Fifth Post: Vocabulary:

1)Turmoil - A state of great disturbance, confusion or uncertainty

2)Verandah - A roofed opened gallery or porch

3)Conjure - To make something appear from no where

4)Scuttle - A deep bucket for caring coal

5)Latrine - A communal toilet often used in camps or barracks

6)Cassava - A shrubby tropical perennial plant often grown in the tropic zones

7)Dilapidated - In a state of disrepair or ruined as a results of age or neglect

8)Vehemetn - Showing a string feeling

9) Auspices - Support or Guidance

10) Adage - A Latin memorable saying

11)Reggamorphy - A type of reggae song

!2)Compelling - Persuade by forcefulness in an argument

13)Kule - Open aired shower

14)Delve - Dig up

15)Rastafarianism - A religion that emerged from Jamaca in the 1930s

16) Amiss - Wrong or in faulty

17)Cringe - Bend one's head towards body in fear or servile manner

18)Disconsolate - Unhappy or uncomfortable

19)Spirogyra - A genius of filamentous green algae named for it's spiral arangements

20)Flotsam - A Wreckage of cargo that stays afloat after ship has sunk

-lnh

Blog 6: Child Soldiers

Around the globe today, in 25 countries, there are thousands of children under the age of 16 who have been in/fought in a war. Sadly, the RUF (Revolutionary United Front) invades villages across Sierra Leone and other regions to loot houses, murder innocent civilians, and recruit more children to fight as child soldiers. Children were also part of AFRC (Armed Forces Revolutionary Council) and the pro-government Civil Defense Force. Their purposes were to patrol certain areas, guard workers in diamond fields, and also attack villages. Personally, as long as the child himself wanted to become a child soldier, feel free to! But forcefully recruiting members is horrifying. As I said before, they, as in the rebels, provided food and shelter, so what would you do if you were hungry and had no one to take care of you?

blog #5 personal thoughts

Tragic. That is the word that comes to my mind every single time i read about a village getting invaded, or reading about the struggles for survival in that time and place. Africa would seem like a peaceful and eventful place. With it's varieties of wildlife and even hosting 2010's Soccer World Cup! It's a tragedy that people have to suffer through these hectic atmospheres. At least with all the violence, it should balance out by having a full stomach instead of starving and eating wild things you've never seen before. Even that is a high risk. Should never have to eat things you don't know just to survive.

Book Review -hjc- # 10

This book has opened my eyes to the bigger problems that is happening all around the world. I did not know that there are still child soldiers all over the world fighting for freedom. I constantly had sympathy towards Ishmael while reading the book. It made me really appreciate the things I have right now. Some of the events which occurred felt unreal to me such as the mass killings, burials and using children as shield during war. However, the adventure seems to become more redundant and became hard to keep my focus. Overall, it is a great book that made me realize the problems of war.

Theme -hjc- #7

Out of many outstanding themes in the book a long way gone, most clearly seen theme is that war is horrible. Through out the story us readers experienced, the gruesome journey Ishmael had to go through.

To start with, thousands of civilians were being killed. The R.U.F killed thousands of civilians by cutting their throats, shooting, burning and even burying them alive. These people were innocent and must not have been damaged. Due to the civilian deaths, thousands of children such as Ishmael became orphans and had to go through horrible childhood.

Thousands of children were forced to join the R.U.F and fight against the government. These children were scarred for life by killing people. By reading Ishmael's journey, the effect of him being a child soldier was clearly seen. He became more emotionally fragile and didn't think of killing others as serious deal.

Sierra Leone -hjc- #6

Sierra Leone is one of the poorest country in the world despite the fact that it is extremely resource-rich, with large deposits of diamonds and gold. However, because of corruption, all of the diamonds and gold is being shared by handful of people. More than 50 percent of diamonds that are being mined in Sierra Leone is unlicensed. The civil war was started in March 1991, because RUF decided to overthrow the corrupt government.

Due to this war over 50,000 people have been killed so far and over million people lost their homes. As Ishmael stated, during this war, RUF has done horrible actions against their own people such as rape and mass killings. RUF's main target is the civilians and anyone who went against their idea is being threatened to be killed. Also, countless numbers of children under the age of 15 years were forced into armed forces.

