First they killed my father

The book is getting sadder everyday i read it. Loung's family is split a part, they forced Khouy to marry so he would not be sent into the war. Meng, Khouy and Khouy's wife were sent to a work camp. Meng and Khouy work almost 15 hours a day loading bags of rice in to trucks to be sent to China. Loung's sister Keav was sent a girls camp working in rice fields. At their hut in the village theres her mom, dad, her brother Kim, sister Chou, herself and her sister Geak. Everyones suffering from malnutrition from not having enough food supply, they are only able to survive because of the extra food Meng and Khouy bring to them when they visit. Everyday they see soldiers going into houses and taking women, while they say they only need to question them, everyone knows what they really do. Even though the cheif says everyone is equal, it is clear that they are not, Theres people like her family who are considered "corrupt" and the base people have lived in the country all their lives

First They Killed My Father pages 1 - 49

"First They Killed My Father" by Loung Ung is about her experiences in Cambodia when the, Khmer Rouge lead by Pol Pot, took place in 1975.
In Loung's family there were nine people including her mother and father. Her father, Ung, Sem Im, her mother, Ung, Ay Choung, her oldest brother Meng, Khouy, Keav, Kim, Chou, her little sister Geak and herself. Before the end of the war when Pot Pot took over, she was happy, her family was fairly wealthy, her father worked as a police officer for the cambodian government, she used to look down on the poor people always trying to sell things to her and her mother when they go out. She often whines and complains to get her way. She was outside when soldiers returned home from the war, she didn't know why people were cheering, but she started cheering for the soldiers also,when she goes inside she finds her family frantically packing necessities she is told to get a change of clothes and head down to the truck. Under Angkar rule, city life was considered corrupt, education was corrupt, technology was corrupt, vehicles were corrupt, anything western-based was corrupt, they were forced to evacuate cities and go to the Khmer Rouge base about 15 miles out side of Phnom Penh, where they lived. When the truck runs out of gasoline they are forced to walk like a lot of other people, Loung complains of her feet hurting and not wanting to walk anymore. When they reached the base they were given a red checkered scarf a black shirt and black sweat pants. "Everyone is equal, we will all where the same clothes." said one of the soldiers. Her pa bribed one of the villages chief's with a piece of jewlery of her ma's so that they would immediately get into a village. Her pa is the only one with farming experiences. The men and older boys work in rice fields for 12-14 hours everyday, the women and children work in gardens harvesting vegetables. There food ration is very low, and people often die of starvation. Her brothers Meng and Khouy are sent to Labor camps. Her sister Keav is also sent to a girls labor camp. For awhile they survive because Kim, her brother, works for the chief, and because the chief likes him, he gets to take their left overs home with him every night. He goes through a great deal of pain, he gets abused by the chief's sons daily, but he does it for his family. No one can predict what will happen next, but i feel for Loung, shes only five and doesn't understand what is going on. She doesn't understand the Khmer soldiers are bad people. She wakes up every morning hoping that, that would be the day they got to go home, but they don't get to go home, ever, and she doesn't understand that yet. Meanwhile, the family doesn't talk to a lot of people because, since her father worked for the former government, he would be shot and killed and so would they. So they lied and said they were country folk. I wish I could say that they don't get caught... but judging by the title of the book, i think i have a pretty good idea.