Helpful Score: 1
This book is a hauntingly heartbreaking tale of the atrocities experienced by the Cambodian people in the mid 1970's. It is based on the author's own experiences as a child in Cambodia. While it is a devastating tale it is also a tribute to her father with whom she shared a strong bond and a story of hope and perseverance. The book is beautifully written and will stay with me for a long time.
I love this quote from the author, Vader Rattner:
"For all the loss and tragedy I have known, my life has taught me that the human spirit, like the lifted hands of the blind, will rise above chaos and destruction, as wings in flight"
I love this quote from the author, Vader Rattner:
"For all the loss and tragedy I have known, my life has taught me that the human spirit, like the lifted hands of the blind, will rise above chaos and destruction, as wings in flight"
Review first published on my blog: http://memoriesfrombooks.blogspot.com/2012/08/the-light-between-oceans.html
In the Shadow of the Banyan is the story of seven-year old Raami, who is caught up in the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia in the 1970s. The regime of the Khmer Rouge has the history of genocide, famine, disease, and destruction. This book tells a very personal story of that time. Though a fictionalized account, the book is autobiographical in its basis.
Raami is part of the royal family of Cambodia, and through this time period, suffers with her family. She suffers hardships beyond our imagination - separation from family, death of family members, starvation, and forced labor. Yet, she also finds moments of beauty and love. Throughout, she fights for survival.
It is somewhat disconcerting to read this book. The book describes such horrors, yet the imagery is at the same time heart-breakingly beautiful. The book is narrated through Raami's eyes - the innocent eyes of a seven year old. Yet, the insights and the poetic descriptions cannot be attributed to a child so young.
This seems to be a disconnect in the book. Yet, for the most part, it ceases to matter. I am so captured by the imagery and the emotions that I willingly put that aside. Periodically, there are moments of innocence that bring me back to the point that the narrator is seven. Yet, mostly, I remain entrenched in the story feeling the emotions and fighting for Raami's survival.
These words from the book itself describe it well..."Words, you see, allow us to make permanent what is essentially transient. Turn a world filled with injustice and hurt into a place that is beautiful and lyrical. Even if only on paper."
In the Shadow of the Banyan is the story of seven-year old Raami, who is caught up in the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia in the 1970s. The regime of the Khmer Rouge has the history of genocide, famine, disease, and destruction. This book tells a very personal story of that time. Though a fictionalized account, the book is autobiographical in its basis.
Raami is part of the royal family of Cambodia, and through this time period, suffers with her family. She suffers hardships beyond our imagination - separation from family, death of family members, starvation, and forced labor. Yet, she also finds moments of beauty and love. Throughout, she fights for survival.
It is somewhat disconcerting to read this book. The book describes such horrors, yet the imagery is at the same time heart-breakingly beautiful. The book is narrated through Raami's eyes - the innocent eyes of a seven year old. Yet, the insights and the poetic descriptions cannot be attributed to a child so young.
This seems to be a disconnect in the book. Yet, for the most part, it ceases to matter. I am so captured by the imagery and the emotions that I willingly put that aside. Periodically, there are moments of innocence that bring me back to the point that the narrator is seven. Yet, mostly, I remain entrenched in the story feeling the emotions and fighting for Raami's survival.
These words from the book itself describe it well..."Words, you see, allow us to make permanent what is essentially transient. Turn a world filled with injustice and hurt into a place that is beautiful and lyrical. Even if only on paper."
