A Long Way Gone: Memoirs Of A Boy Soldier

by Ishmael Beah

At villages where we managed to find some happiness by being treated to food or fresh water, I knew that it was temporary and that we were only passing through. So I couldn’t bring myself to be completely happy. It was much easier to be sad than to go back and forth between emotions, and this gave me the determination I needed to keep moving. I was never disappointed, since I always expected the worst to happen.

You see, this is the beauty of starting a new family. You can have different kinds of family members.”