The main character in this book is Ishmael Beah; he ranges from twelve to sixteen in the book. He also has some friends that come and go in the story. The story takes place in Sierra Leone, Africa during a war torn time in that country. Ishmael is thirteen, has lost his family, is on many drugs, and is forced into the war for his own survival. Ishmael does not, at first, try to solve the problem because he has been brainwashed to think that what he is doing is doing the right thing. By the end he is in rehabilitation and tries to become sober and free of thought about what he had done to people. In this story a lot more interesting events happened: he almost meets up with his family; he has many adventures in the wilderness, and Ishmael comes to New York City and sees snow, many cars and many other things for the first time.
As a reader, I would recommend this book because it’s great and keeps you turning the pages, but as a student I don’t know if I would recommend this book because it is goes into detail about the blood and harsh way the people were treated. The scene that had the greatest impact on me and made me think for awhile was when I imagined the rebels going into town and being very harsh and violent killing unborn babies and children, also crude and wild to the mothers and other women. I don’t think this author would make a good teacher or professor but would be a great to person to talk to about. This book was heart wrenching, sad, and made you look at the world in a different perspective because of what the people are going through.
Reviewed By: Urbs518
