A LONG WAY GONE
Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

By Ishmael Beah

I just finished reading this book last week. It's a memoir written by Ishmael Beah about his childhood in Sierra Leone. It's a powerfully written book that really opens your eyes to the horrific reality of many children around the world. At times it can be a little hard to read, but there are little breaks that allow the reader to "breathe." This book helped me understand the path of desperation, manipulation, and hopelessness that causes people to commit horrific acts of violence against mothers, children, and fathers. Ishmael is a gifted writer. He has a way of beautifully describing his life, although it was a nightmarish fight for survival.

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:

When I was very little, my father used to say, "If you are alive, there is hope for a better day and something good to happen. If there is nothing good left in the destiny of a person, he or she will die." I thought about these words during my journey, and they kept me moving even when I didn't know where I was going. Those words became the vehicle that drove my spirit forward and made it stay alive....

Many times during our journey we were surrounded by muscular men with machetes who almost killed us before they realized that we were just children running away from the war....

Every time people come at us with the intention of killing us, I close my eyes and wait for death. Even though I am still alive, I feel like each time I accept death, part of me dies. Very soon I will completely die and all that will be left is my empty body walking with you...

Sometimes night has a way of speaking to us, but we almost never listen...

Gasemu began to cry like a child. It always made me afraid when such things happened. In my younger years I had learned that grown men cry only when they have no other choice....

We left New York City on November 15, 1996.... throughout the flight back home I still felt as if I was dreaming, a dream that I didn't want to wake up from. I was sad to leave, but I was also pleased to have met people outside of Sierra Leone. Because if I was to get killed upon my return, I knew that a memory of my existence was alive somewhere in the world.