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mimela78's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
slow-paced
3.25
This shed light on the actions that occurred in Rwanda. It also showed the ongoing consequences these actions have even once you escape from the danger.
kamagates4's review against another edition
5.0
This is the first story I've read about the Rwanda Genocide and it was completely eye opening in many ways. Naively, I believed that genocides were all similar. I don't know where this notion developed but it made logical sense that the genocide in Cambodia must be similar to the one in Rwanda which much be similar to the in Nazi Germany, etc, etc. Yes, they technically explain the same mass/ethnic killings but there is so much more that makes each survivors experience unique.
“The word genocide cannot articulate the one-person experience—the real experience of each of the millions it purports to describe. The experience with a child playing dead in a pool of his father’s blood. The experience of a mother forever wailing on her knees...The word genocide cannot explain the never-ending pain, even if you live.”
This quote stopped me in my tracks. It's so powerful in it's meaning. Genocide, even if one lives, is never-ending pain. The book bounces back in forth between her life before, during, and after at multiple points. She describes the years of trauma and how it surfaces differently at different points in her life. It's heartbreaking and tragic.
However, the book is also hopeful in so many ways. It follows her path to America for better education and her reunification with family who was left in Africa. It's a story about courage, resilience, and kindness.
“The only road to equality—a sense of common humanity; peace—is sharing, my mother’s orange. When we share, you are not using your privilege to get me to line up behind you. When we share, you are not insisting on being my savior. Claire and I always looked for the sharers, the people who just said, “I have sugar, I have water. Let’s share water. Let’s not make charity about it.”
And my final quote to leave you with...
“I've seen enough to know that you can be a human with a mountain of resources and you can be a human with nothing, and you can be a monster either way.”
Be kind, be human. Read the book. 5 stars, audio.
“The word genocide cannot articulate the one-person experience—the real experience of each of the millions it purports to describe. The experience with a child playing dead in a pool of his father’s blood. The experience of a mother forever wailing on her knees...The word genocide cannot explain the never-ending pain, even if you live.”
This quote stopped me in my tracks. It's so powerful in it's meaning. Genocide, even if one lives, is never-ending pain. The book bounces back in forth between her life before, during, and after at multiple points. She describes the years of trauma and how it surfaces differently at different points in her life. It's heartbreaking and tragic.
However, the book is also hopeful in so many ways. It follows her path to America for better education and her reunification with family who was left in Africa. It's a story about courage, resilience, and kindness.
“The only road to equality—a sense of common humanity; peace—is sharing, my mother’s orange. When we share, you are not using your privilege to get me to line up behind you. When we share, you are not insisting on being my savior. Claire and I always looked for the sharers, the people who just said, “I have sugar, I have water. Let’s share water. Let’s not make charity about it.”
And my final quote to leave you with...
“I've seen enough to know that you can be a human with a mountain of resources and you can be a human with nothing, and you can be a monster either way.”
Be kind, be human. Read the book. 5 stars, audio.
amazingcross's review against another edition
5.0
"I did not understand the point of the word genocide then. I resent and revile it now. the word is tidy and efficient. it holds no true emotion. it is impersonal when it needs to be intimate, cool and sterile when it needs to be gruesome. The word is hollow, true but disingenuous, a performance, the worst kind of lie"
This is one of those books that I believe everyone should read. It is about a terrifying and gruesome time in Rwanda in 1994, where two sisters travel to hell and back a few times. This story will always stay with me.
This is one of those books that I believe everyone should read. It is about a terrifying and gruesome time in Rwanda in 1994, where two sisters travel to hell and back a few times. This story will always stay with me.
sssnoo's review against another edition
4.0
Of the millions of refugees and war survivors only a few either get the opportunity to or choose to share their stories broadly. I am appreciative to this author who chose to share so I and others could learn. I recommend reading or listening to this book - hold some space to hear Clementine’s story. This is an opportunity to value others’ humanity.
litgirlliv's review against another edition
4.0
A survivor of the Rwandan genocide commits to detailing the many consequences of trauma. This memoir is rich in emotion, growth, and history. It presents critical conversations about privilege, religion, and cultural difference. And it pushes thought-provoking reflections on recovery and identity. Im appreciative of the author’s ability to illustrate terror and desperation without facilitating voyeurism. The book’s organization is strategic, engrossing the reader in the plot while also structuring pointed critique and conversation. Above all, I appreciate the author‘s depiction of hopelessly flawed but unquestionably strong familial relationships.
jessicah95's review against another edition
4.0
An honest and courageous memoir, that is truly personal and insightful. Wamariya recognises any privilege she may have gained, and the opportunities she has been given, but rightly allows herself to acknowledge and feel the damage of her early experiences.
laurajw's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
coversofceilidh's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
3.75