Heartbreaking and tragic. Ung's story is one that must be read.

This book is very important to me because it represents the roots of my wife's family. Having visited Cambodia, having seen the pile of bones from the genocide, having heard her family's stories I can't help feeling a vivid pain for all the suffering the Khmer people have to go through because of Pol Pot. A magnitude not second to the holocaust and yet very much unknown to the most. I give this book 4 stars only because at times some passages are hard to read, but i recognize the very powerful and descriptive narratives that painted a clear picture in my head of how much suffering the author had to go through.

E o carte care nu te menajează în nici un fel. O simți cum te lovește direct în stomac, cum te răscolește cu indignare, frustrare și cu nedreptatea pe care o găsești din plin în paginile ei. De multe ori am simțit nevoia de o pauză, am vrut să zic destul pentru că ororile veneau una după alta.
Nu toată lumea poate citi această carte, dar cred că trebuie să o facă, căci toată oroarea descrisă nu e fantezie, e purul adevăr.

Of the “female survivor of an atrocity writes a memoir” genre (which is a surprisingly huge genre), this might be my favorite. Right up there with In Order to Live.

The pros of this book are clear: it is riveting, well-written, historically informative, and thought-provoking. Nothing interest me more than how societies descend into true chaos, and this book was as interesting of a case study as any.

The book does have one glaring con, which is that it has to be at least some degree fabricated. The author lived the book’s events from ages 5-10 and recalls conversations, scents, emotions, and intuitions with perfect clarity. I’m okay with some creative liberty, but I would’ve appreciated it if the author would’ve acknowledged this gap head-on (the prologue of Last Green Valley comes to mind).

Nevertheless, it was a top notch read. I learned a lot and I hated for it to be over. 5 stars any time both of those statements are true.

Review-nya jadi curhat dan cerpen ngelantur di sini, hehe
https://melquiadescaravan.wordpress.c...

cerpen part 2
https://melquiadescaravan.wordpress.c...

PS: tengkyu Fel, untuk hibahan bukunya.

The Cambodian Genocide is not one you learn about in schools or often hear people mention when they are asked to recall genocides that have happened in the 20th century, but it should be. This book floored me. I had to often remind myself that what I am reading is a recollection of factual events and not fiction because they were so horrific and described humanity it is utmost cruellest form.

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.

The Khmer Rouge aimed to establish a classless communist state based on a rural agrarian economy and a complete rejection of the free market and capitalism. This resulted in the abolishment of money, religious practices, places of worship and schools. Universities and government buildings were either closed or turned into reeducation camps and prisons. Now living as part of a society that murders its citizens for being intellectuals, professionals and ethnic minorities, Luong and her family must hide their true identities in a desperate effort to survive. Anything that signified they were 'impure' would have cost them their lives and the Khmer Rouge did not extend any mercy to children.

There is a constant sense of hopelessness whilst reading and thinking about how this young girl will not only survive but escape a ruthless regime. And if she does, how will she be able to live a normal life after witnessing the atrocities she did. Thankfully she does escape and has been able to share her harrowing and brave story with the world. Luong's book is a difficult read but also an incredibly important one. Books like this fill in the gaps of history that would have been either forgotten or erased over time.

I think it is pertinent to mention here that there is a current genocide happening against Uyghur Muslims in China. If you do not know about it, please do your research and also raise awareness. If the excuse for lack of awareness and action during the Cambodian Genocide was lack of reporting and media, then we do not have that excuse. Especially when social media has the power it does today. The information is there if you make the effort to look it up and educate yourself.

I am ashamed to say I didn’t know too much about the Cambodian genocide before visiting Cambodia. After spending some time visiting the country and going to the killing fields and the prisons, as well as reading this book I have learned a great deal about Cambodia’s dark, tumultuous past.

This book was an extremely hard read as it details a young girls experience during Pol Pots regime which included lots of violence, suffering and trauma. The events discussed in this book are not for the faint of heart and may make you cry.

With that being said, I think it is an extremely important read in order to learn more about the atrocities that transpired in this beautiful country and the resilience of Cambodians. It made me incredibly grateful to be born in the country and time that I was born in.

Very powerful and sad memoir of a young victim of the Khmer Rouge and Pol Pot's regime. Ung was only 5 years old when the Khmer Rouge took over in Cambodia, and she and her family spent the next 4 years trying to survive that brutal regime's treatment of the Cambodian people. I'm quite willing to bet there is no one who lived through that who doesn't have a heartbreaking story. Ung lost both parents and two of her sisters. Those losses in and of themselves would be more than most of us could bear. But Ung and her remaining siblings did what they had to to live. This was difficult to read since the deprivation and brutality were extreme. But it is so important to know about these events, to know what happened and why they can't happen again and should not be going on anywhere in the world right now.

