First They Killed My Father

by Ung, Loung

• ISBN13: 9780060931384
• ISBN10: 0060931388
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2000-12-20
• Publisher: HarperCollins Publications

Summary

Until the age of five, Loung Ung lived in Phnom Penh, one of seven children of a high-ranking government official. She was a precocious child who loved the open city markets, fried crickets, chicken fights, and sassing her parents. When Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army stormed into Phnom Penh in April 1975, Ung's family was forced to flee their home and hide their previous life of privilege. Eventually, they dispersed in order to survive. Loung was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans while her other siblings were sent to labor camps. Only after the Vietnamese destroyed the Khmer Rouge were Loung and her surviving siblings slowly reunited. Bolstered by the shocking bravery of one brother and sustained by her sister's gentle kindness amid brutality, Loung forged ahead to create a courageous new life. Harrowing yet hopeful, insightful and compelling, this family's story is truly unforgettable.

Author Biography

Loung Ung is National Spokesperson for the Campaign for a Landmine Free World, a program of the Vietnam Veterans of America Foundation. She lives in Washington, D.C.

Table of Contents

Author's Note	ix
Phnom Penh April 1975	1	(6)
The Ung Family April 1975	7	(10)
Takeover April 17, 1975	17	(6)
Evacuation April 1975	23	(5)
Seven-Day Walk April 1975	28	(10)
Krang Truop April 1975	38	(6)
Waiting Station July 1975	44	(6)
Anlungthmor July 1975	50	(6)
Ro Leap November 1975	56	(13)
Labor Camps January 1976	69	(10)
New Year's April 1976	79	(14)
Keav August 1976	93	(8)
Pa December 1976	101	(12)
Ma's Little Monkey April 1977	113	(7)
Leaving Home May 1977	120	(9)
Child Soldiers August 1977	129	(15)
Gold for Chicken November 1977	144	(7)
The Last Gathering May 1978	151	(7)
The Walls Crumble November 1978	158	(7)
The Youn Invasion January 1979	165	(10)
The First Foster Family January 1979	175	(9)
Flying Bullets February 1979	184	(11)
Khmer Rouge Attack February 1979	195	(8)
The Execution March 1979	203	(6)
Back to Bat Deng April 1979	209	(9)
From Cambodia to Vietnam October 1979	218	(10)
Lam Sing Refugee Camp February 1980	228	(7)
Epilogue	235	(4)
Acknowledgments	239	(2)
Resources	241