A Long Way Gone Reading Guide: Chapter 1

Define these words using context clues. If you must use a dictionary, put the definition in your own words. Page number to find the word is included.

  1. Refugee (5)
  2. Fatigue (5)
  3. Malnourishment (5)
  4. Plagued (5)
  5. Translucent (8)
  6. Evaded (8)
  7. Embedded (17)
  8. Resonated (16)
  9. Adage (16)

Comprehension / “Prologue”: Read the epigraph p. 3. Write ½ page reflecting what ideas this introduces and how it prepares the reader for what is to come. (Done in class Monday)
Setting:Identify at least 10 words or phrases that identify or describe the setting of Beah’s homeland (Sierra Leone). You should include references to time, place, region, atmosphere. Cite the page number (or % complete on Kindle). Then, write ½ page that answers, “What aspects of this culture and setting will influence the characters, their behavior, and what might happen to them?” Due at the beginning of class Wed.
Below you will see a question or set of questions related to a particular theme from chapter 1. You must choose a total of 5 questions to respond to—write on your own paper in complete sentences. Label the theme and question number you are responding to.
Theme / Question
Choice, Leaders, Control: / 1. (p. 14) “What kind of liberation movement shoots innocent civilians, children, that little girl?” Why is Beah confused about the violence from this liberation movement? Define liberation movement somewhere in your answer.
Growth, Survival, Healing / 2. (p. 16) How did Beah’s grandmother explain the local adage that “we must strive to be like the moon”? And why has Ishmael remembered this saying ever since childhood? What does this mean to him?
3. Consider this quote: “Whenever I get a chance to observe the moon now, I still see those same images I saw when I was six, and it pleases me to know that that part of my childhood is still embedded in me.” Why might it please Beah to still remember this moment from his childhood?
4. What kinds of things console Beah during the traumas that he experiences?
Personal connections—choose no more than1 of these to respond to. / 5. What is your favorite lesson from childhood, or what has someone told you that you will always remember?
6. Describe a feeling from your childhood that you would always like to cherish.
7. What were you doing when you were 12?
Friendship and relationships / 8. Describe Beah and his friends—what kind of boys are they? What do they do and how do they relate to each other?
9. Describe Beah’s relationship with his family—mother, father, brothers...

Chapter 2

Complete the “worlds” chart; then choose at least 6 of the 8 remaining questions to complete. Continue to write on your own paper using complete sentences and page numbers (or % complete) where you found your answer.

Comprehension / TO BEGIN IN CLASS: Chapter 2 introduces TIME in an interesting way to establish the structure of flashbacks that Beah uses to tell his story, juxtaposing past and present.
  • Copy the last sentence of Chapter 2.
  • Then, draw three columns on your page, labeling each column with one of the “worlds.”
  • Copy words and phrases from the chapter and place them under the appropriate heading (he writes about each “world” in this chapter). Include at least 3 words/phrases for each column
1. Is the diction or sentence structure different in each world or the same?
2. “These days, I live in three worlds: my dreams, and the experiences of my new life, which trigger memories from the past” (20). What evidence do you see that these 3 worlds became separate and distinct, differentiated, for Beah? Or, do they ever become differentiated for him?
Healing, survival / As chapter 2 begins, we flash-forward to Beah’s new life in New York City. He relates a dream of pushing a wheelbarrow.
3. What is in the wheelbarrow?
4. What does Beah mean when he says, “I am looking at my own” (19)?
5. Why is this dream important?
Destiny, purpose / 6. Why are Beah’s memories important? What good are memories if they bring so much pain?
7. What value does survival through horrible circumstances have?
8. What does it mean for “being alive itself to be a burden”?

Chapter 3

Define these words using context clues. If you must use a dictionary, put the definition in your own words. Page number to find the word is included.

