My thoughts...

My thoughts after reading A Long Way Gone are that any words or reflections seem trite in comparison to Beah's life in Sierra Leone: His struggles, the violence, how Westerners take so much for granted, and how we are all so in the dark about what is happening in our world every day are so overly obvious it doesn't seem worth mentioning.
Beah does a good job of putting his experiences into words. I was intrigued at his ability to confess his own violent ways as most would never admit to these things. It makes sense why so many veterans never speak of their experiences. It all is beyond words and those untouched by violence could never truly understand. (i.e. me)

I couldn't have been more relieved when the UNICEF vans pulled up and while not surprising, I wasn't expecting the resistence from the boys to leaving their war. How many times in history have a group of people seen themselves as saviors, liberators, and heroes only for it not to be seen the same way from the liberated? There are always so many different ways of looking at any situation. Brainwashing: another theme in the book that I often think about, from major propoganda to the simple ways we conform students at school.

My heart sank as I eagerly read on to find out about how Beah would end up in New York for good (I thought we were headed in the direciton of his introduciton to western culture and technology) when it was all happening again.

I think this book could have easily gone on for another 20+ pages. At least there is the internet to find out more.



If you liked this book, you may want to consider these excellent movies/documentaries:

God Grew Tired of Us (blurb from netflix) (if you wanted more at the end about acclimating to America - this documentary shows that)
After raising themselves in the desert along with thousands of other parentless "lost boys," Sudanese refugees John, Daniel and Panther have found their way to America, where they experience electricity, running water and supermarkets for the first time. Capturing their wonder at things Westerners take for granted, this documentary, an award winner at the 2006 Sundance Film Festival, paints an intimate portrait of strangers in a strange land.

Lost Boys of Sudan (blurb from netflix)
This award-winning documentary follows two Sudanese refugees throughout their intense journey from their native Africa to the United States. As orphans living in the middle of a brutal civil war, Peter and Santino dealt with dangers like lion attacks and gunfire from militia. But even more daunting are the challenges they face in suburbia after they're chosen to start a new life in America.

The Devil Came on Horseback (Excellent! I kept thinking of these photos while I read the book.)
In this unflinching documentary on the genocide in Darfur, former Marine Capt. Brian Steidle is forever transformed by the atrocities he witnesses as a military observer for the African Union. Armed only with his camera, Steidle records the killings of black Africans at the hands of Janjaweed militias funded by Sudan's Arab government. With his bleak photos, Steidle focuses attention on the horrors ignored by the rest of the world.

Blood Diamond (blurb from Netflix)
Set during Sierra Leone's bloody civil war in 1999, this thriller stars Leonardo DiCaprio as Danny Archer, a smuggler who sells "blood" diamonds used to finance terrorists. When Archer meets a local fisherman (Djimon Hounsou) whose son has been forced into a child army, the two men's lives become intertwined, and they set off on an adventure that leads them through the world's major diamond centers. DiCaprio and Hounsou earned Oscar nods for their performances.


The Last King of Scotland
Forest Whitaker stars in an Oscar- and Golden Globe-winning role as brutal Ugandan dictator Idi Amin in this drama. During an African medical mission in the 1970s, Scottish doctor Nicholas Garrigan (James McAvoy) impresses Amin by acting swiftly in a crisis. Installed as the dictator's personal physician soon thereafter, Garrigan enjoys the perks of his new position, until he begins to become aware of Amin's inhumanity -- and his own complicity.

Tsotsi
This Oscar-winning Best Foreign Language film shows that no soul is too far gone from being reformed. After shooting a woman and driving off in her car, Tsotsi (Presley Chweneyagae), a ruthless thug, is surprised to discover he isn't alone, kept company by a crying infant in the backseat. He grudgingly takes the child home, and through his efforts to care for the tyke, Tsotsi slowly rediscovers his compassion, self-respect and capacity to love.

Hotel Rwanda
Amid the holocaust of internecine tribal fighting in Rwanda that sees the savage butchering of hundreds of thousands of men, women and children, one ordinary man (Oscar nominee Don Cheadle) musters the courage to save more than 1,000 helpless refugees by sheltering them in the hotel he manages. Sophie Okonedo, Nick Nolte and Joaquin Phoenix co-star in this powerful film (sort of an African version of Schindler's List) directed by Terry George.