In Uzodinma Iweala's penetrating debut, 'Beasts of No Nation,' the innocent and young Agu is torn from his familial world and thrust into the harrowing life of a child soldier amid an unnamed West African nation's civil war. As the violent conflict disrupts his childhood, Agu becomes estranged from his past, ensnared by the conflicting influences of his charismatic yet menacing commander and an environment of brutality and fear. The novel takes us deep into Agu's psyche, revealing the internal struggle and loss of innocence that characterize his journey through a disconcerting world of war.