  1. massacre (21)
  2. banoyet (21)
  3. mutilation (21)
  4. subsequent (22)

Comprehension / Conflicts
In Chapters 3, 4, and 5, we will see the challenges and conflicts that Beah faces.
Identify TWO conflicts (opposing forces to the protagonist and his welfare or his goals) from this chapter. Explain for EACH:
  • the source of the conflict
  • the nature of the conflict (what is it like?)
  • the complications that might influence how the conflict will be resolved (fictional example: US enters to stop the war, but doesn’t understand the culture and might make things worse)

ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS. Write on your own paper in complete sentences. Label the theme and question number you are responding to.
Theme / Question
Community /
  1. (p. 22) “That night for the first time in my life I realized that it is the physical presence of people and their spirits that gives a town life.”
  2. What prompts Beah to observe this?
  3. Who are the 5 boys with whom Ishmael flees at the end of this chapter?

Control /
  1. Why did the RUF use the “one-love” mutilation on their messenger?
  2. How will the RUF tattoo affect those who have it after the war is over?

Chapter 4

Define these words using context clues. If you must use a dictionary, put the definition in your own words. Page number to find the word is included.

  1. Residues (28)
  2. predicament (29)
  3. implement (29)
  4. tactics (29)

Comprehension / Conflicts
In Chapters 3, 4, and 5, we will see the challenges and conflicts that Beah faces.
Identify TWO conflicts (opposing forces to the protagonist and his welfare or his goals) from this chapter. Explain for EACH:
  • the source of the conflict
  • the nature of the conflict (what is it like?)
the complications that might influence how the conflict will be resolved (fictional example: US enters to stop the war, but doesn’t understand the culture and might make things worse)
ANSWER ALL QUESTIONS. Write on your own paper in complete sentences. Label the theme and question number you are responding to
Theme / Question
Community
Relationships
Friendships
boundaries /
  1. (p. 26) Why were the people afraid of groups of boys travelling together?
  2. Choose one of the following to answer:
  3. Are there similar occurrences in the United States, when someone might fear a group travelling together?
  4. Are fearful responses to people based on looks justifiable? Why or why not?
  5. What happens to people and communities when certain types of people are feared? Specifically, what happens to the feared and what happens to the fearful?

Choice /
  1. Why, after their escape, do Ishmael and the other boys sneak back into thevillage of Mattru Jong?
  2. Is breaking the law ever justified? Why or why not? If so, when?
  3. Are there situations in the U.S. where breaking the law is reasonable behavior?

Chapter 5

Complete the comprehension box, #1-3, and then choose 1 question from the personal connection box to answer. Remember to write on your own paper in complete sentences.

Comprehension / Conflicts
In Chapters 3, 4, and 5, we will see the challenges and conflicts that Beah faces.
Identify TWO conflicts (opposing forces to the protagonist and his welfare or his goals) from this chapter. Explain for EACH:
  • the source of the conflict
  • the nature of the conflict (what is it like?)
  • the complications that might influence how the conflict will be resolved (fictional example: US enters to stop the war, but doesn’t understand the culture and might make things worse)

Theme / Question
control /
  1. Beah encounters one of many life-threatening situations, but he is saved by a coincidence rather than his own wit or physical ability. What does this suggest about the nature of his survival against the conflicts he faces?
  1. Beah started to make more pointed decisions about his actions in this chapter—find at least 2 other examples of decisions he made to gain some level of control over his situation.

Community
choice / p. 33: Commenting on how a rebel soldier had interrogated an old man, Ishmael writes:
“Before the war a young man wouldn’t have dared to talk to anyone older in such a rude manner. We grew up in a culture that demanded good behavior from everyone, and especially from the young.”
  1. Where else in A Long Way Gone did you encounter the brutal, thuggish, or even sadistic behavior of young rebels—or of other young people?

Personal connection (choose 1) /
  1. Write about a defining moment in your life—where you made a decision to change your circumstances or potential future, in spite of fear or risk.
  2. Write about a life-changing decision you would like to make.
  3. Consider the (relatively) current events surrounding gun-control debates in our country. What happens when powerless people find ways to own guns? What happens when innocent people cannot protect themselves?

