Krijn Peters, a rural development sociologist by background, is a lecturer in the Department of Political and Cultural Studies at Swansea University, Wales. He specializes in armed conflict and post-war reconstruction, focusing primarily on the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration of child soldiers and youthful combatants. Dr Peters is the co-author of War and Children (2009) and a Visiting Fellow at VU University, Amsterdam.

'This book goes more deeply into an understanding of RUF fighters - their beliefs and their atrocities - than previous studies. It is a very important contribution to our understanding of Sierra Leone and its war.' David Keen, London School of Economics and Political Science

• Introduction; 1. Voices from the battlefield: ex-combatants' views on root causes of the war and their reasons for participation; 2. The socio-economic crisis of rural youth; 3. Conflict in Sierra Leone and recruits to the war; 4. The world of the RUF; 5. Malfunctions and atrocities; 6. Cultivating peace: RUF ex-combatants' involvement in post-war agricultural projects; 7. Footpaths to reintegration?: Agrarian solutions for the reintegration of ex-combatants; 8. Conclusion: the RUF as a rural underclass project; Epilogue; Annex I: a chronology; Annex II: overview interviewed ex-RUF combatants.