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4.11 AVERAGE
4.11 AVERAGE
This book is very depressing, and frankly, disturbing. With that said, it reminds me - and will remind every reader- that healing begins when we help our children.
A Long Way Gone was a beautiful and tragic memoir about a boy soldier who after losing everyone he knew to the war, had to become apart of it. I found this book to be very moving and I would recommend it to everyone. This extraordinary memoir captures the horrors that Ishmael went through and how he survived it all and learned how to regain his humanity. The acts that Ismael accounts to have committed as a soldier in this book are truly devastating and show how atrocious life in war truly was. i believe A Long Way Gone is a true and raw story of war, hope, and forgiveness.
This is a book that will tear your heart out -- you'll hug your family (especially your sons) closer. The quality of writing gets high marks. I felt totally uninformed about Sierra Leone's civil war, and this story offered a great lesson.
4.5 stars
The resilience of xhildren that gow up in circumstances such as this simply amazes me.
The resilience of xhildren that gow up in circumstances such as this simply amazes me.
dark
emotional
It was very difficult to read this book. I often had to set it down and walk away because it upset me so much.
That being said, I think you should read it. This boy tells his story very well. The atrocities suffered by children who become soldiers is something that shouldn't be allowed in this world, and will happen as long as it is ignored or unknown.
That being said, I think you should read it. This boy tells his story very well. The atrocities suffered by children who become soldiers is something that shouldn't be allowed in this world, and will happen as long as it is ignored or unknown.
*spoiler regarding Ishmael’s outcome in this review*
Harrowing, heartbreaking, and horrifying. I feel a little bad giving only 3 stars to anyone’s personal story, especially a childhood like his, but it was a hard & heavy read and I found myself just wanting it to stop so many times. I know it’s important to know these things and learn from them and give a voice to the oppressed. However, in my very personal opinion, I would’ve preferred it a little less graphic - primarily because I was reading it along my 14 year-old daughter who was assigned to read it for school. Also, as a parent of kids in his same age range it was just at times too much to imagine and more stress than I needed right now.
I will say the end was redemptive and let my fears and anxieties for young Ishmael release somewhat. I was worried he would wind up lost and corrupted within his soul but he appears to have healed as well as one could from the atrocities he experienced. I wish I had known that going in as I was bracing for a tragic ending and finding that possibility very depressing.
In the end, the themes of loss, redemption, letting go of the past & being present, and being remembered really did speak to me and I think Ishmael ended up becoming a truly inspiring man. If the proportion of war:healing scenes in the book were reversed this would be a 4-star read for me.
Harrowing, heartbreaking, and horrifying. I feel a little bad giving only 3 stars to anyone’s personal story, especially a childhood like his, but it was a hard & heavy read and I found myself just wanting it to stop so many times. I know it’s important to know these things and learn from them and give a voice to the oppressed. However, in my very personal opinion, I would’ve preferred it a little less graphic - primarily because I was reading it along my 14 year-old daughter who was assigned to read it for school. Also, as a parent of kids in his same age range it was just at times too much to imagine and more stress than I needed right now.
I will say the end was redemptive and let my fears and anxieties for young Ishmael release somewhat. I was worried he would wind up lost and corrupted within his soul but he appears to have healed as well as one could from the atrocities he experienced. I wish I had known that going in as I was bracing for a tragic ending and finding that possibility very depressing.
In the end, the themes of loss, redemption, letting go of the past & being present, and being remembered really did speak to me and I think Ishmael ended up becoming a truly inspiring man. If the proportion of war:healing scenes in the book were reversed this would be a 4-star read for me.
The story of child soldiers in Africa is not a 'nice' story, Beah describes terrible violence that is committed around him and by him.
The story follows Beah from his home village in Sierra Leone, to his time as a child soldier, to his rescue by UNICEF. His story is a story of a child stripped of all humanity. The story is remarkable (and some have disputed that it is not entirely accurate), but it's a glimpse into a world that most people cannot even imagine.
The story is told simply and in a straight forward way, but I don't imagine that it needs to be embellished much.
The story follows Beah from his home village in Sierra Leone, to his time as a child soldier, to his rescue by UNICEF. His story is a story of a child stripped of all humanity. The story is remarkable (and some have disputed that it is not entirely accurate), but it's a glimpse into a world that most people cannot even imagine.
The story is told simply and in a straight forward way, but I don't imagine that it needs to be embellished much.
I loved this book. It was a quick read and an amazing story from an actual boy soldier. A testament to the hope people can change.
Heart-wrenching story of a child thrust into the reality of war. Kidnapped by soldiers, terrified, tortured, conditioned to be a killer. Separated from his family and friends, and forced into choices no child should have to make. Told matter-of-factly as he remembers it, this is Ishmael's own story.