Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
“How many more times do we have to come to terms with death before we find safety?” (70)
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
Such a heavy and devastating book but soo soo important. I had to take this book really slow because how truly heavy this book is. It’s a story of a survivor, a child forced to be a soldier, and his journey of escaping Sierra Leone. So proud of this man for witnessing all he did and then becoming a human rights activist.
“...children have the resilience to outlive their sufferings, if given a chance.”
“...children have the resilience to outlive their sufferings, if given a chance.”
This is a heart-wrenching story of a boy growing up in war-torn Sierra Leone. I've read several memoirs of people that grew up in Africa. Each one includes beautiful stories of an idyllic time and place growing up: where life was simple, parents were authoritarian but kind and loving, friends were plenty, and school was a savior. Eventually tradgedy strikes, causing the protagonist to overcome extreme horrors to survive. This book was no different.
Beah's writing of his efforts to escape the war and eventually to take part in it are raw and heart-wrenching. I gained a perspective into the troubles of Sierra Leone and child soldiers that I would not have had I not read this book. Because it is more descriptive than reflective, the reader is left to contemplate the meaning of all of it. I found myself amazed at what horrors humans are capable of, the fragility of life and the incredible adaptive powers of the human mind. This story is ultimately about survival, but I suppose that's how it goes. All of those that died aren't able to write their own stories.
Beah's writing of his efforts to escape the war and eventually to take part in it are raw and heart-wrenching. I gained a perspective into the troubles of Sierra Leone and child soldiers that I would not have had I not read this book. Because it is more descriptive than reflective, the reader is left to contemplate the meaning of all of it. I found myself amazed at what horrors humans are capable of, the fragility of life and the incredible adaptive powers of the human mind. This story is ultimately about survival, but I suppose that's how it goes. All of those that died aren't able to write their own stories.
A very moving story of a boy growing up in war torn Sierra Leone who loses his family and is then recruited as a soldier at 15. Beah reads the audio book and I felt that his reading added a lot to bring his voice fully to life. I was a little disappointed at the abrupt ending -- even though I know he made it to New York and ultimately landed well on his feet, I felt that we were being told how that happened when the book suddenly ended. A minor quibble though. This is an important story told from a perspective rarely heard.
I found this book a little slow at first. It took me awhile to get into it. Once I did, I enjoyed it. It shed a lot of light on a period of history and a geographical area that I know so little about. I wish that the beginning had a little more juxtaposition of Beah now vs. then---I think I may have been a little more interested from the start if it did.
A good book, sometimes too overwhelming. A bit hard to swallow because the subject material seems so hard to fathom- kids at war....
This is the account of life as a child soldier in Sierra Lione. 12 year old Ishmael Bleah was brought up in a close-knit family. After school he enjoyed American Hip-hop while coreographing dance routines with friends. He enjoyed shakespeare and public speaking until the civil war passed through his village. It wiped out all he had ever known and adopted him into the life of a child soldier.
His writing did not pull me in nor did the storyline at first. I felt as though there were too many coincidences for it to be all real. I must admit while reading this book my Westerized skepticism caught up with me. I found myself questioning the truth of his story. Having been raised in a safe environment and the only violence I was subject to was the knowledge of school shootings, gangs in the city and abusive drug addicts. Living on a battle field much less partake in the war was never on my radar until my teens. In order to accept his struggles I had to dismiss the reality I had always known and allow myself to accept that atrocities like this are prevalent today.
His writing did not pull me in nor did the storyline at first. I felt as though there were too many coincidences for it to be all real. I must admit while reading this book my Westerized skepticism caught up with me. I found myself questioning the truth of his story. Having been raised in a safe environment and the only violence I was subject to was the knowledge of school shootings, gangs in the city and abusive drug addicts. Living on a battle field much less partake in the war was never on my radar until my teens. In order to accept his struggles I had to dismiss the reality I had always known and allow myself to accept that atrocities like this are prevalent today.
Tayla G.: When I first picked up this book I thought it wouldn’t be good but as I read it, it caught my interest. It was a sad story at one point because he was a little boy when he was put into the army when he was a little boy. It was kill or be killed as I thought about it. I think if other people read this book it would inspire people because this little boy was only thirteen and he went into the army and it says that you can do anything if you put your mind to it. In addition, when I read this story I felt the pain he went through. From being a little kid to being picked up and traveling all around the world. There was a lot of pain in this story but the book had a happy ending.
Favorite quote: “One of the unsettling things about my journey, mentally, physically, and emotionally, was that I wasn’t sure when or where it was going to end.”(69)
Favorite quote: “One of the unsettling things about my journey, mentally, physically, and emotionally, was that I wasn’t sure when or where it was going to end.”(69)
dark
inspiring
medium-paced
dark
tense
fast-paced