First They Killed My Father

Until age five, Loung Ung lived in Phnom Penh, one of seven children of an educated, high-ranking government official. When the Khmer Rouge stormed the city in 1975, the young girl and her family fled from village to village.

Fighting to hide their identity, the Ungs eventually were forced to separate to survive. Loung was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans. As half her family died in labour camps by execution, starvation, and disease, Loung herself grew increasingly resilient and determined - armed with indomitable will, she miraculously managed to outlast the Khmer Rouge and survive the killing fields.

First They Killed My Father is her astonishing story, a memorable human drama of courage and survival against all odds.

About the Author

One of seven children of a high-ranking government official, Loung Ung lived a privileged life in the Cambodian capital of Phnom Penh until the age of five. Then, in April 1975, Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge army stormed into the city, forcing Ung's family to flee and, eventually, to disperse. Loung was trained as a child soldier in a work camp for orphans, her siblings were sent to labor camps, and those who survived the horrors would not be reunited until the Khmer Rouge was destroyed. Harrowing yet hopeful, Loung's story is an unforgettable account of a family shaken and shattered, yet sustained by courage and love.