought up some incredible points. I'll leave a link here to the original review I saw: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/131336299?book_show_action=true&from_review_page=1 But, she brought up some topics that I'll like to discuss. The first being that this should be written differently. I agree. For those of you who have not read the book, don't worry I won't include major spoilers, the ending leaves you on a major cliffhanger. Now, I understand this is because his life was continuing but, he wrote this book way after the end of the memoir. Still agreeing with Jennifer, the setup should have gone something like this. Throughout the book there were flashbacks, but the whole story should have been like that. Him reflecting on his time while seeing glimpses of his life now. After the story ends, we see no life of him after he got out of Sierra Leone. As I'm sure most of us can agree, it would have been fascinating to see him as an adult. But, we never got the chance to because the story ends so abruptly.
While this book had some faults, the message behind Beah’s words was incredibly moving, and I will never forget this story. If you ever have the chance to read this book, go into it with an open mind. Leave any prenotions behind, because this story will completely change your look on the terrible events some children have to go through.
I had an appointment, and when it was over at 3 I went to Starbucks for a drink, and they were setting up a book reading with the author. So I bought the book, got about 50 pages into it and then went to see him talk. He was awesome, well-spoken and grounded. Funny too at parts. When I got home I finished it. It was really disturbing. I'm amazed he's alive, much less writing a book about his experiences.
Sierra Leon book around the world.
Another tough but very important read.
Another tough but very important read.
i liked this it was good I'm not rating it because i feel strange rating books about peoples life
Listened to the audio-book, read by the author. I think this is an example of a book made better read aloud. It really drew me in, without being so complicated that it was hard to follow what was happening while I was working.
The Sierra Leone Civil War is an example of something that happened during my lifetime (I'm about the same age as Ishmael Beah) that I had no idea about at the time. I've been trying to fill in those historical gaps with my non-fiction selections this year.
The Sierra Leone Civil War is an example of something that happened during my lifetime (I'm about the same age as Ishmael Beah) that I had no idea about at the time. I've been trying to fill in those historical gaps with my non-fiction selections this year.