Chapter 6

Complete ALL QUESTIONS. Remember to write on your own paper in complete sentences.

Theme / Question
Community
relationships /
  1. “This is one of the consequences of the civil war. People stop trusting each other, and every stranger becomes an enemy” (37).
    Why is this mistrust a consequence of war?
  2. Why were people afraid of groups of boys travelling together? Would Beah have been safer without his friends? (p. 37)
  3. What is special about Beah’s memory of his older brother skipping rocks? Why does he remember it at that time specifically?

Growth
survival / p. 42 “I was a troublesome boy as well and always getting into fights... since we didn’t have a mother...”
  1. Why do you think Beah thought it was important to share that side of his pre-war personality? What is ironic about it?

Chapter 7

Vocabulary:

  • Oblivious (44)
  • Vigorously (44)
  • Skeptical (48)

Complete ALL QUESTIONS. Remember to write on your own paper in complete sentences.

Theme /
Question
comprehension / After Kamator has been attacked, and the two boys have been cut off from the others in fleeing, Ishmael and Kaloko sneak to of the bush and back into Kamator, bringing along brooms every time.
  1. Why do they bring brooms?
  2. Why, later, does Ishmael set out on his own?

Community
survival /
  1. Give at least 2 quotes from this chapter that are reflective of Beah’s emotional state.
  2. When Beah sees the family swimming, why does he say (after the father’s reluctant responses) that “even a twelve-year-old couldn’t be trusted anymore” (48)?

Chapter 8

  • vicinity (50)
  • indelibly(51)
  • notorious (53)

Choose to answer either number 1 or 6. Then, choose any 2 other questions to answer. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
fear /
  1. This chapter reinforces Beah’s loneliness, sorrow, and fear. Give one quote per emotion.
  2. What are the things—from the obvious to the implied and intangible—that Beah is afraid of?

Fear
Control
relationships /
  1. What was the “most difficult part of being in the forest” (52)?
  2. Who are the six boys Beah encounters after wandering and surviving in the forest on his own for more than a month? Where does he know these boys from?
  3. What kinds of thoughts help Beah gain perspective on his situation? What ideas and philosophies give him strength?
  4. Do you agree that fear can make you a monster? Give two quotes from the text that show how fear has changed Beah, the new group of boys, or the people around them.

Chapter 9

  • simultaneously (58)
  • deviated (58)
  • contorted (58)
  • congealed (61)
  • elaborate (62)
  • gesture (62)
  • disconsolate (65)
  • inevitable (67)

Complete the freewrite and then choose 3 of the 5 questions to answer.Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
FREEWRITE / In this chapter, Beah uses the phrase “A long way gone” (65). Find the phrase.
  • Explain the context (what is happening and what does he mean by this when it appears in the chapter?).
  • Freewrite ½ page why you think he chose this phrase for the title of his novel.

Relationships
fear /
  1. What happened when Beah and his group entered the village?
  2. How did the people respond to him and the group?
  3. How did the cassettes and rap music save them?
  4. Who is the anonymous man with the fishing hut near the ocean?
  5. How does he help to soothe and heal the feet of Beah and the others?

Chapter 10

  • conjuring (72)
  • pestles (76)
  • obstructing (82)
  • penetrated (87)
  • disarray (86)

Choose to complete # 3 OR #7. Then, choose 4 other questions to complete. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
comprehension / Choose 2 of the flashbacks from this chapter.
  1. Explain what values we can see in the flashback
  2. Explain how the flashback is connected to Beah’s “present” (the present moment during the war)

Foreshadowing
Fear
survival / Consider Saidu’s comments from p. 70 and his foreshadowed physical death:
“ ‘How many more times do we have to come to terms with death before we find safety?’ he asked. …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, a 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.’ ”
  1. Do you agree that the human spirit is linked to the physical body?
  1. Give two examples of foreshadowing from the chapter and explain them.
  1. What is the significance (the moral of the story) to the Bra Spider story?