Irony -hjc- #5

The tragic journey of a young child soldier Ishmael consists of many ironies.

Due to the civil war, Ishamel and his family has been separated for a long period of time. During Ishmael’s journey, he learns where he could find his family and becomes ecstatic. However, they stopped at a banana farm before they approached the village. When he finally approaches near the village, he hears the gunshots go off, dogs barking and people screaming. When he finally enters the village everyone was dead and he couldn’t find his family. If Ishmael did not stop to pick bananas, his life would have ended.

Ishmael had to go through arduous journey with many obstacles however Ishmael did not learn much from his horrifying experience. When Ishmael finally reaches the capital city of Sierra Leone, Freetown, he smiled and was positive that his situation will not become worse then the current situation. From his experience of watching the R.U.F forces attacking village to village, he should have seen that army to eventually end up in the capital city.

Post#10 A Long Way Gone: Full Review

On the 23rd of March in 1991, the Revolutionary United Front attacked cities in Eastern Sierra Leone in an attempt to overthrow the government. The next eleven years would be full of gruesome, hellish scenes of violence. Ishmael Beah writes about his story in "A Long Way Gone."

Written down to every immaculate detail, A Long Way Gone is a clear and detailed account of one child soldier that fought during the civil war. Beah is said to have a photographic memory, and this ability comes into play for the entire book. Imagery is the strongest literary device used in the book, and puts you right into the scene. From his joyful childhood to the frightening brutal scenes of war and being part of it, A Long Way Gone is easy to understand and clear dialogue.

The text of the book is of a rather easy reading level, but the content of this book may be hard to swallow for the soft-hearted. The gruesome depictions of war in this story contrast from the "romantic" depiction of war in popular media, and by the army to the child soldiers by showing them war movies like Rambo. In interviews, Ishmael said this is what he wanted to show to people.

The story can be described as disturbing, heartbreaking and depressing at times, but at the same time it is also uplifting and encouraging, showing to us how Ishmael finally pulled through it all. I really think this is one of the greatest books I have read in a while, and I hope more people will be aware of the plight faced by child soldiers.

In the end, this book really deserves a 9/10, and is recommended for those in Grade 11. Its reading level may be good enough for younger people, but as noted the scenes of war may not be for everyone.

- Frank Lin

Post#9 A Long Way Gone

The title A Long Way Gone has many meanings. It can refer to the distance that Ishmael travelled in his life in Sierre Leone. Even deeper, however, it refers to Ishmael's emotions and state of being. When Ishmael was faced with the war, he lost his mind and went from being a child to becoming a brutal soldier. By the end, he travels to New York to live a new and better life.

Ishmael has come a long way from what he was before, going through many changes in his personality. The first person perspective also helps with presenting himself as a realistic, round, and dynamic character.

Ishmael

Ishmael, the protagonist of the story is an amazing boy who has been through so much drama in his life that it makes me think about life in the African continent. Ishmael has fought through 3 years as a child soldier until he was rescued by UNICEF. Ishmael starts off living happily with his friends and family, listening/performing rap, and just living his life without any problems until the RUF invaded his village which separates him from his family. He then travels with his friends to find a safe place. Sadly, Ishmael goes off alone and separates from his friends after another RUF rebel attack. If I was Ishmael, I would join the RUF willingly because it provides food and fresh clothes until UNICEF saves you. So everything would be beneficial.

Post #8 Words in Krio

The official language spoken in Sierra Leone is English, but many people speak Krio as well. Some Krio words are used in the story, being italicized and some of their definitions provided on the bottom of each page.

