Commentary on
A Long Way Gone:
Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

Book written by Ishmael Beah

Commentary by Amy Brathwaite

His soft voice carries across the auditorium, with the eager faces of the audience hanging onto each word. He smiles occasionally and speaks gently, but the images that spill from his mouth paint horrors so unspeakable, violence so haunting. Before reading his book, “A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” I had the good fortune of hearing Ishmael Beah speak at the Bronson Centre in Ottawa. Just 26 years old, Beah has overcome unfathomable turmoil, endured enormous violence and heartbreak etching both wisdom and sadness on his young face.

He talks about the two different Sierra Leone’s he knows – the country before the war, and the experiences he knew after. Beah was recruited by government forces at the age of 12, after losing his family in the civil war that erupted in his beautiful country. For two years, he fought for the army before being rehabilitated by UNICEF. This articulate and descriptive book, emanating the paradoxes of his life, thrusts the issue of child soldiers to the forefront. Beah expresses frustration about the media perspective of Africa as a continent. Standard images of violence, famine, genocide and HIV/AIDS pervade the media, yet little is done to highlight the successes, the community, the culture, the goodness that is so evident on the diverse continent.

While sharing his story, Beah also speaks of his childhood before the war. Recalling tales of folklore from his grandmother, the strong sense of community in his village and how influences of hip-hop inspired him, and also came to save his life. He highlights what he calls two very different worlds. He asks the crowded audience to consider what individuals are capable of in times of war. It could be easy to characterize him in only one light – as a monster. But as a young boy who had lost his family and was recruited and drugged by soldiers, there was little choice for him. Indeed he committed horrifying acts over two years, and his story reveals the worst of what humanity can offer. Yet paradoxically, it reveals the best of humanity as well. The persistent compassion from the staff at the rehabilitation centre, his nurse Esther and his own ability to forgive himself enabled Ishmael to survive his ordeal. Beah stood before us to show that people who are able to overcome such violence and numbness with hope and with humility, can shine again.

Originally published in The Habari Times, Volume 3, Number 1

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