First They Killed My Father
Books | Biography & Autobiography / General
4.4
(168)
Loung Ung
A daughter of Cambodia remembers. Soon to be a Netflix original movie directed by Angelina Jolie. Until age five, Loung Ung lived in Phnom Penh, one of seven children of an educated, high-ranking government official. When the Khmer Rouge stormed the city in 1975, the young girl and her family fled from village to village. Fighting to hide their identity, the Ungs eventually were forced to separate to survive. Loung was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans. As half her family died in labour camps by execution, starvation, and disease, Loung herself grew increasingly resilient and determined - armed with indomitable will, she miraculously managed to outlast the Khmer Rouge and survive the killing fields. FIRST THEY KILLED MY FATHER is her astonishing story, a memorable human drama of courage and survival against all odds.
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Author
Loung Ung
Pages
336
Publisher
HarperCollins Publishers Australia
Published Date
2017-08-02
ISBN
146075218X 9781460752180
Community ReviewsSee all
"This book was one that I found extremely hard to put down. I loved the point of view the author decided to right from (her own but from when she was a child). Loung Ung made you feel as though you were with her and her family in Cambodia at times. I cried during the chapters called "pa" and "keav" - both were heart wrenching. I was so excited to see that she had written another book that was the sequel to this one that I called my local bookstore last night to see if they had it in stock, I'm going to pick it up today!<br/>This is an amazing book for anyone who loves history, if you are interested in genocide, if you are interested in other cultures or even just in reading the adversity in which some had to overcome to live a life in which they no longer were starving or running and fighting for their lives anymore."
Stefani Marie
"Its a raw and true story that reminds us that bad history really isn’t that far back"
Corvid
"Read this. It's important. It's well written and you'll be a better person for it."
Sara Mannal
"Parts of this book were hard for me to stomach. So much pain and loss and hell for people to try to survive. There is a wide range of experiences that the author had-from status of comfort and ease in Phnom Penh to laborers in camps, to refugees, to child soldiers in training, to orphans... somehow survivors. looking at the writing itself, there were times the phrases and language seemed redundant but it did emphasize the seemingly endless cycle of hunger, despair and trauma on so many levels experienced. Sober read, but one worth the time to learn of this horrible phase of history. Having visited the killing fields in Phnom Penh and lived with a dear Cambodian family for a time, who shared some stories with us, this book makes my heart ache."
Jessica English-Ramsay
"I could not put this down. "
Melissa Beamer
"I have thought about this book for years after I read it."
Morgan Reel
"Loung Ung has such an amazing ability to draw you into her world. Her life as a child living under the Khmer Rouge, starvation, war, genocide...this book will take you through every emotion you have and once you start you wont be able to put it down."
Amber Fan