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kbaiseri's review against another edition
4.0
Eleven year old Arn and his family are told American's are going to bomb his city and that they may return in three days. Scared and slightly fascinated at the same time, Arn follows his family and the others from his town to wherever the soldiers are taking him. They soon realize it's a trap as they travel for days, hardly getting any answers in relation to where they are going. It isn't until they reach a prison camp where the massacre beings. Anyone with high social ranking or money is killed while those who worked in the fields and hand no money are left to work. Constantly in fear of his life, he is split from his family and learns to survive by whatever means possible. Whether that means learning an instrument in a few days or being a Khmer Rouge, (one of the soldiers that slaughter anyone and everyone) Arn learns to never fall down. His five year trek is an unforgettable experience as it's based on a true story. Now Arn speaks around the world of his story in hopes to save others like himself.
This book opened my eyes to things going on in the world that I had no idea about. Never did I think such Holocaust things still happened today and so ruthlessly. It was interesting to see Arn's journey and just what he would put himself through in order to survive in hopes to see his family. Despite what went on around him, he still gave others hope by giving them food and hoping to keep them alive, even if it was for his own sake. I enjoyed the history this book shared and applaud Arn for being able to speak out about what he has gone through.
This book opened my eyes to things going on in the world that I had no idea about. Never did I think such Holocaust things still happened today and so ruthlessly. It was interesting to see Arn's journey and just what he would put himself through in order to survive in hopes to see his family. Despite what went on around him, he still gave others hope by giving them food and hoping to keep them alive, even if it was for his own sake. I enjoyed the history this book shared and applaud Arn for being able to speak out about what he has gone through.
kristinreader111's review against another edition
5.0
An engrossing, visceral, and difficult but important book. My heart broke for Arn and all that he lost and endured. His voice captured me from the start and I couldn't stop thinking about his story. A must-read.
storymi's review against another edition
3.0
Ik wist nog weinig van dit onderwerp af en heb er dus een hoop bijgeleerd. Het boek gaat vooral over de verschrikkingen van het Rode Khmer bewind: een pikzwarte bladzijde van de geschiedenis. Op de achterflap en in het nawoord gaat het ook over genezing door je verhaal te vertellen, het belang van vergeving en herstel door muziek. Die dingen worden wel kort beschreven in het boek, maar eigenlijk niet uitgewerkt. Dat had van mij meer gemogen.
hiltzmoore's review against another edition
4.0
This was a powerful book, and I wish there was more historical fiction about the Khmer Rouge in the 1970's in Cambodia. I can't believe this history is so unknown in the states, and the fact that it happened so recently is mind-boggling and heart-breaking. I thought the writing style, while hard to get used to, for the most part worked. The only time I questioned the pidgin-English was towards the end of the Cambodian scenes when Ang was so ill and the writing was filled with imagery that would have been best painted with proper English syntax/structure. I haven't ever read a book quite like this, but I am really glad I did.
emilybriano's review against another edition
5.0
Heartbreaking, moving and hopeful. This one will win awards and deservedly so. A must read for anyone wanting to know more about Cambodia's history and people under the Khmer Rouge regime.
kricketa's review against another edition
4.0
full disclosure: i didn't think i'd like this. the cambodian genocide is scary as hell, and the book written in broken english which annoyed me at first. (mccormick says she didn't intend to do this, but found that the story only came alive when she wrote it down the way arn chorn pond told it to her.) but i pushed on a couple of chapters and became emotionally invested. this is really well done and deeply important- a piece of history that got left out from all of my history classes.
elisegmusic's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Murder and Death
Moderate: Animal death
25_sage_reads_25's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75