Reviews tagging 'Vomit'

First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers by Loung Ung

8 reviews

mer3bear's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

(not giving a star rating bc it feels wrong due to subject material)

First They Killed My Father is a super captivating narrative and (autobiographical) account of a girl who is 5 years old in Phnom Penh when the genocide starts in Cambodia. Very interesting read bc my mom  is from Phnomh Penh turned 6 the month the invasion happened. While the narration being from a child’s point of view threw me off at first, it ended up growing on me and I think it added a lot to the writing. I have a hard time critiquing stories like this because obviously it is based off real experience. A lot of the book especially in the dialogue serves to educate the reader (presumably non-Cambodian Americans) about the cambodian genocide and so I feel like because I already know all of that stuff it didn’t give me the same emotional reaction that I know other people had. 

I know personally my mom doesn’t like the book because she says it makes it seem like the genocide wasn’t that bad but mind you there are graphic descriptions of mass executions and graves, beheaded babies, people dying of starvation and dysentery, rape, not being able to breath from choking on the scent of rotting corpses everywhere, child soldiers, and slaves etc. Definitely a very heavy read but I also think it should be mandated reading for Americans who walk around literally having no idea what’s going on ever and especially for ones who become tourists in southeast asia. The book is well loved and criticisms come from inaccuracies in some historical elements towards the beginning but I think the emotional truth behind it all is super important. Not a fun read but def required reading for worldly knowledge and whatnot.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Genocide

Moderate: Racism and Rape

Minor: Vomit

nanabells's review against another edition

dark inspiring sad tense slow-paced

5.0

Really eye opening memoir about the khmer rouge regime. a hard read but it helped bring light during that time of steuggle and war

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit, Rape, Violence, War, and Murder

alexandrias_library's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense fast-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Physical abuse, Death of parent, War, and Death

Moderate: Rape, Medical trauma, and Deportation

Minor: Excrement, Vomit, and Cannibalism

whatannikareads's review

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

a very important, hard read. definite warnings if you can't read about blood, genocide, murder, but i'm grateful that she didn't sugarcoat the atrocities committed on the cambodian people. we all know genocide and war is bad, but it's books like these that humanize the victims and give us vivid insight into what happened to them. how the effects of war stay with you forever. i hope ung's family members who were murdered have found peace; a book like this is a blessing that exists.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Murder, Torture, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Death of parent, Fire/Fire injury, Genocide, Grief, Sexual violence, Suicide, Vomit, Abandonment, Animal death, Blood, Child death, Confinement, Gore, Mental illness, Excrement, Cannibalism, Hate crime, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Sexual assault, Child abuse, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Rape, War, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, and Racism

mondovertigo's review against another edition

dark emotional informative sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Suicide, Physical abuse, Child death, Torture, Injury/Injury detail, Animal death, Murder, War, Grief, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Rape, and Genocide

Moderate: Vomit, Religious bigotry, Excrement, and Gun violence

hotkoolaidpotato's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative sad tense medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Police brutality, Genocide, Grief, Murder, Physical abuse, Violence, War, Blood, Death, Gun violence, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Gore, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Torture, Child death, Child abuse, and Vomit

Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault

Minor: Cannibalism and Excrement

nataliej11's review

dark emotional sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Vomit

Minor: Sexual assault

mscalls's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Bullying, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Emotional abuse, Excrement, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Gun violence, Hate crime, Kidnapping, Medical trauma, Murder, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Police brutality, Racial slurs, Racism, Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, Rape, Xenophobia, Vomit, Violence, Torture, and Suicide