A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a boy soldier. - Day 8

48. Name one book you have read in the past year, describe your reason for considering this book significant and what you gained from reading it. (Lewis and Clark College)

                One of the most significant books I’ve read and enjoyed is A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier by Ishmael Beah, a Sierra Leonean child who has to flee from his village due to uprising from rebel forces. I had read this book more than 4 times till this date, and will continue to do so as every time I read it, I notice the things that I missed out while reading it the previous time. Beah has described his rough childhood in a very descriptive manner. From being separating from his friends and family, to joining the army for survival and revenge, this book holds an interesting plot line.

                Every single time that I read this book, I always await page 199 because on this page lies my favorite quote in the entire book. This is the page where Beah has an epiphany about what his entire life has been about. Beah learned from his experience and states to himself: “I joined the army to avenge the deaths of my family and to survive, but I've 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...” (Beah 199). This quote reminds me that revenge is a vicious cycle that will never solve any conflicts. As most of us go through issues in life, it’s only in human nature to blame someone for it. As Mahatma Gandhi once put it, “An eye for an eye makes the world go blind.” These two quotes tie in together to explain the point that revenge isn’t the answer and won’t solve anything.

                The theme of this book as portrayed by the author is that war is like hell. He does this by showing the nightmares the kids gets through imagery. Most of the kids had lost their family and joined the army to get revenge for their loss, thus hell that they’re going through. Personally, I don’t think this book would have been touching if it wasn’t for the fact that it was a biography. With the author’s life on the line, it causes his reader’s heart to skip a couple beats. I expect this book to be my favorite, as it has been ever since Ms. Jensen introduced it to me back in 7^th grade.