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veerakarelia's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
4.75
thetenaciousbookworm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
bookishblond's review against another edition
5.0
Beautiful novel. A few favorite quotes:
"Memory is a bit of light on a winter wall."
"I have filled in time since the day I lost you. A lifetime of silent pretending.
"If we live long enough, we have to tell, or turn to stone inside. I try to release you from a pit in my heart but unburied and unblessed you imprison me.
"I long for the brush of your fingers on my skin. I long for the light of your eyes. If I pray, I pray to a wounded god. In the end it is only the wounded who endure. In Cambodia they say, Loss will be god's, victory will be the3 devil's."
"Memory is a bit of light on a winter wall."
"I have filled in time since the day I lost you. A lifetime of silent pretending.
"If we live long enough, we have to tell, or turn to stone inside. I try to release you from a pit in my heart but unburied and unblessed you imprison me.
"I long for the brush of your fingers on my skin. I long for the light of your eyes. If I pray, I pray to a wounded god. In the end it is only the wounded who endure. In Cambodia they say, Loss will be god's, victory will be the3 devil's."
emilyisreading2024's review against another edition
3.0
Gorgeous poetic language and beautiful imagery. I like the short chapters, which kept me wanting more. I would rate it higher except that the second person tense got on my nerves.
bekahgern's review against another edition
2.0
I did not know much about the genocide and Khmer Rouge in Cambodia. So tragic and heartbreaking. The book using it as a backdrop for this Canadian woman's infatuation and grief cheapens the true suffering of the Cambodian people, in my opinion. I did not like the writing style either. Too much "he said...you said...you said...I said" and the lack of quotation marks was confusing.
kathyblais's review against another edition
5.0
This is a beautifully-written, powerful novel. I even enjoyed reading the interview with the author at the back. This is a story about the importance of telling a person's story. The epitaph is from a survivor of a Cambodian prison, and it simply says, "Tell others." Another character in the book tells her tragic story and simply says, "I just wanted you to know." This book tells the history of the Canbodian genocide and gives a voice to the millions who died or went missing. I found it resonates with so many other tragedies and atrocities we hear about today.... the plight of refugees, the stories of First Nations people in Canada. I am so glad I found this book at a garage sale - it was a real treasure.