A Long Way Gone

by Ishmael Beah

Perhaps it was necessary that he cling to false hopes, since they kept him running away from harm.

it pleases me to know that that part of my childhood is still embedded in me.

To survive each passing day was my goal in life.

“They have lost everything that makes them human. They do not deserve to live. That is why we must kill every single one of them. Think of it as destroying a great evil.

Mourning the dead wasn’t part of the business of killing and trying to stay alive.