Monday, February 22, 2016

Reflection on A Long Way Gone

A long Way Gone has been the first book to really grab my attention in years. Ishmael Beah did a very good job keeping all the events interesting, and tying everything together in detail. I think many characters are important in this book, for me personally i like Uncle Tommy. I believe Uncle Tommy has made a big impact on me because of his heart and how badly he wanted to help Ishmael with all of his problems. Uncle Tommy truly cared for Ishmael and was ecstatic to help Beah "You are my son. I don't have much, but i will give you a place to sleep, food, and my love" This to me explains his love and true desire to help out Ishmael. I think i would bring someone in like this as well. I  have a big heart and feel for everyone who is going through problems in life.
I don't feel like Ishmael can completely forget and erase these catastrophic events that has occurred throughout his life all of these years. Day in and day out Ishmael has feared his life may be taken at any point. Rebels invading different villages in their path and anyone included. Ishmael has seen countless numbers of people lose their lives, that can create some nasty life changing flashbacks that impact him in negative ways. If Ishmael moved into my neighborhood i would feel very sketchy about it. I would fear Ishmael could snap like a rubber band at any moment, which would be scary considering all the possible things that could be racing through his mind. But at the same time it would be very interesting hearing Ishmael's stories and experiences, I'm not sure if the risk factors over throw the interesting stories Ishmael would tell.  
As i continued to read this book i tried to put myself in Ishmael's shoes but i just couldn't imagine being in the situations he was in. As Beah showed great imagery throughout the story one that caught my attention was "a bullet hit a tree directly above my head and fell on the ground next to me. From where i lay i saw the red bullets flying into the sky"(35) ive never before shot a gun and Ishmael is fearing for his life as bullets fly over his head. This happens to Ishmael many times over the years and almost becomes second nature. I learned to never take my life for granted because things could be a lot worse than what they are. After reading this book i want to know more about how Ishmael does when it comes to recovering from all of the war events and other life threatening events as well. How does the new job turn out for Ishmael? does he enjoy it over a duration of time? those are the kinds of things i want to know more about. From reading this book i know it's easy to say but, i learned a lot more about PTSD and the bad effects it has an people in a family.



(The problems PTSD can cause for families are countless)








4 comments:

  1. Really good point proven point that Uncle Tommy was really important to you. I love the details (:

    ReplyDelete
  2. I agree that this book gets things interesting and ties everything together nicely. I like how you make your point about Uncle Tommy being an important character. I agree that Ishmael can't easily forget what happened to him but he showed us that he can move on.

    ReplyDelete
  3. The book definitely brought to light what PTSD can interfere with in someone's life. He was able to show how the affected other aspects of his life.

    ReplyDelete
  4. The book definitely brought to light what PTSD can interfere with in someone's life. He was able to show how the affected other aspects of his life.

    ReplyDelete

Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.