Brutal, Heartbreaking

The trials held against some of the last surviving perpetrators of the Cambodian genocide this past October really had me interested in looking into some of books out there on the subject. After listening to the deplorable "Soul of a Tiger," "First They Killer My Father" was so hard hitting as to be almost unbearable. It's extraordinary the way Loung Ung's character develops from a naive, whiny child (whiny because she hasn't a clue as to how dangerous the situation is) to a desperate individual who would do anything to survive, even if it means stealing food, killing sparrows, whatever. This is starvation and desperation at its most devastating.
This is not a light listen, but it's a good one. Just be prepared for some heartbreak, some hopelessness. But some love there too.
That said, you'll never think of earthworms the same way again...

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

12 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

The reader took away from the compelling story.

Gave up listening to this 2x before having to make a long drive and decided to give it another try. Hated listening the whole time. Pronunciation was horrible and it was more like she was just reading words than feeling the words as her own. It took away from the story and its emotions it couldve portrayed to readers.

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

10 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

excellent and very moving true story

What did you love best about First They Killed My Father?

the whole story -a recall of a terrible time

What other book might you compare First They Killed My Father to and why?

nothing compares

Which scene was your favorite?

the most tragic was when they took her father away, very very moving!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

most definetly!

Any additional comments?

it made me appreciate the wonderful live I have and how easily this could be taken away1

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

9 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

A story similar to my parent's individual stories

A story that echoes many hundreds I've heard from elders. i though it was well written. though the pronunciations of many thing were different from my native tongue, it did not throw me off. the reminders were so vivid in my mothers eye's she told me she couldn't finish. it mirrored many things my parents told me when i would complain, and i would shut up because nothing i was going through was like that, it's a little different when you meet the characters in a story and visually see the effects of the aftermath. My father escaped with a khmer rouge child soldier whom i call uncle till this day. I wish I had documented these campfire stories because that generation is fading fast and only child survivors like the author, my parents and their contemporaries still remain. This book struck a chord with me and made me appreciate the ones who came before me.

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

7 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

The most emotionally effecting thing I've heard.

Any additional comments?

The last days last few days I've been researching the Cambodian genocide, and recently began listening to the book "First They Killed My Father."

It is the most emotionally affecting thing I have ever read or heard. Sadly, few Americans know of it.

Pol Pot, a communist, an idealist, thought that he had a better solution than the marketplace for distributing resources and forcibly evacuated the capital city of Phnom Penh. In the countryside, 2.2 million people died in anguish because one man used the power of government to fulfill his idea that he could come up with a better way for humans to live and distribute resources than capitalism. The people were forced into villages and forced to labor, food was distributed communally and clothing was even rigorously enforced to ensure that no one stood above the others. Forced equality. If you were suspected of being a capitalist, your life would be snuffed. In fact, if you wore eyeglasses, it was an indication that you were literate, and your life was taken by the government. But, the reality was that corruption reigned, with leaders choosing how to redistribute resources. Everyone suffered, but not equally. The politically connected survived, taking from those that worked hard by force, not through mutually beneficial trade. Millions died because of Pol Pot's arrogance and because of forced income redistribution.

Nobody took a stand. Like the frog in the pot, they slowly suffered, hoping it would get better.

It truly reminds me of the president of the United States, a man who forces his agenda on the American people in the name of equality, disregarding all common sense and completely disregarding the marketplace. Neither man wants to inflict terrible hardship, but they think they have a better way. We all pay for their arrogance.

It also reminds me why I am proud to be an American. An American is not a people, or an area contained by borders, to be an American is to believe that you as an individual are free and what you have made is yours.

As an American, I am proud that we have the Second Amendment. Despite what the liberals say, it is crystal clear as to the intent of what the Second Amendment was. Our founders intended every able bodied man to own a weapon, and if the contractual agreement between the government and the people of America was ever violated, every able-bodied citizen was to rise up to utterly destroy it.

When I hear these horrible stories of these families suffering in anguish, it reminds me of my family and what I would do if my little 9 month son were somehow harmed.

In Cambodia, nobody rose up to stop these thugs, the government. They were a mob and sanctioned by the government, they raped and they took. They were able to, because there was no one to fight back.

I own a AR-15, a weapon of war, that if necessary, I will turn on my own government to defend my family. I am not ashamed to speak openly of it any longer. I will not die as a slave. I will definitely die someday, but I will die free, one way or the other.

I challenge you to read this book to remind you of why freedom is important, and what freedom really is.

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

7 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Great and harrowing story of survival

I would definitely recommend this book to a friend. The only thing that I wish there had been was more historical and factual information about the reign of pol pot. As far as a first person memoir in an event like this, this book was well told and easy to listen to. I will have my kids listen to this when they are old enough. Because of details of rape, I would say 13+

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

6 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

An eye-opening look into an unknown world

Would you listen to First They Killed My Father again? Why?

Yes. it was a difficult read, so I had to pick it up and put it down, but it was captivating and tragic.

Have you listened to any of Tavia Gilbert’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I don't believe I have... but I will have to check out more of her material; she did an amazing job on this one.

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

6 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

simply beautiful

very touching book. gave a very good overview of the Khmer Rouge period in Cambodia. I would absolutely recommend the read or the listen of this order book....

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

5 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Gripping Story with Infantile Voice

We read this book for our Book Group. Everyone else was totally engrossed in the narrative - except me. I am the only
member who uses audio books. This is one book that should NOT be read out loud. Hearing a grown woman's voice
trying to sound like a five-year old was a deal breaker. Even the most frightening or heartbreaking events sounded
contrived and just ------- wrong. GO to the Public Library for this one.

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

3 personnes ont trouvé cela utile

Amazing, heartbreaking - A must read!

The atrocities surrounding events in this book sound like they should be deep in our past; however they were merely 30 years ago. This is an amazing and heartbreaking story told from the inside through the eyes of an intelligent young girl. I have recommended this book to many family and friends. It really does show all sides of human nature and opens your eyes to what people are capable of. A must read!

Merci. Votre vote a été pris en compte.

Vous avez donné votre avis sur cette évaluation !

3 personnes ont trouvé cela utile