Who is Laura Simms? How does Beah meet her; and what role does she fulfill later in Beah’s life? Chapter 20

Laura Simms is a facilitator for the United Nations First Children's Parliament; her workshop is intended to help the children learn more effective ways of communicating their harrowing experiences to their audience. Beah connects with her immediately because she is a storyteller and he comes from a culture strong in storytelling roots. Laura eventually adopts Beah as her son when he escapes the resurgence of violence in Sierra Leone.