The Good Life

At the library I picked up A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beal. This book is a autobiography based on the civil war that was fought in Sierra Leone. This documentary revolves around Ishmael's tragic childhood. Early on his village is ransacked by the rebel group trying to take power in Sierra Leone. The rebels travel from village to town looting, raping and killing. Ishmael and his brother are away from home at the time the rebels invade their village because they had walked sixteen miles to Mattru Jong, the main city, to take part in a talent show. Shortly after Ishmael and his brother hear about their village, the rebels invade Mattru Jong.

Ishmael eventually escapes but gets lost from his brother. He finds a group of former friends and together with his friends Ishmael travels the country on foot searching for his family, hoping that they are still alive. Their main goal is to reach the island of the coast of Sierra Leone where they had heard rumors of peace. They travel from village where they are sometimes excepted peacefully and other times they are violently chased out. Ishmael describes the feelings him and his friends had as everyday they were constantly hungry and always were alert for any rebels ready to kill them for no reason. The book is extremely sad and vividly describes the hardships that the young boys go through. The book becomes even more tragic as Ishmael's friend, Saidhu dies.

In their wandering, Ishmael finds out from his old neighbor that his parents and brothers are in a nearby village. His friends quickly move on to the village but realize that they had been just a little too late as the rebels had recently came through slaughtering and setting the whole village on fire. Ishmael becomes extremely angry and bitter at this because he would've rather died with his family. This is a very tragic scene in the book and as far as I have read but this book is excellent to read and really opens eyes to how good life is here especially since around the world there kids like us who are suffering.