Lucky Child
From Simmons Library Research Guides
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About the Book
Lucky Child: A Daughter of Cambodia Reunites with the Sister She Left Behind by Loung Ung
Level 2 E184.K45 U54 2005
From the Publisher, Harper Collins
"After enduring years of hunger, deprivation, and devastating loss at the hands of the Khmer Rouge, ten-year-old Loung Ung became the "lucky child," the sibling chosen to accompany her eldest brother to America while her one surviving sister and two brothers remained behind. In this poignant and elegiac memoir, Loung recalls her assimilation into an unfamiliar new culture while struggling to overcome dogged memories of violence and the deep scars of war. In alternating chapters, she gives voice to Chou, the beloved older sister whose life in war-torn Cambodia so easily could have been hers. Highlighting the harsh realities of chance and circumstance in times of war as well as in times of peace, Lucky Child is ultimately a testament to the resilience of the human spirit and to the salvaging strength of family bonds." From: http://www.harpercollins.com/books/9780060733957/Lucky_Child/index.aspx
Reading Notes from the Harper Collins - Australia: A short summary and questions to help readers think about and discuss the issues in the book.
About the Author
The Author's Personal Website http://www.loungung.com/acorn.php?page=home
Biography Provided by the Publishing House Harper Collins http://www.harpercollins.com/authors/13997/Loung_Ung/index.aspx
Reviews and Criticism
Publishers Weekly (February 21, 2005)
In her second memoir, Ung picks up where her first, the National Book Award-winning First They Killed My Father, left off, with the author escaping a devastated Cambodia in 1980 at age 10 and flying to her new home in Vermont. Though she embraces her American life-which carries advantages ranging from having a closet of her own to getting a formal education and enjoying The Brady Bunch-she can never truly leave her Cambodian life behind. She and her eldest brother, with whom she escaped, left behind their three other siblings. This book is alternately heart-wrenching and heartwarming, as it follows the parallel lives of Loung Ung and her closest sister, Chou, during the 15 years it took for them to reunite. Loung effectively juxtaposes chapters about herself and her sister to show their different worlds: while the author's meals in America are initially paid for with food stamps, Chou worries about whether she'll be able to scrounge enough rice; Loung is haunted by flashbacks, but Chou is still dodging the Khmer Rouge; and while Loung's biggest concern is fitting in at school, Chou struggles daily to stay alive. Loung's first-person chapters are the strongest, replete with detailed memories as a child who knows she is the lucky one and can't shake the guilt or horror. "For no matter how seemingly great my life is in America... it will not be fulfilling if I live it alone.... [L]iving life to the fullest involves living it with your family." Agent, Gail Ross. (On sale Apr. 12) FYI: Publication coincides with the 30th anniversary of the Khmer Rouge takeover. Copyright 2005 Reed Business Information.
Booklist (February 15, 2005)
Ung's autobiographical First They Killed My Father chronicled her harrowing childhood under Pol Pot's genocidal regime, which claimed the lives of her mother, father, and two sisters. In an essential companion timed for release on the thirtieth anniversary of Cambodia's Khmer Rouge takeover, Ung unflinchingly continues her memoir with her arrival in Vermont alongside her sister-in-law and brother, who, able to "borrow enough gold to take only one of his siblings with him," chose his tough youngest sister as the "lucky child." Ung agonized over everyone she left behind, but especially regretted her 15-year separation from her last surviving sister, Chou. Here she tells their parallel life stories, effectively interleaving her own narrative of an '80s, valley-girl adolescence (laced with posttraumatic episodes) with chapters about Chou's growth to adulthood amid threats of land mines and Khmer Rouge raids. By daringly (and remarkably successfully) assuming her sister's point of view, Ung brings third- and first-world disparities into discomfiting focus and gracefully dramatizes the metaphorical joining together of her haunted past with her current identity as a privileged Cambodian American. When the narratives fuse at the sisters' long-awaited reunion, their clasping of hands throws wide the floodgates to tamped-down memories--a cathartic release that readers will tearfully, gratefully share. --Jennifer Mattson Copyright 2005 Booklist
Washington Post (May 12, 2005)
... This is a strong story, simply told. Ung helps us understand what happens when a family is torn apart by politics, adversity and war. Change the names of the characters, give them another country of origin, and this story of dislocation becomes a tragedy millions of immigrants have lived through but seldom talk about. For the Ungs, there was a happy ending: Although it took 15 years, Loung and Chou were reunited. But the author never explains clearly why this took so long: Loung's visit to her homeland came well after the time when contact with Cambodia was prohibited by the U.S. government.
Just as it took the sisters an inordinate amount of time to reconnect, so does it take Ung a long time to reach that moment in her book. Although the delay provides a degree of tension, it also slows down the narrative unnecessarily. Still, Ung's story is a compelling and inspirational one that touches universal chords. Americans would do well to read it, no matter where they were born.
About Cambodia
A-Z Countries of the World: Cambodia
Simmons Eresource
This reference source gives a brief summary of recent developments in Cambodia; it also lists some key country data, such as population, major exports, and GNP.
World Fact Book: Cambodia
Simmons Eresource
Frequently updated, the World Factbook's Cambodia webpage contains an extensive list of general information on the country's geography, people, government, economy, communications, transportation, military, and transnational issues, as well as other data.
United Nations Human Rights: On Cambodia
http://www.ohchr.org/EN/countries/AsiaRegion/Pages/KHIndex.aspx
Up to date website from the United Nations on current events in Cambodia, with a focus on Human Rights campaigns, such as women's and children's rights and the prevention of torture.