Here are several Krio terms:
Crapes - Sneakers
Nya Nje - My Mother
Nya Keke - My Father
Kamor - Teacher. People refer to Ishmael's Grandfather as Kamor
Ngor - A title to show respect to adults before their first names.
Palampo - Single
Wahlee - Area outside a city, where coffee and other crops are processed.
Waleh - Slate on which a special Arabic prayer is written on with ink made from medicine.
Nessie - Holy water used to wash off the ink from the waleh, and put into a bottle. Waleh and Nessie are used by Ishmael's grandfather to make a medicine.
Soukous - A style of music originating in Congo.
Gari - A type of flour made from mashed cassava root.
Leweh -  A type of rice paste.
Tafe - Marijuana
Brown-Brown - A drug fed to the child soldiers, which is a mix of
Kalo kalo - A tactic used by the army, where one solder "hit and runs" and another kills the people
Poda podas - Vehicles
Leones - The currency of Sierra Leone
Temne, Mende and Sherbro are three ethnic groups found in Sierre Leone. The Krio or Creole people are descendants of slaves from the Americas, their language is widely spoken in Sierre Leone, despite only being 5% of the population.

Upline - Used especially in Freetown to refer to the people of the inner country and their lifestyles.

Epiphany -hjc- #4

Ishmael was a young child who encountered a tragic civil war in Sierra Leone. Due to this civil war, Ishmael became separated from his family and friends and he had to go through a tough journey. His life was threatened countless times during his journey. During his journey he had to deal with intense hunger, pain and loneliness. To travel in such harsh condition must be arduous as he is only a teenager. He saw hundreds of dead bodies of his friends and families. However, Ishmael changed when he learned how to shoot a gun. At first he felt horrified of killing another human being, but eventually he got used to it.

"My squad is my family, my gun is my provider, and protector, and my rule is to kill or be killed."

From this quote, I was able to realize that Ishmael now became a deadly soldier who doesn't have fear to kill others.

However, after Ishmael has been rescued by the U.N and experienced the world out of the war zone of Sierra Leone. Now he is working in U.N as an advocate for other children forced to face the horrors of war.

Post #7: In the News: The Trial of Charles Taylor

On March 11, just two days ago, the trial of former Liberian president Charles Taylor ended, with the judges now making deliberations. This may take up to a few months.

Taylor, who was arrested back in 2006, is on trial for 11 counts related to the Sierra Leone Civil War. These include war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes that violate international law. It is believed that he controlled and armed the RUF, attacking Sierra Leone in exchange for blood diamonds.


I really hope that Taylor will be punished for his brutal and inhuman acts.

Post #6 Behind the Story: The Sierra Leone Civil War

On March 23 of 1991, the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) invaded Eastern Sierre Leone. With the support of then-Liberian president Charles Taylor, they attempted to overthrow the government ruled by Joseph Momoh. While Momoh was not considered a dictator, but he allowed the spread of corruption and weakly controlled the economy, causing the currency and economy to collapse. Despite many natural resources, Sierra Leone became one of the poorest countries in the world.

The rebellion by the RUF would lead to an 11 year civil war, finally ending in 2002 with a government victory and the defeat of the RUF with the assistance of UN forces. In total, over 500, 000 civilians were killed. Thousands of child soldiers were recruited by both the rebels and the government, Ishmael being one of them.

I believe that people will always complain about their governments, and this is unavoidable. However, while I believe they can express their dissatisfaction by protesting, but I believe violence should never be used. The rebels started by pretending to listen to people's voices, but in the end used their voices for their own gain. It was simply an attempt As Ishmael mentions in the beginning of the book: "I had heard from adults that this was a revolutionary war, a liberation of the people from corrupt governments. But what kind of liberation movement shoots innocent civilians, children, that little girl?"

In the end, however, I believe both sides share the same blame. Both sides resorted to violence, and the recruitment of child soldiers and fought only for their own gain. All war does is make matters worse.

More information about the history of Sierre Leone can be found in the Chronology at the back of the book.

Post #5: Last Impressions before I review the book

The last few chapters were really moving and depressing. It looked as if life was getting better when it's deja vu all over again. It is heartbreaking to see him find a new family, before he has to leave it again. By the end, all he can do is hope someone will rescue him.

I will do a final review of the entire book very soon.

