Journal 7 Ali

My favorite character in the book is Esther. I like her so much because she is just a generally good person and cares so deeply for helping others. Another reason as to why I like her is she never gives up on Ishmael, even if he wasn't cooperating she still helped him out of the kindness of her heart. "When I unwrapped it, I jumped up and hugged her, but immediately held back my happiness"(Beah154). Ishmael had this sudden reaction when Esther just showed him a little bit of kindness. She knew that he liked music and she thought the Walkman would make him happy and recover faster.
Ishmael's rehabilitation was very difficult for him. Him and his friends rebelled and killed other children their first night, having withdrawal from the drugs he took for years, having sever PTSD causing migraines and visions, constantly passing out, and trying to find the good memories from his childhood. Ishmael overcame all of this once he learned to not be angry, and that "It was not his fault". That he did the terrible things he did. I would be afraid to have Ishmael in my neighborhood when he first started treatment, but after he recovered I would of loved just to be there and listen to him and help him cope with the past.
One thing I think Ishmael Beah did good with was, helping the readers visualize and use their senses to get a feel of  everything that was happening. "I listened to the sound of our footsteps on the dusty road. I could hear the rattling of lizards crossing the road to climb the nearby mango tree" (Beah174). When he wrote this I could really visualize and hear Ishmael and his uncle walking down the road. He also did good with brining battle scenes to life also. But my favorite thing from Beah's story was the metaphors he came up with. "Little did I know that surviving the war that I was in, or any other kind of war, was not a matter of feeling trained or brave. These were just things that made me feel I was immune from death" (Beah159). This metaphor states how Ishmael felt as if he was never going to die while he was in war since he was a brave soldier and he was trained very well and knew what he needed to do; in order to survive.
In chapter 19 my favorite passage was "Why does she do it? Why do they all do it? I thought as we went our separate ways. It was the last time I saw her. I loved her but never told her" (Beah181). Ishmael thinks of these questions when he last saw Esther. This was my favorite because Ishmael couldn't see the good in people, he was only accustomed to kill or be killed. The people like Leslie and Esther were truly good people helping out someone other than themselves. And it shows how Ishmael still regrets that he never told Esther how he felt, and how he treasures all the memories they had together.