Sunday, February 17, 2008

First They Killed My Father - Loung Ung



















First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers is a 2000 nonfiction book written by a Cambodian author and survivor of the Pol Pot regime Loung Ung. It is a personal account of her experiences during the Khmer Rouge years.

From Wikipedia.org

First They Killed My Father by Loung Ung

I came across this book which for me personally I like non-fictional novels after started reading 'A Child Called It' . I did not review on that book which is because it is more of a personal account in family abuse which happens every second in every part of the world.

I would rather review this particular book, 'First They Killed My father' an autobiography written by Loung Ung in which she recounts back her experience as a middle class citizenship during pre-revolutionary Cambodia and demoted to household helper during the Khmer Rouge reign lead by Pol Pot.

I hope that movie directors are able to bring this epic to real life and also to tell the rest of the world, the cruelty of Khmer Rouge with the propaganda which they know that they are weak against the Vietnamese but I do respect Khmer Rouge soldiers in a way that they are able to divide the society in just merely a year and propagade beliefs and hatred towards everyone else and imparting this hatred within the younger generations. If this is told in a movie, it will be a great success.

I like this book as each and every detail of true account in life and death within Loung Ung and her family are brought into my real imaginations. Even as young as 5 yrs old, Loung Ung tells the world that anxiousness and anxiety during a war keeps everyone to themselves and everyone learns not to speak to anybody and everyone is suspicious of everyone even in within the family members.

My respect to Loung Ung and to the rest of her family esp to her father, as a role model to every man out there, family comes first! As a man and as a leader in a family, making decision and to protect your family is the utmost role of respect in a family and to love your wife as much with your heart! To the fellow Cambodians who survived the war, give each other a helping hand and to relate this life account to your next generations.

Truely a good book to recommend to everyone. I finished this book in within 2 days and these 2 days, I began to appreciate that I am living in a very comfortable zone in within my society and the happiness that I have with my close friends and relatives.

Loung Ung, I hope you are reading this and it will be a great opportunity if we ever meet up.

Tuesday With Morrie - Mitch Albom
















Tuesdays with Morrie is written by American writer Mitch Albom which was published in 1997 (ISBN 0-385-48451-8). The story was later adapted by Thomas Rickman into a television movie (directed by Mick Jackson), which aired on 5 December 1999 and starred Hank Azaria as Mitch and Jack Lemmon (in his final role) as Morrie.

This book tells the true story of Morrie Schwartz and his relationship with his student, Mitch Albom. Both the film and the book chronicle the lessons about life that Mitch learns from his professor, who is dying from amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease.

From Wikipedia.org


Tuesdays with Morrie - an old man, a young man and life's greatest lesson by Mitch Albom

I was introduced to this book by my sister when I was back in Penang during Chinese New Year. She told me that Mitch Albom is a good author and I should try reading his book. As his books are in general light reading, i began to read it during my vacation back home. It took me about 4 days to complete the book and honestly, I should thank my sister for introducing this book to me.

Tuesdays With Morrie tells about Morrie Schwartz and his student, Mitch Albom which Morrie wants Mitch to understand the chronicle of life and to document this chronicle as a final thesis between both of them.

Morrie left with a few months to survive and also as a professor, through his ideas and philosphy of life before death, he wants everyone in the world to understand a simple fraction in life. And this simple thing in life, everybody needs it no matter how old you are, what are you working as, who are you with right now and many other possiblities is a simple four letter word.

LOVE is all everyone needs in our daily lifes. The first thing, a person must learn how to love him or herself and slowly by showing love to the person you are closest to and to every other person you care about.

This book tells and developed a sense of Love and respect to everyone around you. And as a general light reading material, this is a book I would strongly recommend.

Sunday, February 3, 2008

Happy Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year to everyone. May my well wishes be with you always!

Finally I am going back home for a week.

Sign off....