Acest volum de memorii contine intreaga paleta de sentimente care-l pot face pe cititor sa treaca prin toate starile sufletesti posibile. Ura, frica, tristete, induiosare, speranta etc. Toate aceste sentimente se traiesc alaturi de autoarea Loung Ung care povesteste cu o voce clara, de scriitoare educata si talentata, viata ei de la cucerirea Cambodgiei de catre khmerii rosii pana la invazia vietnameza si fuga ei in Statele Unite ale Americii.
Trebuie sa recunosc ca nu am mai citit de mult un volum atat de "greu" si apasator de memorii precum acesta. Nimic din ceea ce Loung Ung scrie nu pare si nu lasa senzatia ca este fortat. Desi este scris de o femeie matura, vocea care ne vorbeste despre vicisitudinile si teroarea la care i-au supus khmerii rosii pe membrii familiei sale, este o voce de copila. Limbajul simplu si brutal, sentimentele redate abrupt si fara infloriri stilistice fac ca acest volum sa ne arate un copil, ce pare, este adevarat, mai mare de 5-6 ani, care sufera intr-o "minunata lume noua" o viata pe care nu o intelege.
Pentru Loung Ung de atunci sistemul politic al lui Pol Pot nu inseamna mai mult decat ruperea si distrugerea familiei sale, a universului in care se simtea in siguranta, anularea lumii de copil si anihilarea inocentei acestuia.
Foamete, crime in masa, teroare constanta asupra familiei, batai groaznice, frica si lipsuri, refuzul de a considera o familie drept parte a speciei umane: asta este ceea ce traieste Loung Ung si asta este revolutia comunista, marea schimbare "in bine" pe care o vrea Angkar-ul pentru populatia Cambodgiei.
Fetita, de doar 5 ani la momentul in care khmerii rosii ii alunga familia din apartamentul in care a crescut, se maturizeaza fortat. Obligata sa munceasca ca sa poata manca, chinuita constant de foame si de frica ca oricand membrii familiei pot fi ucisi, Loung Ung se trezeste, deodata, un om matur cu o viziune asupra vietii de om impovarat de greutati la o varsta la care basmele inca ar trebui sa fie credibile si sa faca parte din realitate.
Momentul in care tatal este luat si ucis de catre khmerii rosii este definitoriu pentru schimbarea caracterului lui Loung Ung. Ura incepe sa-si faca loc in sufletul de copil si dorinta de a-i ucide pe cei care i-au distrus familia incepe sa devina din ce in ce mai acuta, la fel ca si senzatia constanta de foame. O dorinta care nu o va parasi nici in momentul in care este spectatoare la o executie publica a unui khmer rosu.
Nu stiu daca as putea sa recomand o astfel de carte pentru ca ceea ce are de indurat o fetita de 6 ani este inimaginabil. In acelasi timp, astfel de experiente nu trebuiesc date uitarii si ar trebui citite si rascitite cu lacrimi de sange si tatuate pe cortex astfel ca niciodata sa nu mai permitem asemenea orori sa se intample. Pentru ca astfel de tragedii si vieti distruse nu trebuiesc ignorate niciodata, ci reamintite constant, acesta fiind unul dintre modurile de a impiedica dementa unor indivizi precum Pol Pot si alti "prieteni" de-ai sai sa reapara si sa-si faca mendrele pe aceasta planeta.
Asadar, consider ca aceasta carte ar trebuie citita de oricine, fara a fi nevoie de recomandari pentru ca acest volumas de memorii se autorecomanda tuturor celor care doresc la un moment dat sa se implice, intr-un mod sau altul, in oprirea atrocitatilor de acest gen si in salvarea de vieti nevinovate si suflete inocente.

Honestly I don't know how to review this book. I don't think I have ever read a book any more difficult to read due to its graphic nature of such a difficult subject matter.

Loung was only 5 years old when her family was forced out of their home. Luckily (if that's the right word choice) her family was fairly well-to-do so they didn't have to be among the people to walk barefoot (at first) since they had a car. They also had possessions they were able to trade for food. Loung had several siblings and, as one would imagine, they were split up and there were deaths.

I can't believe what Loung went through as a child 5-9 years old. The things she did to survive, I can't even imagine a child that young being able to do.

I was interested in this book because I taught high school for 25 years, and when I taught multicultural lit and we read books like The Woman Warrior by Maxine Hong Kingston and were studying Asian countries, a colleague and friend of mine at the high school would come in and talk to the class and show a slideshow. She was about the same age as Loung Ung when her family was forced out of their home during the Khmer Rouge rule in Cambodia. She remembers vividly (just as Loung seems to) that time. She told the class heartbreaking stories and spoke about Pol Pot and the genocide of the Cambodian people, so this book held special interest for me.

Recommendation: It is definitely a difficult book to read emotionally. There are some graphic parts that I didn't "enjoy" reading, but even the ugly things in life need to be told and remembered so that (hopefully) they aren't repeated. So please pick up a copy and read this important book.

Mit diesem Buch habe ich meine A-Z Autorinnenchallenge abgeschlossen und ich habe es nicht bereut. Ursprünglich wollte ich ja ein anders lesen, aber das andere lässt sich auch hervorragend in die 2019er Eu-Autorinnenchallenge einbauen.

