A Long Way Gone Audiobook By Ishmael Beah cover art

A Long Way Gone

Memoirs of a Boy Soldier

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A Long Way Gone

By: Ishmael Beah
Narrated by: Ishmael Beah
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In A Long Way Gone Ishmael Beah tells a riveting story in his own words: how, at the age of twelve, he fled attacking rebels and wandered a land rendered unrecognizable by violence. By thirteen, he'd been picked up by the government army, and Beah, at heart a gentle boy, found that he was capable of truly terrible acts.

This is how wars are fought now by children, hopped up on drugs, and wielding AK-47s. In the more than fifty violent conflicts going on worldwide, it is estimated that there are some 300,000 child soldiers.

Ishmael Beah used to be one of them. How does one become a killer? How does one stop? Child soldiers have been profiled by journalists, and novelists have struggled to imagine their lives. But it is rare to find a first-person account from someone who endured this hell and survived.

This is a rare and mesmerizing account, told with real literary force and heartbreaking honesty.

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Featured Article: The top 100 memoirs of all time


All genres considered, the memoir is among the most difficult and complex for a writer to pull off. After all, giving voice to your own lived experience and recounting deeply painful or uncomfortable memories in a way that still engages and entertains is a remarkable feat. These autobiographies, often narrated by the authors themselves, shine with raw, unfiltered emotion sure to resonate with any listener. But don't just take our word for it—queue up any one of these listens, and you'll hear exactly what we mean.

Featured Article The top 100 memoirs of all time
Powerful Memoir • Eye-opening Account • Authentic Voice Narration • Compelling Storytelling • Authentic Perspective

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I picked up this audiobook after discovering that my ancestors are from the Mende tribe of Sierra Leone. Wanting to hear what it is like there, I said let me give this story a shot (no pun intended). And wow. To hear the chronology of events that took place FROM the author himself. Ismael Beah does an incredible job of taking the listener through this emotional Rollercoaster. Job. Well. Done.

One day.... One day I will meet him and thank him in person. And another day, I will visit the land of my ancestors, Sierra Leone.

Nothing Like It

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What I loved the most is the story made me feel a deep sense of understanding even though I have never gone though anything like this.

Ishmael Beah is AMAZING

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Loved it. This was an amazing story, told firsthand by former child soldier Ishmael Bean. I would highly recommend this title. Now to start Beahs next title.

A long way gone = intense

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I loved that it was the actual author telling it in his accent. On some parts I could truly feel the emotion while he told his story

it was great!

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It placed me in the shoes of the author, surviving a horrific experience. A page turner from the start.

Simplistic story telling.

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