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Before the War
Many years before the war Ishmael's parents divorced (this was not easily accepted by their culture), leaving the children derided by their peers. Later on, due to financial difficulty, they stopped attending school. By the time the war started Ishmael's relationship with his father was tense and falling apart. All these facts show that Ishmael did't have an easy childhood. But a difficult childhood builds character. (pages 10-11) -
Touched by War
At this point Ishmael was 12 years old. Him, his brother and a couple of friends were on their way to a talent show that they were performing in. Once they got to their destination, they found out that their home town was invaded by the rebels. In a desperate attempt to relocate their family, they went back home only to see the evidence of war and a town gone. Due to this event Ishmael's childhood was taken from him at a young age. His sole focus was to survive. (pages 6-13) -
The RUF (Revolutionary United Front) Invades
As Ishmael and his brother had no home to go to, they lived with their friends in Mattru Jong. When the RUF decided to invade the town everyone attempted escape. Up to this point they saw evidence of RUF invasions but this was the first time that they had to run from the rebels for their own survival. (pages 23-25) -
Caught
While walking through a field 3 rebels suddenly appeared. They brought the boys to a village where some of them were selected as recruits. Junior, his brother, was selected. The selected were ordered to shoot the others as an initiation. They were saved only by the sound of gunshots in the village. This was the first time Ishmael met death face to face. (pages 31-35) -
Losing a Brother
During an attack on the village, Ishmael got separated from the group he was traveling with. He never saw his brother, Junior, again. As Junior was his only relative, this was a huge loss. He now had no connection left and the world seemed bigger and scarier. (pages 43-45) -
Lost
Ishmael decided to leave the few friends he was traveling with in an attempt to escape fear. he found himself lost in a thick forest 3 days later. In the forest he met snakes, wild pigs and got into dangerous situations. Being in the forest on his own, he had too munch time to think about all the terrible scenes he had seen. He became scared of sleep and the more he tried to forget the more he remembered. When he finally came in contact with humans, he was withdrawn. (pages 47-54) -
A Boy Once More
Once Ismael and his new traveling group reached the Atlantic Ocean, they felt that safety was near and didn't expect any trouble. They began to wrestle and play like boys once more. Sadly this ended all too quickly when a group of village men attacked them. As these enjoyable times were few and short, they became memories of happiness that felt like dreams. (pages 58-60) -
Refuge in a Shed
After being attacked by a group of village men their shoes were taken away and they were chased for -
Accepting Death
When one of the boys in the group died, they buried him in the nearest village and continued their wandering. Seeing death in his group, forced Ishmael to come to terms with death. They all felt like they were slowly dying, mentally. One on his friends summed it up well. (page 70) "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." (pages 81-88) -
Recruitment
Before Ishmael joined the army, He was brought to a "safe village" that was "protected" by the army fighting the RUF. For a few days all was good. Suddenly there was tension in the air. They needed more fighting men. All the men and even some boys would need to fight. If they didn't want to serve their country they would have to leave the village. The only issue with this is that leaving the village meant being killed by the RUF's. So Ishmael became part of the army. (pages 100-107)