A couple of things really struck me as I read this novel. One is the pure brutality that some people had to endure before dieing. Not just emotionally—seeing family members slaughtered, but the physical torture. One particular scene which really affected me was when the rebels were forced to dig their own graves, then buried alive.
Something else that struck me is the natural instinct to survive. I know drugs keep Ishmael going, but not after he is rescued by UNICEF. Where does his strength come from?
What thoughts did you have while reading this novel? What affected you? What bothered you? What questions would you have if you were to talk with Ishmael?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
I thought it was sad when they made the solders dig their own graves. It's also sad when they play games to see who can kill their prisoners fastest. The thing that keeps him going other than drugs is the rebels killed his family and friends and he keeps putting that over and over n his mind.
ReplyDeleteI thought "Is this really happening". The killing affected me because if I saw my family killed, that would suck. I wouldn't have any questions for Ishmael.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts while reading this novel was it was gross, he described the it so detailed. Something that effected me was what some people go through running away from a war, we don't have to do anything like that. The goriness of the book was mostly that bothered me. Some questions i would have is he ever thought much about his family after the war.
ReplyDeleteI felt that this would have been a hard time for them going through a war as children I also thought that he was going to die or get seriously injured that would make him paralyzed. It bothered me that he was take drugs k=like brown-brown and crack but not the pills because the soldiers gave them it. It made me feel sad for people in Africa. What type of scars do you have?
ReplyDeleteI think the things that bother me most are like what you said. How descriptive he is with the deaths and all the fighting. I couldn't be put into a situation like that. I'd be WAY to frightening and repulsive. I just couldn't handle it!
ReplyDeleteI thought this novel was really graphic and Ishmael described it very well. I didn't really think this could happen to someone. I don't think I could live knowing my family is dead and that I will never get to see them again. I would ask how he gets through life now without his family, and if he misses them a lot.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading this novel, I thought that it was probably the most detailed book I have ever read and very brutal. The strength that keeps Ishmael going and the strength to go on, even though how much pains he's in, it's not just drugs, but the fact that the rebels killed his family and friends, and he wants to get them back for what they done to him. If I were to ever talk to Ishamael, I wouldn't have any questions for him, but a lot of compliments for making it out of the war alive and being strong enough to go on without his family being by his side.
ReplyDeleteI would always think about what it would be like if it were me. I think I would be scared out of my mind and crawled up in a corner crying. What really affected me was when he lost his family Because I love my family very much. I wouldn't ask Ishmael any questions because i would feel that they were to personal. I would just like to have a normal conversation with him.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading this story I thought that he should describe things a little less because it was disgusting to read. The thing that bothered me the most was that he described things so vividly I felt sick to my stomach. If I were to talk to Ishmael I would feel really weird and probably super nervous that he might still have the instinct to kill.
ReplyDeleteAs I read this novel I couldn't believe how descriptive Ishmael was. It was also the most gruesome and graphic book I have ever read. It bothered me that they had no feelings whatsoever about the people that they were killing. They didn't even realize that these people had lives too. If I had questions for Ishmael I was ask him what he misses most about his life before the war. I would also ask him if he felt any regret as he terrorized villages and killed innocent people.
ReplyDeleteI thought the book was pretty graphic and very well detailed.I don't know how they can live with themselves knowing what they did to other's lives. It's almost like they didn't regret anything that happened. I would ask Ishmael that if he could go back to the beginning of the war, if he would join it all over again.
ReplyDeleteMy thoughts were that it really didn't seem real, the cruelty the army and rebels were using. I mean, the army is supposed to protect people, not kill them! That really bothered me, and the graphicness of the whole book. I would ask him if he would have not stopped and rested on the hill to later die with his family.
ReplyDeleteI thought that this novel was that it's sad that they actually make children do this. I mean, to be a drug addict at 13? To me that's unimaginable. This novel really makes me realize all the freedom i have in America. It's makes me greatful for my life.
ReplyDelete