Vocabulary List - hjc-

1. Adage: a traditional saying expressing a common experience or observation

2. Congeal: to make or become fixed, as ideas, sentiments, or principles

3. Dilapidated: reduced to or fallen into partial ruin or decay

4. Disconsolate: hopelessly unhappy

5. Flotsam: material or refuse floating on water

6. Oblivious: unmindful

7. Vehement: zealous

8. Vicinity: the area or region near or about a place

9. Ablution: a cleansing with water or other liquid, especially as a religious ritual

10. Auspices: support

11. Conjure: to affect or influence by or as if by invocation or spell

12. Festoon: a string or chain of flowers suspended in a curve between two points

13. Indelible: making marks that cannot be erased or removed

14. Jubilation: a joyful or festive celebration

15. Latrine: a toilet or something used as a toilet

16. Repatriate: to bring or send back to his or her country or land of citizenship

17. Scuttle: a deep bucket for carrying coal

18. Sporadic: appearing or happening at irregular intervals in time

19. Tributary: a stream that flows to a larger stream or other body of water

20. Turmoil: confusion

Symbolism hjc #3

There are many symbolism used throughout the book. The portion of the book where rebels treated old man in gruesome way by pointing a gun at him, mocking him and shooting a gun near his head was disgusting. Young people being disrespectful towards the elderly symbolizes the chaos occurring in the country. When the R.U.F recruited young soldiers, they were given a number carved in their arm with a bayonet. This marking is symbol for a member of R.U.F. This symbol makes a person enemy for the government. Which means one has to serve in R.U.F until his death. Escaping from R.U.F will ultimately end as death. This symbol carved on by bayonet represents the maliciousness of the rebels.

Fourth Post: Symbolism

I think the music cassette is an important symbolic item that Ishmael has. The cassette has been with the protagonist throughout the on going war and even before the war was even present in his life. There are many memories that the cassette holds from his past life before the war, how his brother and him would dance to the rap music.Since there are mostly memories of his brother, I think the cassette resembles Junior. Even though his brother is not psychically with Ishmael in some ways the cassette is protecting him when passing through the villages, like an older brother protecting a younger sibling .The cassette tape also has a long film that is within it which i think resembles Ishmael's long journey.

-lnh

Symbolism

One symbol in the story is the cassette that Ishmael carries around. The rebels and the army both question him about having this "foreign music".The cassette can symbolize many aspects of the story. Carrying this foreign music also represents Ishmael's connections with our world. It can be used to describe and remind us of Ishmael's childhood and the life he had before. It also symbolizes Ishmael's long journey away from his home town. Through the attack of the rebels, surviving alone in the forests, Ishmael has still kept this cassette to his side.

Symbolism

There is a lot of meaning and depth to the story of the things happening around the different villages Ishmael passes through. But there is one thing that Ishmael keeps with him and has even saved his life a few times. I'm talking about his cassettes filled with foreign rap music. The author tells us that it's not just tapes to listen to, it's also a life-saver, and it reminds the protagonist of the times when there was no war and just performing rap dances with his fellow associates back at his home village. So the cassettes have a great amount of meaning to the protagonist. It has been with him since he has left his friends and family.

Epiphany

I think the epiphany Is being seperated with friends and family members due to the sudden attack. Before being alone, Ishmael had other close people to depend on. However, after the seperation, he became more desperate and violent. This may be also because of the war, but the speration takes a more important role. Due to this epiphany, Ismael had to live with meaningless mind and no future. This is all because of the speration with his close people, who he used to depend on.

Protaginst Ishmael

Ishmael, the protagonist of the story, is a lucky and also unfortunate charater. He survives after the horrific incidents, such as rebel's attack. Also, He sticks with his friends and family
members. In this way, he is a very lucky one. However, Ishmael is in the harsh situation of a war. Also Ishamel and his friends seperated after the attack of rebels. Furthermore, Ishmael could not find foods that he had to steal corns from the fields. Ishmael gets violent and urgent as the time passes. In these ways, Ishamael is a very unfortunate character. This is due to the desperate situations in the war.

My first impression - kevin kim

Before taking a closer look to the book, i thought it was just a story with the same war again. However reading the chapter one kind of made me to feel different due to the diversity of the plot and unique character settings. Also, I was impressed with the young boys being a actual main character. Furthermore, some minor traits, such as young boys listening to America's black music made me laugh. Additionally, I was easly catch the idea of the story, because the it was easly described. I am expecting some harsh trek for the kids, and i am also waiting for the extraordinary journies for the young boys as well. I have no doubt that there will be numerous cruel violences as well. In conclusion, i cant wait to read the next chapter.

