A Long Way Gone: The Harrowing True Story of a Child Soldier

renata pinto de aguiar oliveira soares: Minha filha leu e gostou

Brazil on Oct 31, 2023

Bobbie: The author bravely exposes his life to our view. He risks everything to show his experience in a civil war which robbed him of family and so much more. Reading this book was heartbreaking. Yet our author survives and makes a good life with people who love him I wish I could know him.

United States on Oct 27, 2023

simone: Great read, you will drawn into the story like you're living it

United States on Sep 30, 2023

Kindle Customer Richard E. Moore: If you are at a loss to understand why wanton violence has become embedded in our culture, you might want to read this book. After you have read it, you probably should prepare yourself for things to get worse before they get better. A book called "The Population Bomb" written more than a half a century ago basically predicted what is happening in our culture today. Too many people, too few resourses. Too many politicians, too few statesmen. This true story tells the story of opposing forces that are polar opposites, one of which is in power and the other which is trying to take that power away and assume control. Violence becomes the weapon of choice, and it is wielded without a hint of conscience. A six-year old boy in Tidewater Virginia bring a handgun to school and shoots his teacher. In this book, boys the same age are forced to become soldiers, and they wield their newly- found power with a ruthlessness that is difficult to comprehend. Entire villages are murdered and the village is burned to the ground. All of this is done by children with no hint of remorse. Oh, that can't happen here. You don't think so, huh. Pick up a newspaper, watch the news. In Richmond, Virginia, A...

United States on Jun 02, 2023

Randy B.: Interesting read. Based on a true story, but I think some of the facts were a bit exaggerated.

Canada on Jan 30, 2023

Marin: This is an absolute must read.
Such a good soul and such a smart person with such a hell having to deal with.
No matter what you survived it semms like a child play after reading this book.
I hope he is well and i wish that his fundation reaches all the children who are suffering on same and similar way as he did/does.
God bless you Ishmael.

Germany on Oct 23, 2022

Rachel: This book has been on my reading list for years without me actually getting around to reading it. I wasn't ready for what I knew would be a heart-wrenching read, but I am very thankful that I finally got around to reading it.

This was heartbreaking, as expected with a memoir of a former child soldier, and also brilliant. Very well written, excellent use of language to bring the reader right into the horrors that he faced. Sometimes I find memoirs of tragic events hard to read because they either brush over the hard stuff, or go too into detail, into "tragedy porn" territory, but I thought this one struck a good balance between putting the horrors on display enough to get through to readers who have no frame of reference, without that being all there is, without crossing that line.

I would say I have decent working knowledge on this issue going in, but reading a first hand account is still incredibly moving. I thought the relatively short length of the book was really good considering the heavy subject matter. I could definitely see this being used in high school or university Poli Sci/ Human Rights class settings. It's a heavy subject matter, but definitely worth...

Canada on May 13, 2020

Amazon Customer: I decided to order this book based on what I had watched from the well-known film Blood Diamond (2007) starring Leo Di Caprio and Djimon Honsou (protoganists). I was particularly fascinated with the brainwash aspect which fed my curiosity even more to ask further questions such as why use children in the war? What was so special about them? Why couldn’t the commander of the RUF use themselves as pawns? I was also particularly interested in the music and discovered that Emmanuel was also an ex-child soldier who had sang that song in the Blood Diamond brainwash part. As I ventured into the world of child soldiers online,I realised that I also wanted justice on their behalf and that something must be done too. I’m glad I read excerpts before buying this book as the author taught me to be grateful for the blessings I have been given and that being an innocent child is very important and means just that. Overall, a very compelling read. It sounds alot like a Hollywood movie but this is too good to be true.

Delivery: came as expected. Price; very affordable. Presentation; very good condition.

United Kingdom on Dec 30, 2018

JoyfulLittleRiver: "A Long Way Gone" is actually the second book by Ishmael Beah that I have had the pleasure of reading. I initially fell upon his book "Radiance of Tomorrow" at the beginning of my book journey, and it definitely helped to set the tone in regards to my book choices.

Like many things in the news, boy soldiers was something I heard and read about, but it was such an abstract concept to me. It didn't sound real, it didn't sound possible. Furthermore, I lacked the necessary background knowledge on the context of these conflicts that were creating these boy soldiers.

It is a privilege to have been able to sit back and just hear about children being trained to be soldiers by not only rebel groups but the governing bodies of countries. It is a privilege to have been almost totally unaware and uneducated on the plight of people in countries like Sierra Leone. It is a privilege that I try to be aware of and recognize, and books like "A Long Way Gone" and "Radiance of Tomorrow" are instrumental in checking my privilege.

Through "A Long Way Gone", Ishmael Beah takes boy soldiers out of the abstract and into the realm of reality, giving the term "boy solider" the human...

United States on Apr 10, 2017