A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah (Book Report) Essay

A Long Way Gone by Ishmael Beah (Book Report) - Essay Example Beah’s demeanor is that of a man who has experienced wide growth from a childhood of war. The book promises to be a story of triumph and victory. When first reading the chronology in the back of the book, it leads the reader through a political maelstrom full of a twisting tale of governmental breakdowns and churning disruption of leadership. Power is transferred back and forth between factions creating an instability that will lead to a rebellion beginning in March of 1991 that would set the stage for Beah‘s story. That rebellion is manifested in the Revolutionary United Front lead by Charles Taylor and is more infamously known by its acronym, the RUF. Those letters become a source of terror in Sierra Leone. Sierra Leone’s history is full of struggle. The country was occupied and colonized by Britain. The famous story of the Amistad, a slave ship where a rebellion by the slaves occurred the story of which was later immortalized on film, was lived out by slaves who were taken from Sierra Leone. During the colonization a hut tax was created in 1898 by the British that taxed the citizens according to hut size. This act resulted in two rebellions. In 1951 the beginning of decolonization began as a constitution was enacted by the British for local citizens. In reading the chronology it is initially apparent that the RUF was created for an altruistic cause. The RUF seeks to abolish the corruption of the All Peoples Congress, or the APC. They have begun a rebellion to overturn a government that they do not believe serves the needs of its people. Seeing this history before reading the book brings into question of how such turmoil in government could directly affect a childhood. Beah begins his story with an exchange between himself and other teenagers after he has been relocated to New York. â€Å"Why did you leave Sierra Leone?† â€Å"Because there is war.† â€Å"Did you witness some of the