In a book club and starting to plan your reads for next year? Check out our 2025 picks.

What readers think of A Long Way Gone, plus links to write your own review.

Summary |  Excerpt |  Reading Guide |  Reviews |  Beyond the book |  Read-Alikes |  Genres & Themes |  Author Bio

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah

A Long Way Gone

Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

by Ishmael Beah
  • BookBrowse Review:
  • Critics' Consensus:
  • Readers' Rating:
  • First Published:
  • Feb 13, 2007, 240 pages
  • Paperback:
  • Aug 2008, 240 pages
  • Rate this book

  • Buy This Book

About This Book

Reviews

Page 1 of 3
There are currently 19 reader reviews for A Long Way Gone
Order Reviews by:

Write your own review!

hi

my review
I love this book!!! Ishmael is such a great person
Karissa

WOW!!!
this book is amazing and so... i don't even know how to explain it! What really amazed me was the fact that this is happening. I didn't even realize that these things are happening in our world today! I recommend this book to ANYONE! The way he explains the things he sees and how he just loses everything really gets to me. I've already read this book twice. I would have never read this book if it wasn't for my English teacher. I'm glad I did though.
FLAG

WOW
WOW! i never thought this book would be like this. I thought it was going to be another boring one that we read in high school but it's not. ANyone who thinks about not reading this book shouldn't, they just need to read it. No option. READ IT! you'll be glad you did.
Alec Nassirzadeh

A Long Way Gone Memoirs of a Boy Soldier Book Review
“A Long Way Gone Memoirs of a Boy Soldier” is written by Ishmael Beah. This book is an inspirational truthful story about Ishmael Beah and his difficult childhood. Our book club group’s first impression of the book was that it is a vicious and brutal book by looking at the cover of the book. This book is also written with a lot of power and emotion.
   Ishmael Beah, the author of this book was born on November 23, 1980 in Mattru Jong, Sierra Leone and his nationality is Sierra Leonean. His occupation right now is a Human Rights Activist. Beah doesn’t have any other books out besides “A Long Way Gone”. He won a Young Adult Award for this book which meets the criteria of both good quality literature and appealing reading teens.
   Ishmael was a brainwashed child soldier participating in a revolution that killed his family. He kills many rebels and he uses the excuse that they killed his family. He goes through the hardship of his young life and you will see if he makes it through it.
   “A Long Way Gone”, is written in first person. The genre of this book is a memoir and it was published on February 15, 2007. This book is about four years old and the events that happen in the book are still happening to this day. This book has very good style to it because it accurately paints a picture in your head about the events that happen in Beah’s life. When our book club read it we all felt like we were actually in the book traveling with Beah throughout his journey.
   Our book club enjoyed this book because it was written in a very specific and real way. This book also left us hanging after each chapter which made us want to read more. We recommend this book to people who like action and actual reality. The actual reality in this book is the child soldier problems which are still happening in other countries. All in all, our group thinks this book is great, and we recommend other people to read this story about Ishmael Beah and his rough life growing up.
deedee

Wonderful
i thought that this book was extremely awesome. It was a little on the graphic side but not to much for me to handle. I recommend this book to everyone alive.
sexy_lil_thinq

This book is great
This book is very interesting. Even though it goes back and forth with the past and present its still great...It's a very emotional/touching book..I would recommend this book to many people based on my experience with it
momo

an asowme eye opener
i have not quiet finished the book. I'm just now starting chapter 18, but this book has opened up a lot in my mind and has helped me explore the life a boy would live in Africa. I have gotten so into this book that there are times I end up walking down the street on my way home with my nose in the book. this book is most definitely a school project gone right. it helps me escape my world, to enter another. With vibrant details and the concrete settings, I would definitely recomend this for a good read and have already done so to at the very least to 5 people.
shottaboy

this book is awesome!
This is an excellent book there is so much to say about to

It is a well written book and explains and create an image of what kids my age goes through around the world.
  • Page
  • 1
  • 2
  • 3

Beyond the Book:
  The Republic of Sierra Leone

Top Picks

  • Book Jacket: The Puzzle Box
    The Puzzle Box
    by Danielle Trussoni
    During the tumultuous last days of the Tokugawa shogunate, a 17-year-old emperor known as Meiji ...
  • Book Jacket
    Something, Not Nothing
    by Sarah Leavitt
    In 2020, after a lifetime of struggling with increasingly ill health, Sarah Leavitt's partner, ...
  • Book Jacket
    A Haunting in Hialeah Gardens
    by Raul Palma
    Raul Palma's debut novel A Haunting in Hialeah Gardens introduces Hugo Contreras, who came to the ...
  • Book Jacket
    The MANIAC
    by Benjamin Labatut
    The MANIAC by Benjamin Labatut is an ambitious work that falls squarely into the category of fiction...

Members Recommend

  • Book Jacket

    Pony Confidential
    by Christina Lynch

    In this whimsical mystery, a grumpy pony must clear his beloved human's name from a murder accusation.

Who Said...

Only when we are no longer afraid do we begin to live

Click Here to find out who said this, as well as discovering other famous literary quotes!

Wordplay

Solve this clue:

H I O the G

and be entered to win..

Your guide toexceptional          books

BookBrowse seeks out and recommends the best in contemporary fiction and nonfiction—books that not only engage and entertain but also deepen our understanding of ourselves and the world around us.