Book Review: Ishmael Beah "A Long Way Gone"

[black_knight6]

Gripping memoir of (now 27) a Sierra Leone child whose family was displaced (some killed) and his life on the run from the war seeking haven somewhere in his war-torn country...only to find himself a child soldier fighting in the 'army' (as opposed to the RUF rebels) doing shitloads of drugs and becoming a cold-blooded killer. It tells of his eventual rehabilitation and participation in a UN conference on the topic of children's problems in the world...only to find himself once again on the run in 1997 when war was brought to his new doorstep in the capital (Freetown) and ends with his escape into Guinnea (with the hopes of making it back to New York to live with someone he met at the conference).

Gripping and disturbing...very good read. He was featured on the Daily Show a few weeks ago and it's an important and interesting story.