As a regular viewer of The Daily Show, one of the things I enjoy the most (besides the humor), is the frequency in which the nightly guest is an author/writer. Being one who loves to read, I’m always interested in the authors and their books that are featured on the show.

A few months ago, Jon Stewart interviewed Ishmael Beah. I was unfamiliar with Beah at the time, but after watching the interview, I was fascinated by his story and wanted to read his book, A Long Way Gone: Memoirs of a Boy Soldier. Beah is from Sierra Leone, and at age 13 was forced to become a child soldier in the conflict there. His book tells his story, including some of his background, his experiences in the war, and eventually being able to escape the war and Sierra Leone.

It wasn’t long after I watched the interview that a copy of the book was available at my local library, and I finished it a while back, but have neglected to post about it or recommend it since. So let me do that now - it was great and I highly recommend it. Check it out if you can. I read a review in Relevant magazine that I thought summed it up pretty well, and certainly better than I could, so here it is:

A Long Way Gone is the haunting memoir of Ishmael Beah, who was separated from his family at 12 and forced to fight in Sierra Leone’s bloody civil war. Beah, now a graduate of Oberline College, faced unspeakable horrors as he was forced to kill. In this beautifully written and oftentimes heart-rending account, he recounts his time as a child soldier. Beah maintains a perspective devoid of self-pity, bitterness or anger. He also manages to humanize those around him, giving the reader sympathy for the way desperate circumstances sometimes lead people to desperate measures, and showing how even people who are capable of brutality are also capable of puzzling and unexpected kindness. In the end, Beah’s story is one of hope. It is hope that humans are capable of overcoming horrific suffering without losing their humanity.

If you’re interested in Beah’s story, you can find out more about it at the website alongwaygone.com. The video clips of his interviews about his story (found in the Multimedia section) are all worth watching, especially the CNN piece. You can also read part of the first chapter in the excerpt available.