Alive in the Killing Fields by Nawuth Keat - ESSENTIAL

Keat, Nawuth Alive in the Killing Fields: Surviving the Khmer Rouge Genocide, 125 p. . National Geographic, 2009. $16

Violence: PG-13

MS, HS - ESSENTIAL

When Nawauth was nine years old, he watched the Khmer Rouge forces murder most of his family. For the next nine years, he and his remaining family barely survived the brutalities and machinations of the Khmer Rouge, until they were able to escape and walk their way to freedom. 

From the first scene of his family's death until he finds his way to freedom, you will be captivated by his story. It is amazing to me that this gentleman is the same age that I am and while I was growing up in the Southern California sun, he was worrying every day about finding enough to eat and figuring out how to escape death. If your school does any sort of biography project, reads Children of the River, or just has students who enjoy biographies, you should have this on hand for them to find. 

Cindy, Library Teacher