Epiphanies

During the civil war Ishmael became more distant from his family and friends. I think the war itself was an epiphany for everyone living in Sierra Leone. It was a life changing event that scarred Ishmael for life. During the war he became isolated and preferred traveling by himself instead of groups. I understand why he would prefer to travel alone because people feared groups that maybe the rebels, mostly if it was a group of boys.Everyone was already cautious, anyone could have been a rebel or a spy, there was no trust not even for people that they knew themselves. I think it was smart for Ishmael to want to travel alone because even when he was with his brother and friends everyone seemed like they were in their own world, and traveling in a group made it harder for villages to accept that they are not rebels. Not knowing where your loved ones are is challenging and loneliness is the worst part in traveling alone but there is a better chance of survival, since food resources are scarce if you are travelling in a larger group there are more people to feed and little is available for yourself. In conclusion the change of heart and Ishmael's personality has it's pros and cons.

-ryan

Third Post: Epiphanies

I think one major epiphany that I think that occurred in Ishmael's life was his parent's divorce. Many things changed for him, everyone in the town talked about Junior and Ishmael in a pitiful way and make remarks such as " those poor kids", this frustrated and angered the boys. I think when Junior and Ishmael dance and rap as a gateway to relax and forget about the stress of their parents divorce, because they are always happy and seem to forget everything else except for enjoying the music. The knowledge of their parents divorce will always be there no matter how hard they try to forget. I think that Ishmael was bottling these feelings inside but when all the stress came during the war, the negative thoughts and emotions came out as well. "I pressed my fingers on my eyelid to hold back tears and wished that i could have my family together again"-pg45

-lnh

Epiphanies

Ishmael has a persistent state of mind, as his father once told him "If you are alive, there is hope for a better day and something good to happen. If there is nothing good left in the destiny of a person, he or she will die." Even by himself in the forest, he is able to survive in the wilderness. He makes it out of the forest and meets six boys, who tell them they are headed for Yele, where Sierre Leone Armed Forces have occupied. I think this is not a good move, and that the Armed Forces will do horrible acts to them. I think going to this village will change Ishmael into a ruthless, mindless child soldier.

Ishmael

Ishmael is the protagonist of the story. In the beginning of the story, he appears to be social and outgoing, rapping with his friends and going to a talent show. Faced with the attack of the rebels, he has become more desperate to survive and less innocent. This is the nature of people struck with tragedy. People will do whatever it takes to satisfy themselves, and it becomes harder to sympathize with others. He and his friends steal corn from a boy and take food from fields. I think that the rebels' attack has caused a great change in personality, and Ishmael would be convinced to join the National Army. There may be other times in the novel where his traits may change back...

Frank Lin

Journal #2 (ch2-5) -- hjc

Experiencing horrific war scenes during early ages has scared Ishmael for life. While he is dreaming, he dreams of him pushing a wheelbarrow with his own body shot from top to bottom. Since the R.U.F took much longer then they anticipated, sense of peace was visible in many parts of the village. Before the R.U.F arrived in the village of Mattru Jong I thought of them as soldiers fighting for the people. However, when they arrived in Mattru Jong they were ruthless against the villagers. Using timing tactics to trick the villagers, shooting innocent citizens, gathering women and children to use as shiled during battle was inhumane. While reading chapter 4, I was clearly able to see the effect of setting on characters. Due to severe hunger, Ishamel and his friends were starting to lose their moral. They steal and they never stop to help others for it might mean the loss of their own lives. They were even so desperate that when they came across a little boy eating two ears of corn, they would steal it. Reading this effect of setting made me think how I would act like if I was in such horrific situation. I felt great amount of sympathy for these boys who have to constantly fight for their lives when they should be pursuing their passion of singing rap music

Second Post:Introduction to Characters

At the begging of the story the protagonist has a very bubbly personality. He seems to be enjoying his life as but as the story goes on. His personality is effected by the war dramatically. He is more worry-some scared and paranoid. Living in fear and hunger drives him and everyone else to be more isolated from one another even his own brother. How can something be fine one day but in a blink of an eye be a disaster the next. Personalities changes as people are more stressed, like Ishmael who is slowly growing distant from his family n friends and is stressing about food, a safe place to stay his family and mostly himself.

