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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
emotional
informative
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medium-paced
Ok, finally picked this back up and finished it. It was intense! Lots of violence - even more than I expected. The ending was AWFUL. It literally just stopped! No conclusion or anything. Completely out of the blue it just ended.
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Beah was 12 years old when he fled his village after it was attacked by "rebels", members of the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). He wandered the war-filled country until he was brainwashed and recruited into an army unit of the Sierra Leone Armed Forces that forced him to use guns and drugs. By 13 years old, he had perpetrated and witnessed numerous acts of violence. Three years later, UNICEF rescued him from the unit and put him into a rehabilitation program that helped him find his uncle, who would eventually adopt him. After his return to civilian life, he began traveling the United States recounting his story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence, War
It's hard to know what to even say about Beah's memoir of his experience during the Sierra Leone civil war. What he went through is so far removed from my own life that I am just grateful he took the time to put his experiences on paper so that others could get a glimpse of what he went through. It was clear what an impossible position boys like him were in — they were forced to flee after their villages were destroyed, forced to hide from the rebels to avoid being killed or branded and forced to join them, then forced to fight anyway in the army. Both sides were out for revenge and felt justified in committing unspeakable atrocities against the other side because of what they themselves had gone through.
I can't imagine having the fortitude to be one of the folks who rehabilitates former child soldiers. What a difficult task! I am grateful for all of them.
I'm not sure who recommended the audiobook read by Beah, but I would not recommend the same. Yes, there is something to having it read in his own voice, but in his heavily accented English he reads in a monotone and often places the emphasis in the wrong spot. (I understand there's another version read by Dominic Hoffman.) I'm not sure how much was the writing and how much was the reading, but at times it felt like events were being relayed in a detached, emotionless way, even when he spoke about feeling deep emotion. I think he could have benefited from a co-writer who could help him to "show not tell" at certain times. I don't want to pick this apart too much because I can't even imagine living through his experiences, let alone having the strength to relive them through writing them down, but as a reader I did feel at times like events were sped through quickly without time to really feel there with Beah.
Regardless of whatever valid criticisms there might be of the writing, or even of the credibility of some of the details of Beah's account (which has been questioned), I don't think there's another book out there that captures so vividly what living through the Sierra Leone civil war was like and how boys can end up becoming child soldiers. I definitely recommend reading this one.
I can't imagine having the fortitude to be one of the folks who rehabilitates former child soldiers. What a difficult task! I am grateful for all of them.
I'm not sure who recommended the audiobook read by Beah, but I would not recommend the same. Yes, there is something to having it read in his own voice, but in his heavily accented English he reads in a monotone and often places the emphasis in the wrong spot. (I understand there's another version read by Dominic Hoffman.) I'm not sure how much was the writing and how much was the reading, but at times it felt like events were being relayed in a detached, emotionless way, even when he spoke about feeling deep emotion. I think he could have benefited from a co-writer who could help him to "show not tell" at certain times. I don't want to pick this apart too much because I can't even imagine living through his experiences, let alone having the strength to relive them through writing them down, but as a reader I did feel at times like events were sped through quickly without time to really feel there with Beah.
Regardless of whatever valid criticisms there might be of the writing, or even of the credibility of some of the details of Beah's account (which has been questioned), I don't think there's another book out there that captures so vividly what living through the Sierra Leone civil war was like and how boys can end up becoming child soldiers. I definitely recommend reading this one.
This book made me cringe, it made me smile and it made me intensely sad, but I am so happy that I read it. I am just so sorry that young men are forced to endure what Ishmael endured. A favorite quote is "We just strive to be like the moon." Read the book book to find out why.
Powerful read, but tough subject matter. I liked the beginning and end a lot, but all that brutality in the middle made for a challenging read.
Amazing story of the loss of innocence and resilience of a child soldier in Africa. The content made the book difficult to get through at times, but it is a powerful read.
adventurous
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hopeful
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Great short read. A very intimate look at the life of a boy solider and the amazing ability to rehabilitate and resume a productive, happy life. I found it inspiring and insightful as it gave me a new perspective and understanding about the challenges that other countries face that I have never known.
dark
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