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First off, this is fact, not fiction. This is a worldwide problem that Ishmael Beah has thankfully shed light upon. This book just opens so many questions for policy-makers and the individual to answer.
It follows him through his horrible journey of becoming a child soldier fighting against the RUF. How are you going to help stop this and prevent it from occurring again. This book follows Ishmael Beah's journey through war torn Sierra Leone after his village is attacked by the RUF (Rebels).
Why buy rocks to sit on your nasty finger if it costs people their lives. The RUF is mainly after diamonds, specifically the money after selling the diamonds. Ishmael is forced to flee, fight, and witness horrific tragedies that no human should witness, let alone a child.
So far, not much has been done about child soldiers throughout the world, with many now in Sudan and spread across many parts of Africa, as well as South America. Now, what are you willing to do to stop this.
This book by Ishmael Beah is s shocking look inside the world of child soldiers in Africa, specifically Sierra Leone. Being from the United States, I had heard stories, but this first-hand setting of this book as eye-opening. This book may not be the most suitable for the young readers, but is a great way to learn about an ongoing human rights issue. The story is well-written and allows the reader to relate as much as possible.
Ishmael's story will break your heart. He does not write like a victim, but rather like one who found his way out of impossible circumstances. Anyone who glorifies war should read this book.
It helps to explain what wars are like, particularly in Africa, and how violence begets violence. For several months he wandered from town to town with other displaced boys, frequently surviving close scrapes with the rebels or other people who distrusted anyone, until he was recruited into the "army", before eventually being rescued and rehabilitated.It is not a pleasant story, but it is very engaging and well-written.
Suddenly, as if someone was shooting them inside my brain, all the massacres I had seen since the day I was touched by war began flashing in my head. "I raised my gun and pulled the trigger, and I killed a man.
A few managed to escape, and the author was one of them. Every time I stopped shooting to change magazines and saw my two young lifeless friends, I angrily pointed my gun into the swamp and killed more people." That's how Ishmael Beah describes his first engagement as a child solder in this book.The book tells the story of a 12-year-old boy separated from his family when the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels invaded his home town in Sierra Leone without warning.
Most people were murdered, some were raped or brutalised and pressed into the service of the RUF. It shows how a sensitive intelligent child can be drafted against his will into committing brutal acts of violence.
It helps us to understand people who have been victims of war, and most of all it encourages us to do everything possible to prevent war.
This book is so engaging. This book should be a required read. I enjoyed learning about this time in history and about this boys experience. It enlightened me to things I never knew were happening. Although the stories are at times difficult to read and imagine ever happening, I couldn't put it down. I highly recommend it for anyone interested in culture, history, true stories, etc. A great read.
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