The book “A Long Way Gone” by Ishmael Beah is a memoir of a boy soldier during the civil war in Sierra Leone. It is a detailed account of what Ishmael went through trying to hide from the rebels and his time as a child soldier under the control of the rebels. Beah gives a first person view of exactly what it’s like to be in a war torn country as boy soldier. His story ends on a positive note because Beah survives and recovers from the violent events he endured.
There are many characters that come into the book for a chapter or two then are killed by the rebels or are lost while running away. However, Ishmael is mentioned throughout the whole book is in every chapter and carries the story with his emotion and thought. He is my favourite character because in the beginning he is a fun-loving, athletic, musical boy that wants nothing more than he has. We soon see that there is much more to his character. He looks after his friends when they are hiding in the bush and tries to make then feel better. By telling stories and singing the music they love he tries to be positive and brave. Once Ishmael is captured he is under the control of the rebels, which leads him to do horrible things. In the end, Ishmael takes responsibility for his actions but accepts that it was not his fault because he had no choice if he was to stay alive. I admire his strength and that he was able to overcome all of the horrible things that he went through. When the grown, free Ishmael talks about looking at the moon, he says “it pleases me to know that part of my childhood is still embedded in me”. This is important because we know that he will always carry some of the happy parts of his childhood.
This is a difficult book to read because of all the disturbing things that happen to Ishmael and the other children. I enjoyed two sections of the books the most. The beginning of the book was likeable because Ishmael, his brother and his friends were so excited about the rap contest. They were looking forward to making the trip to where the competition was being held. It wasn’t until the end of the story that I felt much hope for Ishmael. When we learn that he is able to accept what he has done and why, it brings relief because we know that he has a chance at life.
This is an important book because it gives you perspective of how children around the world suffer because of war. Ishmael’s experiences can tell us all many things about child soldiers. One of the most important things that he taught me about war was “I have come to learn that if I am going to take revenge, in that process I will kill another person whose family will want revenge; then revenge and revenge and revenge will never come to an end.”
