When reading A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah, I was amazed by his journey through Sierra Leone as a child soldier. I began reading the memoir with very little knowledge about both Sierra Leone and their Civil War, but over time, Ishmael's story helped me gain a better understanding of how significant that battle was and what it means to be a child in war. Since I am someone who has not experienced war inside my country, hearing that Ishmael and his brother were forced to leave their family and travel on foot to various locations across Sierra Leone allowed me to put things in perspective about how physically and emotionally difficult his teenage years were. I truly do not believe that I, as an 18-year-old, could handle his situation as well as Ishmael did. To hear how he completely changed his image- from a frightened boy that ran away from home and was constantly hiding, to a soldier who never gave up, even with how much fighting took a toll on his mental state, Beah's story has completely changed the way I see children of war. I would recommend this memoir to anyone interested in the topic of children at war, as it provides you with a strong perspective of someone who was forced to fight at such a young age.

I originally made the decision to read Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah because I saw the Netflix movie Beasts of No Nation, which, similarly to A Long Way Gone, depicts the challenges of a child soldier in civil war. This movie, although fictitious, fascinated me about the capabilities and atrocities that child soldiers face. I've found that the two stories have their own similarities and differences. The movie tended to romanticize the situation as a whole painting the violence as a "rite of passage" for the children and tending to side more with the rebel forces. Beah's memoir was grounded and felt realistic. This led to a far greater impact on me than the movie ever could have. Children forced into wars are a group that are often neglected. Beah's story also focused on the long lasting effects that the conflicts can have on the children. I found it incredibly inspiring to learn through further research about all the things Beah has done after what he went through. Beah is an living example of how insurmountable challenges can sometimes lead to a greater outcome.

I knew nothing about the Sierra Leone Civil War when starting A Long Way Gone. I also knew very little about child soldiers, but after brief research, I immediately thought and felt interested about the consequences of the trauma these young children would face. I feel like many choices we make is after weighing the cause and effect, the pros and cons. However, Beah's memoir addressed what happens when that thought process isn't factored into life choices. Much research is poured into investigating how trauma at young ages impacts children's futures, but less focus is put on that trauma being the pain and overlooked grief from killing others and seeing loved ones die. For me, Beah addressed this reality well, as I could really feel the heart-wrenching moments he lived through. The emotion that his memoir evoked for me also made me almost guilty for not having learned, or thought much about children my age and younger being forced to engage in combat. Consequently, it felt all the more important for our project to remember children of war, in particular Ishmael Beah, to share the trauma that comes after they've left war, because that pain is just as prevalent, if not more difficult to deal with since there's less outward support.

By reading A Long Way Gone, I was able to learn about the atrocities of the Sierra Leone Civil War and Ishmael Beah's story. Beah did a great job at telling his story and spreading awareness of the horrors that child soldiers have had to face. Beah had to endure what no child should have to: Beah had to flee his home with no knowledge about the safety or whereabouts of his family members, and he was later forced to join the government forces to fight against the RUF. He wasn't even an adult, but his situation resulted in him doing drugs on a daily basis and killing many RUF fighters. His rehabilitation process was a long and difficult one, but he eventually was reintegrated into society. I think that reading books like A Long Way Gone are important for spreading awareness about the injustices and horrors of being a child soldier.

Before reading A Long Way Gone, I had once watched a news special about Joseph Kony, the leader of child army in Uganda. Watching that gave me an insight into the life of a 'boy' soldier, I chose A Long Way Gone because I wanted to learn more about the circumstances these children are in. Upon reading the book, one thing in particular stuck me about the treatment of this children. In order to get them to obey all orders and make sure they don't run away, the gave these kids drugs, cocaine amongst them, and forced them to become addicted. This gives them no way out. It make them numb to the acts they are committing. It strips these children of their humanity. Seeing how difficult it was Ishmael Beah to come back from that was heartbreaking. After he was rescued by Unicef, he faced intense withdrawal symptoms and even after those had faded, he was still left with the mental scars of his time in the army. However, Beah and many like him have overcome these immense hardships and live to tell the tail. This book is so important because it can spread awareness and shed light on issue that is affecting young children across the globe.