First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers

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The fourteen-year-old son of Loung, Chou, and Kim’s first foster family in the Vietnamese displaced peoples camp. Loung at first considers Paof the only bright spot in her cruel new foster family…

First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung | Waterstones

Ung] tells her stories straightforwardly, vividly, and without any strenuous effort to explicate their importance, allowing the stories themselves to create their own impact.”— New York Times As I had no previous knowledge of this event, the dreadful title of the memoir kept my stomach in knots as my mind constantly speculated over when such tragedies would come to an end, or if they would at all. Not helped by the fact that the tortures inflicted on the author and her family are relentless and without mercy. Living under an oppressive regime where all individuality is stripped is scary enough but the consistent humiliations and threat of annihilation synthesized a dystopian society in my head unlike any other. Last year I’d read The Rape of Nanking and while that book is a textbook autopsy of war crimes, horrors that have been speculated to be the cause for the author’s suicide, First They Killed My Father somehow felt even more devastating because a young child stood at the center screaming for justice. Maglio, Tony (11 December 2017). "Golden Globes 2018: The Complete List of Nominees". The Wrap . Retrieved 11 December 2017.Central character is called upon to rise above appalling mistreatment without losing heart. Survival is key. She exhibits courage, resourcefulness, determination, and loyalty, never losing sight of her devotion to family no matter what it costs. Parents are selfless, devoted, and willing to part with their children to save them. Khmer Rouge fighters are portrayed as heartless and evil. From a childhood survivor of the Cambodian genocide under the regime of Pol Pot, this is a riveting narrative of war crimes and desperate actions, the unnerving strength of a small girl and her family, and their triumph of spirit.

First They Killed My Father - SuperSummary

As Pa speaks, I know he thinks someone in our family has stolen the rice. The story of the rat is not true and everyone knows it. Convinced that he realises it was me, I hide my eyes from him. Shame burns my hand like a hot iron branding me for all to see; Pa's favourite child stole from the family. As if to rescue me,Geak wakes up and her screams of hunger interrupt the incident.” Ung's memoir should serve as a reminder that some history is best not left just to historians, but to those left standing when the terror ends." — Booklist A riveting but harrowing account of a young Cambodian girl who's innocent idyllic childhood is swiftly obliterated by the invasion of the Khmer Rouge. We see the story unfold through Luong's eyes, starting as a 5-year-old. She takes us along on her journey as a young girl living in opulence and stability, ripped away from everything she knows and thrown into a world of unrelenting violence and torture, totally void of any compassion and mercy. Richard Bernstein of the New York Times wrote in his review that the author was an "intelligent and morally aware" writer whose work gives the bare statistics of the genocide "far greater psychological force" with its "wrenchingly particular" first-hand account. [7]The Khmer Rouge regime was highly autocratic, xenophobic, paranoid, and repressive. Many deaths resulted from the regime's social engineering policies and the "Maha Lout Ploh", an imitation of China's Great Leap Forward, which caused the Great Chinese Famine. The Khmer Rouge's attempts at agricultural reform through collectivisation similarly led to widespread famine, while its insistence on absolute self-sufficiency even in the supply of medicine led to the death of many thousands from treatable diseases such as malaria. The Khmer Rouge regime murdered hundreds of thousands of their perceived political opponents, and its racist emphasis on national purity resulted in the genocide of Cambodian minorities. Arbitrary executions and torture were carried out by its cadres against perceived subversive elements, or during genocidal purges of its own ranks between 1975 and 1978. Ultimately, the Cambodian genocide led to the death of 1.5 to 2 million people, around 25% of Cambodia's population." A riveting memoir...an important, moving work that those who have suffered cannot afford to forget and those who have been spared cannot afford to ignore. San Francisco Chronicle Very often, when people are asked to recall genocides in 20th century, Jews Holocaust, Stalin's purge, Rwanda or the Cultural Revolution are the very first things come to mind. People rarely remember the Cambodia genocide (or they have never heard of) as it was always overshadowed by the Vietnam war with no or little media coverage. However, it doesn't mean this is any less painful. I admire Loung Ung for her dedication on telling the world what happened under the rule of Khmer Rogue.