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Open Books Open Minds - A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

The RIC Open Books--Open Minds common book for 2008

A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

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A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

by Ishmael Beah

 

Open Books--Open Minds 2008 Common Book

A  gripping story of a child's journey through hell and back.There may be as many as 300,000 child soldiers, hopped-up on drugs and wielding AK-47s, in more than fifty conflicts around the world. Ishmael Beah used to be one of them. He is one of the first to tell his story in his own words.

In A LONG WAY GONE, Beah, now in his mid 30's, tells a riveting story of how at the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he'd been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts. Eventually released by the army and sent to a UNICEF rehabilitation center, he struggled to regain his humanity and to reenter the world of civilians, who viewed him with fear and suspicion. This is, at last, a story of redemption and hope.

For information about 2008 OBOM programs see the RIC Open Minds--Open Books webpage for A Long Way Gone

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