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thebookishepicure's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
susannah8111's review against another edition
3.0
I would definitely recommend it to a friend. And the Echlins writing style was beautiful, like poetry, but my inner skeptic had some issues with the story itself. On the positive side, the stories of the side characters felt authentic, like they may have been based on real people. On the other, I just couldn't get past the western saviour/hubris of Anna as she thrust herself into deeply dangerous situations without any sense of the actual danger she was putting herself and those with her in.aube it shows how deep love can grind us. Maybe it shows the ignorance of western culture, believing we are immune to the atrocities of war and genocide. I see what she is doing here, it just rubbed me the wrong way.
chelseycatterall's review against another edition
4.0
What a hearbreaking story! I wasn't sure I liked the poetic narration at first, but when the action begins, it no longer matters. I couldn't put it down for the last quarter of the book. It was beautiful, haunting and so tragic.
tkparrish56's review against another edition
5.0
Elegant, eerie, historically informative. One of my favorite books of all time.
mslaura's review against another edition
5.0
This was an absolutely amazing book. Aside from the first 18 pages, I read it in a day. It was beautifully written in an almost entrancing style and I could not pull myself away from its pages. It captured the passion and emotion of a once-in-lifetime, love-of-your-life kind of love with a raw and beautiful intensity, in stark contrast to the atrocities of Cambodian life under the Khmer Rouge. This is the kind of book which you continue to feel even after you have put it down. Truly inspired.
emilyspurr's review against another edition
dark
emotional
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Genocide, Grief, and War
tinkerer's review against another edition
4.0
I think this book really conveys the pain of humanity under different kinds of siege. Made me feel like crying at many points.
karenks's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book. Mesmerizing, heartbreaking,unforgetable and I can go on and on! I loved the author's writing style. Sometimes I wonder why a book this good does not get more attention and books like Room by Emma Donoghue (which I hated) get so much attention. This book did however receive the Discovery Award from Barnes and Noble which is how I found out about it.