Memoir translated into 40 languages
Ishmael Beah's memoir 'A Long Way Gone' has been translated into 40 languages, reflecting its global impact as a testimony of child soldier experiences.
Snapshot · The Moth
Fabricated, Forged and Forgotten: The Moth Radio Hour
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Jun 16, 2026
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Closing Credits & Final Sponsor
At 56:20 · chapter starts 56:11
Jay Allison wraps the episode by noting that Ishmael Beah was eventually pulled into the violence he had witnessed and recruited as a boy soldier in Sierra Leone, before his rescue and rehabilitation. His memoir, 'A Long Way Gone,' has since sold more than one million copies and been translated into 40 languages, becoming one of the definitive accounts of child soldier experience. Allison then delivers the full production credits — the team includes Kathryn Burns, Meg Bowles, Vicki Merrick, Emily Couch, directors Jennifer Hickson and Larry Rosen, Grand Slam coach Jody Powell, and a long list of Moth leadership — before thanking funders including the National Endowment for the Arts. The episode closes with a SimpliSafe home security advertisement and a brief legal disclaimer about outdoor deterrence plans.
'A Long Way Gone' sold 1M+ copies
Ishmael Beah's memoir about his experience as a child soldier in Sierra Leone has sold more than one million copies and been translated into 40 languages.
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