-lnh

My First Impression -hjc #1

The first chapter of the book discusses about the young Ishmael who is running away from the war that is happening in his homeland. He has lost his home and fate of remainder of his family is unknown. Not knowing the existence of his family and friends must feel horrific. As Ishmael traveled away from the war he must have felt lost and heartbroken. This made me really appreciate that I live in a country where I do not have fear of being involved in war and realize the importance of my family and friends for being beside me. After reading the first chapter of the book I felt sympathy for Ishmael and his friends because they could not complete their dream of competing in the competition they were wanting to participate so badly. The beginning of the war felt as if it was end of their childhood and beginning of horror they'll face. The first chapter really made it clear to me that the book is going to contain lots of violence on it. The description of the man who drove his family away from rebels while getting shot was appalling.

My first impressions

After reading the first chapter, as well as reading the descriptions on the book jacket, I have the impression that there will be a lot of violence in this story and that it will have a effect on Ishmael's life. His use of imagery is incredibly clear and paints a gruesome picture of the scene of war. In the first chapter we already see the horrifying sights of when the rebels attacked the village. To have all the things you enjoy, your childhood and your family taken away from you and to be forced into an army to kill people must be heartbreaking. It is even worse to think this is only the beginning of all the violence to happen. Ishmael is fortunate enough to be rescued and rehabilitated by UNICEF. It must also be really hard for a person to get over because they often will feel guilt for the rest of their lives for their acts in war. Since Beah witnessed the action firsthand, he is able to express his emotions and spread awareness for the plight of child soldiers. There are still over 300 000 children in this world who are still recruited as child soldiers. In a world where people are facing cruel situations every day, we need to value our life and appreciate all the things we have.

-Frank Lin

First Impressions

Before I read the book, I expected the story to go straight to violent war drama. As I was readin the introduction, it gave me the mood of a boy who has been through a series of violent activity throughout his childhood. Even looking at the cover of the book gave me the impression of a violent society with hostaged kids to be forced to be child soldiers. Seeing a boy holding a RPG missle, with an ak-47 on his back by himself showed me that the life of a child soldier is a lonely road. With no family and no one who loves you and to take care of you, your on a pathway through great warfare not only in war with other government soldiers, but war with the the soldiers in your own organization. It seems as if the children don't want to be in this situation, but is forced to. I felt sympathy as I was reading through this book. Reading about how a child wants to have a future with his friends but has to deal with the fact that rebel soldiers are invading villiages and could get closer to where this boy was. Dealing with the stress that knowing his home village got invaded would be tremendous. Think about if your hometown got invaded by an opposing force. What would you do? Would you go back and risk your life to find your family like the people in the book? Or would you go and save yourself and think that your whole family is gone? Not only reading the first chapter of the book that makes me ask these questions to myself, but looking at the graphic pictures makes me think about how life would be like in these developing countries. These are my first impressions.

-Ryan Le

First post: First Impressions

As I was reading through the few pages of the first chapter, I kind of got lost and confused. I may have miss read some parts of the story that may have mislead me. The part that confused me the most was the setting of the flashback. While the boys where waslking towards another town for the tallent show, it confused me how they went from thierown town, to thier grandmothers town, to seeing thier mother in diffrent places. I also was confused on which places were being attacked by the rebles, and how the protagonist found out about thier own town being attacked. Did they have phones or a way of communication?



-lnh

Introductory Post

Author: Ishmael Beah
Publisher: Douglas & Mcntyre Ltd.
Copyright Date: 2007 by Ishmael Beah
Number of Pages: 240 pages

Synopsis:
The United Nations estimates there are 300 000 child soldiers fighting in over fifty conflicts around the world. Ishmael Beah tells his story of being a child soldier during the Sierre Leone Civil War in 1993.

Book Trailer:

Link to Book Review: http://www.alongwaygone.com/reviews.html