Relationships
family /
  1. What do we learn of the various backgrounds of Beah’s companions?
p. 86: “ ‘Are any of you his family?’ a tall, slender, muscular man asked. He was in charge of the burial ceremonies in the village. We all shook our heads no. I felt as if we were denying Saidu, our friend, our traveling companion. He had become our family, but the man wanted a real family member who could authorize the burial.”
  1. Why did the boys feel like they were “denying Saidu” when the man in charge of burial asked if they were family?

Chapter 11

  • NOTE: This is THE transition chapter where Beah will no longer run from the war, but become an active participant—a soldier.

Choose 4 questions to complete. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
Literary terms /
  1. What is ironic about Beah finding his family again?
  2. Deus ex machina is a literary term meaning “an improbable character or unconvincing event used to resolve a plot” (Bing Dictionary).
  3. In what ways might Beah’s escape from the rebels seem like a moment of deus ex machina?
  4. By including these moments when Beah miraculously escapes the rebels again and again, what effect does this have on the reader?

Control, choice
Violence, anger
Growth
Coming-of-age
survival /
  1. How does Beah respond to the comment “None of this is anyone’s fault” (96)?
  2. What is Beah’s first violent choice?
  3. In what ways does Beah now have more control in his own life?

Chapter 12

  • erupted (100)
  • tributary (101)
  • Jubilation (102)

Choose 4 questions to complete. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme / Question
Literary terms /
  1. Identify two ironic elements in this chapter.

Control, choice
Growth
Coming-of-age
survival /
  1. How is the loss of the cassette tapes a symbol of the end of Beah’s childhood?
At the village of Yele, a pivotal shift in this memoir begins when Beah goes from being an observer and victim of savage violence to being savage and violent.
  1. How does this shift happen?
  2. Do Ishmael and his companions have any choice in making this shift?

Responding to quotes / “‘It is Shakespeare,’ He showed me the cover. ‘Julius Caesar. Have you heard of it?’” (104).
  1. What is jarring or unusual about this reference to Shakespeare in a book such as this?
Along their way, they see two dead bodies that make Beah want to vomit. One of the soldiers smiles and says, “You will get used to it. Everybody does” (100).
  1. Why is Beah’s original impulse (horror, disgust) to death dangerous as a soldier?
  2. Why is Beah’s original impulse (horror, disgust) to death important as a civilian?

Chapter 13

Answer all questions. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
Control
leadership / One Sunday morning, the corporal gives them the day off. He says, “If you are religious, I mean a Christian, worship your Lord today, because you might not have another chance” (115).
  1. What truth of war for a soldier does this statement convey?

Coming-of-age
survival /
  1. Give two examples from the text that prove Beah has changed from fearful to fearless.
  2. What significance do the guns now hold for Beah and the boys with him (how do they feel about holding guns now)?

Chapter 14

Choose 4 questions to complete. Be sure to write in complete sentences on your own paper.

Theme /
Question
comprehension /
  1. What do Beah and the other boy soldiers do when they’re not out on a mission?
  2. Why is Beah promoted to junior lieutenant?

Control, choice
Violence, anger
Growth
Coming-of-age
survival / On a typical raid, Beah and the boys surround a rebel camp and wait for the lieutenant’s command. Beah gets angrier and angrier as he comes to believe that these rebels look just like the rebels who killed his family and played cards in the ruins of the village. Beah says, “So when the lieutenant gave orders, I shot as many as I could, but I didn’t feel better” (122).
  1. What truth about revenge does this show?
  2. At one point, the lieutenant tells them, “We are not like the rebels, those riffraffs who kill people for no reason” (123). Is this true? Why or why not?
  3. What is brainwashing? Are these boys brainwashed—why or why not?

Chapter 15