Reviews of “A Long Way Gone”
 A Long Way Gone"…It's hard to imagine a more satisfying tale - which is, of course, why Beah's book is being read so avidly. We weep at the cruelties inflicted on an innocent boy. We weep again, but this time with joy, at his redemption. It is the sweetest justice. And for that reason, I'm a bit puzzled at the hostility so many Canadians feel for Omar Khadr. Omar Khadr was born in Toronto. He is a Canadian citizen. He is also an accused terrorist… But I'll leave all that aside and simply ask anyone who wants Omar Khadr punished as an adult to read A Long Way Gone. Weep for a 15-year-old killer. Thrill to his rescue. Cheer as he becomes the beautiful young man he is today. And then, please, explain why we should feel so differently about that other child soldier." Ottawa Citizen, Aug 15, 2008 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone"This absorbing account by a young man who, as a boy of 12, gets swept up in Sierra Leone's civil war surpasses the best journalistic efforts in revealing the life and mind of a child abducted into the horrors of warfare." Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year pick, Nov 5, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“Spilled across the pages of his book like blood and bone fragments on the soggy jungle floor, are scenes so unimaginable that Western readers will feel the devastating effects war has on children in this world to their core. Told as seen through innocent eyes and as felt by small hands, it is a report that shames newscasts, documentaries, governments, you and me.” Kamloops This Week, Jul 22, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“It may seem strange to greet with relief a book that chronicles the brutal life of a former child soldier, but given what our society considers print-worthy, it is refreshing that the memories and reflections of 26-year-old Ishmael Beah receive attention. …Even more important, it admonishes us to think of young people affected by war who should occupy far more of our news pages and televisions screens.” The Guardian UK, May 26, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“A Long Way Gone is a vital addition to a small but growing canon of literature to emerge from post-war Sierra Leone, the first new writing from that country since the post-colonial writers if the 1960s. His story holds out the hope of redemption, for a boy and for a country.” The Telegraph (UK), May 24, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“This is a classic story of descent from shining-faced innocence into extreme turpitude and thence to redemption through love. …Beah obviously loved his family, and it is this love that survived, albeit deeply buried, and allowed him to emerge morally intact enough to write this astonishing confession.” The Observer (UK), May 13, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“a must-read for all of us who were allowed to blissfully live out our childhoods, because Beah’s book will help to ensure that others have the same privilege.” Hour.ca, May 10, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“Beah morphed from a poor village boy to grim reaper to UNICEF ambassador to best-selling author in little more than a decade. His life proves that, with hope, anything is possible. This is the message we are hungry to hear. And when Beah delivers it, we believe him.” New York Press, May 10, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“On the cover of A Long Way Gone is the poignant image of a young African boy walking along a dirt road, wearing a t-shirt, shorts and sandals with holes on the bottom. He carries a rocket-propelled grenade over his shoulders and an AK-47 is strapped to his back, a bayonet attached to the tip. …What horrors has this boy seen? How was he driven to this existence? And what is he thinking? With Mr. Beah’s help, hopefully we are a little closer to understanding, and a little closer to helping.” The Embassy, May 9, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |
A Long Way Gone“A Long Way Gone isn’t just Beah’s engrossing account of child soldiering, it’s also about the nightmarish transition from one life to another, from child to adult, from schooling to killing, and back again. His experience is a testament to the monumental rehabilitation process that awaits half a million child soldiers.” Ottawa XPress, Apr 12, 2007 Read more about A Long Way Gone >> |