Essay On A Long Way Gone

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A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier is an exciting look at the memories of the author's, Ishamel Beah, life as a teenage soldier. This book is a memoir, so it accurately portrays both the thoughts and feelings of the author as he relives the horrors of his past. A Long Way Gone is not a read for the faint hearted, but for a reader who wants to follow an adventure and learn about the life of a soldier, this book is an amazing read.

First, Beah starts off with a heavy mood, explaining how the war hurt nearly everyone in the country. He begins with the following statements, "There were all kinds of stories told about the war that made it sound as if it was happening in a far away and distant land. It wasn't until refugees started passing through our town that we began to see that it was actually taking place in our country." (Pg 5) This shows the reader the severity of the war to many people in the country of Sierra Leone. Along with the severity of the situation, he shows the …show more content…
He had been separated from his family, but was unable to go back for any of them. The reader is then hit with the strong words, "It was during that attack in the village of Kamator that my friends and I separated. It was the last time I saw Junior, my older brother." (Pg 43) These sad statements are almost a wake up call to the reader. They show how quickly the war was able to strip people of their family and friends. Beah explains how he survived on his own until he found people he knew from his life before the war. These people became his friends through all the different situations they endured together. The reader is then shown the brutal events Beah survived along with his new friends. He explains his thoughts and feelings very thoroughly giving the reader a sense of being there with the author. Beah makes it easy to imagine the difficulties a refugee experienced in the
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