Dieses Werk habe ich gewählt, weil ein Lesefreund mich darauf aufmerksam gemacht hat und weil ich am Schauplatz der autobiografischen Geschichte überall im Jahr 2015 war: Killing Fields, Pnom Penh, Die Gefängnisse, Tonle Sap der Norden Kambodschas... Auch durfte ich einem anderen, sehr alten Überlebenden des Foltergefängnisses in Pnom Penh die Hand schütteln und ihm seine Biografie abkaufen.

Doch nun von der Motivation zum Werk selbst. Stilistisch ist es doch etwas verwirrend gestrickt, weil die Autorin Präsens und Ich-Form eines kleinen Mädchens, der Protagonistin, gewählt hat, die dann aber nicht immer authentisch kindgerecht sondern oft wie eine erwachsene Schriftstellerin formuliert. Bei jedem komplexen Wort - teilweise präsentiert die Autorin einen ausnehmend komplexen Sprachschatz - und bei den öfter eingestreuten Konjunktivsatzkonstruktionen hat es mich als Leserin geschüttelt, weil dieser Stil so ambivalent und definitiv verwirrend ist wenn so etws ein 5-9 jähriges Mädchen formuliert.

Trotz dieser zugegebenermaßen ernsteren stilistischen Mängel hat Luong Ung aber etwas Wichtiges zu erzählen. Die Geschichte der Familie ist herzzerreißend, im Wohlstand beginnend und anschließend geprägt von permanenter Flucht, Hunger, Krankheit und Tod, erst stirbt die die Schwester, dann werden Vater und Mutter von den Soldaten abgeholt und erschossen. Anschießend irren drei voneinander getrennte minderjährige Kinder durch die Lager, finden sich zufällig wieder und machen sich auf, ihre restlichen erwachsenen Geschwister zu suchen.

Auch die Beschreibungen der Landschaft, der Leute und der Situationen sind plastisch realistisch und eindrücklich, das kann die Luong Ung sehr gut. Pnom Penh war 2015 genauso, wie die Autorin die Stadt 1975 so anschaulich geschildert hat. Hat sich fast gar nix geändert, bis auf ein paar Hochhäuser als Hotels. Auch ein paar Gedenkstätten als Lager habe ich gesehen und darin natürlich auch die Zeitdokumente der Insassen. Diese stimmen mit meinen Eindrücken deckungsgleich überein.

Das Thema der Kindersoldaten ist zudem ein spannender Aspekt in der Geschichte dieses Krieges der Roten Khmer gegen ihre eigene Bevölkerung. Auch wenn die Protagonistin als junges Mädchen zwar nicht authentisch formuliert, da sie in der Ich-Form von einem kleinen Mädchen gesprochen werden, findet das erwachsene Ich der Autorin aber dennoch sehr weise Worte, die sie kurz und knackig auf den Punkt bringt:
"Seine Regierung hat ein rachgieriges, blutdürstiges Volk geschaffen. Pol Pot hat aus mir ein kleines Mädchen gemacht, das töten will."

Eines sollte noch gesagt werden. Diese Familiengeschichte ist harter Tobak und nichts für zarte Gemüter, dennoch sollten wir auch auf einen solchen grausamen "Krieg" (eigentlich ja nur Konflikt in einem Land) hinschauen.

Fazit: Weil mir persönlich die Geschichte, die erzählt wird, immer wichtiger ist als die formale Struktur, bin ich über die Erzählkonstruktion sehr schnell hinweggekommen, und weil es zudem an sprachlich ausgereiften Sätzen überhaupt nicht gemangelt hat. Deshalb vergebe ich 3,5+ Sterne, die ich leichten Herzens gerne auf 4 Sterne aufrunden möchte.

P.S.: Die Biografie ist 2017 von Angelina Jolie als Regisseurin verfilmt worden und war 2018 für den Auslandsoscar nomiert. Läuft bei uns in Österreich in den Programmkinos

This is an extremely powerful story.

“No one knows how precious you are. You are a diamond in the rough and with a little polishing, you will shine,” Pa whispers softly.”

“When I ask Kim what a capitalist is, he tells me it is someone who is from the city. He says the Khmer Rouge government views science, technology, and anything mechanical as evil and therefore must be destroyed. The Angkar says the ownership of cars and electronics such as watches, clocks, and televisions created a deep class division between the rich and the poor. This allowed the urban rich to flaunt their wealth while the rural poor struggled to feed and clothe their families. These devices have been imported from foreign countries and thus are contaminated. Imports are defined as evil because they allowed foreign countries a way to invade Cambodia, not just physically but also culturally. So now these goods are abolished. Only trucks are allowed to operate, to relocate people and carry weapons to silence any voices of dissent against the Angkar.”

“This is what the war has done to me. Now I want to destroy because of it. There is such hate and rage inside me now. The Angkar has taught me to hate so deeply that I now know I have the power to destroy and kill.”