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Ishmael Beah

Ishmael Beah Books

Soldier

Little Family

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“The traders standing nearby, or really most anyone doing just well enough to pay for the services of people like him, needed to be reassured that those they were considering hiring were in a state of sufficient wretchedness that they could be paid as little as possible for their labor, and never succeed enough to pull themselves up from that state. Thus, the boss men reassured themselves of their own importance. Pull-down-and-keep-down syndrome was how Elimane thought of it.”

PovertyDishonestyTradersSyndrome
Book:Little Family
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“Whenever I speak at the United Nations, UNICEF or elsewhere to raise awareness of the continual and rampant recruitment of children in wars around the world, I come to realize that I still do not fully understand how I could have possibly survived the civil war in my country, Sierra Leone.”

WorldChildrenStillsWarCountrySpeakNationsRealizingUnitedAwarenessRaisesAround The WorldCivil WarElsewhereSurvivedUnited NationsSierraRecruitmentUnicefSierra Leone
Author:Ishmael Beah
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“I grew up in Sierra Leone, in a small village where as a boy my imagination was sparked by the oral tradition of storytelling. At a very young age I learned the importance of telling stories - I saw that stories are the most potent way of seeing anything we encounter in our lives, and how we can deal with living.”

WayStoriesAgeYoungImaginationDealsBoysSawsOur LivesSeeingGrewGrew UpTraditionImportanceStorytellingEncountersVillageMy ImaginationYoung AgeTelling StoriesSierraOral TraditionSierra LeoneSmall Villages
Author:Ishmael Beah
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“For many observers, a child who has known nothing but war, a child for whom the Kalashnikov is the only way to make a living and for whom the bush is the most welcoming community, is a child lost forever for peace and development. I contest this view. For the sake of these children, it is essential to prove that another life is possible.”

WayChildrenWarLife IsLostCommunityViewsKnownForeverDevelopmentProveEssentialsSakeWelcomeContestsObserversAnother LifeKalashnikov
Author:Ishmael Beah
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“How many more times do we have to come to terms with death before we find safety?" he asked. He waited a few minutes, but the three of us didn't say anything. He continued: "Every time people come at us with the intention of killing us, I close my eyes and wait for death. Even though I am still alive, I feel like each time I accept death, part of me dies. Very soon I will completely die and all that will be left is my empty body walking with you. It will be quieter than I am.”

PeopleFeelsStillsBodyEyeDiesThreeLeftWaitingTermAcceptingAliveMinutesWalkingEmptySafetyIntentionKillingMore TimeSay Anything
Book:A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
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“When I was young, my father used to say, ‘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.’ I thought about these words during my journey, and they kept me moving even when I didn’t know where I was going. Those words became the vehicle that drove my spirit forward and made it stay alive.”

IfsKnowsPersonsMadeHappensMovingYoungUsedSpiritDiesFatherLeftDestinyAliveJourneyMade ItVehicleStaying AliveMy JourneyThere Is HopeBetter Days
Book:A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier
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“I believe in having a more open mind and including others who don't share your faith and having dialogue with them. And just having a pure heart and being a good person can bring you closer to God. Because once you believe in one particular religion fully and not others, that requires you to start disliking people who don't share your views.”

PeopleMindBelieveHeartPersonsI BelieveViewsShareParticularPureIncludingI Believe InDialogueGood PersonOpen MindPure HeartBeing A Good PersonIncluding Others
Author:Ishmael Beah
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