5 stars! - Rated 
This book was amazing! I can honestly say that this is one of my favourite books, after finishing it; I passed it straight onto my sister, who loves it just as much as I do.
This book stayed with me a long time after I had finished reading it.
I would recommend this book to everyone.
I have great admiration for the author, I couldn't believe that a child had experienced such horrific events but with such courage.
The style of writing is informal so it feels like hes telling you face to face, It felt like you were right there with him.
A simple and powerful story - Rated
This story is simply told. There are no fancy literary flourishes designed to manipulate the reader's emotions and no eloquent explanations designed to sway us to a particular viewpoint. It is the simple story of a child unwittingly caught up in the appalling violence of civil war. The narrator tells his own story. It is the story of how civil war destroys the normality of life in his village, of how he runs from the advancing violence, but eventually cannot avoid being drafted into its very heart as a child soldier. He describes the process of desensitization that allows him to survive the horrors he participates in and the even more difficult process of learning to re-engage with civil society once he has been rescued from the battlefield.
Some readers may be disappointed by the fact that the book provides only very limited historical background to the conflict in Sierra Leone and by the fact that the narrator engages in only very limited introspection about what he has experienced. The plot also contains a few scenes that come across as a bit contrived and unlikely, but none of this detracts from the picture that is painted of the horrors of child soldiers involved in civil war. The power of the story lies in its simplicity and in the fact that we know it is being told by someone who lived through it.
Heart breaking AND uplifting?? - Rated
Is that possible in one book? I read this book in one sitting and cried most of the way through it, mainly in shock of what human beings are capable of doing to one another.
Very much worth reading, uninterupted.
A breathtaking piece of work - Rated
This book is incredibly well written,- moving, distressing and inspiring in turn. The tragedy of Sierra Leone is the backdrop to one of the best reads of the year. A breathtaking piece of work.
This is how Beah begins his compelling memoirs. - Rated
At the age of twelve Beah finds himself caught up in Sierra Leon's violent civil war. Beah describes the attack on his home village and the sudden separation from his family. From there, Beah spends months wandering Sierra Leon, alone and with other young boys until he is faced with a terrifying reality; fight or be killed. Beah spends three years serving in the government army before he is rescued and taken to a rehabilitation center. With guidance, Beah comes to grips with his pain and learns to forgive himself for the atrocities he was forced to commit as a child soldier.
Beah's experience is unique and his vivid storytelling makes this book a very good read. His style is simple, straightforward, and honest, drawing the reader in. Beah's experiences were traumatic however he is not the focus of the story. Beah reminds us that one child's pain represents the pain of an entire country. Beah's is just one account of what thousands experienced during eleven years of civil war. I would definitely recommend this book!!! I would also recommend, if you missed reading TIN0 GEORGIOU'S masterpiece--THE FATES, go and read it. With fascinating and brilliantly created characters in `THE FATES' coupled with two intertwining plots makes for a completely enjoyable and page-turning read.
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