My Book Report On The Book; “First They Killed My Father”:

This is my book report on the book; “First They Killed My Father”, written by Loung Ung.

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Loung lived in a decently nice house, in a city called Phnom Penh, in the country of Cambodia, in Asia.

In 1975, a war began. Loung was just five years old. She had six siblings: 3-year-old Geak; 8-year-old Chou; 10-year-old Kim; 14-year-old Keav; 16-year-old Kouv; and 18-year-old Meng.

Her father was an important man. But, when the war began, they had to flee. Because her father was a government official, if he were caught, his entire family would be slaughtered.

For many weeks, they traveled about quite randomly. They walked very long distances, hungry and tired, and stayed at their uncle’s house for a few weeks. Then, more news of the war pushed them forward.

They went to one village, stayed there for a few months, and then entered into a sort of labor camp. There, life was very hard.

For a year or two, they stayed there. Meng and Kouv went to another labor camp, because they were older, and Keav also went.

One day, several years after they’d arrived, Keav died in her camp. The first family member was gone.

Then, the people took their father away. He was brought to a labor camp, and was never seen again. Dead.

After their father’s dead, Kim took over as head of the family. He was 12-years-old. He stole corn from the field, when the rations were decreased to nearly nothingness. He worked harder to earn extra scraps.

But still, it was too dangerous to stay together. Their mother and Geak stayed at that village, while Kim went to another camp, and Chou and Loung went together to a third. Loung was eight years old.

She stayed there with Chou for many months. Then, she was brought to another camp. She worked there, against the armies, and trained to be a soldier.

She visited her mother once, but the next time she did, she was gone. So was Geak. They were both dead.

Horrified, Kim, Chou and Loung got together, and left the camps. They traveled to a small village, where they were taken in by a foster family. For a few months they lived there, and then they were moved to another family. Never could they stay in one spot. Orphans and alone, they had no other choice.

They made friends, only to have them killed by war. But one day, when Loung was nine, her two oldest brothers, Meng and Kouv, joined them. Together, they walked to their uncle’s house, where they lived.

Then, Meng got married. He and his wife were going to America, to start a new life. They decided to take Loung – now ten years old – with them, so she could enjoy the remainder of her childhood. And so, she went.

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This book was a little too long, and boring at parts. But one thing I liked was that it was a completely, 100% true story, and that the author – Loung Ung – was writing about her own life when she was younger. I’d rate it 7.201/10.

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Thanks for reading!