the main idea of the book a long way gone is that one little event can change our whole life around. first, Ishmael was a teenager that loved to spend time with his friends. the war came around and now he is a child soldier that kills people.  after the war, he is now in New York and everything has changed again. “….waiting for the daylight,so that i could return to my new life,to rediscover the happiness i had known as a child, the joy that had stayed alive inside me even times being alive itself became a burden(beah,20). this quote proves that Ismael’s life has changed many times  in a short time.our past will always be a part of who we are . it will always be stucked somewhere in the back of our head. the main idea f this book is life is a mystery.