Rating: 2.3.1
Recommended audience: Mature teen to adult
Category: Memoir
Review: 5/5
Left to Tell is one of those books that everyone should read. It is both profoundly sad, yet uplifting and inspiring as you read about the triumph of the human spirit. I listened to this book on CD's and even though Immaculee did not read it, I felt like she was speaking to me and telling me her story. Immaculee Ilibagiza begins by telling the reader (or listener, in my case) the story of her idyllic childhood, how she was raised by a loving family in a beautiful country. She had no sense of the racial tension that was running through the society because her parents taught her to respect all people. She did run into discrimination as she got older and wanted to go to high school and university but was able to overcome it. Before she could graduate from university, though, chaos erupted in Rwanda. That was in April 1994. Her story is horrifying and miraculous at the same time. I highly recommend this book. Just as the title says, Immaculee believes that she was preserved, "left to tell" her story, and it is one that should be heard.
4 comments:
I would love to read that book. I hope I can find it. Sounds deeply saddening but I need to become more aware of history and what is happening now.
Oh, I read this. Horrible. The scenes where she and the other women are crammed into the bathroom. And her brother's murder, the "So this is what a master's degree looks like..." Absolutely horrifying. This book will stay with you. I agree, even though it's difficult to read, her story needs to be heard.
Where you able to see the photos that were included in the book? I think that's when I cried when I saw a photo of a little infant who was killed. Sad, sad. I agree, everybody needs to read this one. She is amazing!
This book was awesome and I agree about the explanation of her brother's horrifying death. It was a good book though.
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