When Broken glass floats: Growing up Under the khmer rouge
By: Chanrithy Him
Review: 4 out of 5 stars
When Broken Glass Floats: Growing Up Under the Khmer Rouge is an absolutely heart wrenching coming-of-age tale detailing the author's experience being forcibly removed from her home and transported to rural labor camps under the Khmer Rouge during the 1970's. Chanrithy Him was originally from a family of 12, yet only 5 of the Him children end up surviving the horrors experienced during the Khmer Rouge takeover. Him takes time detailing her experiences, beginning with the Viet Cong and US bombings of her home town and the capital city, Phnom Penh. Therefore, readers can truly witness the power mechanisms in place during the takeover and the ideological systems at work, as well. Him does not simply relate facts about her experience, but intertwines emotion into her stories, as well, offering a truly humanizing account. While this memoir could undoubtedly be read in its completion in a high school environment, it may be more worthwhile and more time-savvy, to only read specific chapters that deal with particular themes the instructor wishes to highlight. My only criticism of the novel is that there did not seem to be enough background knowledge as to the Khmer Rouge really was, what historical events precipitated the takeover, and why they had the ideological beliefs they did. While I know the memoir is not a history book, I felt it would be a lot more meaningful for readers if more of a context was developed. Therefore, if the novel (or parts of it) were taught in a classroom, the instructor would have to provide historical context before reading.
Summary:
The memoir begins in 1969, when Chanrithy Him is only 4 years old. At this time, both Vietnamese and US forces begin bombing portions of Cambodia to attempt to eliminate North Vietnamese communist guerilla forces. The Him home is destroyed and must move to Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia and move in with extended family members. While this experience is extremely violent and emotional for the Him children, as time progresses, the Khmer Rouge take Phnom Penh and begin to forcibly remove the Him family to rural labor centers. While they are originally moved to a rural area in which they can live with more extended family, the Khmer Rouge are clearly in power - holding constant meeting to preach new rules, a new vocabulary, and new ideologies. The Khmer Rouge lies to families, saying they are only temporarily taking people away for "orientations"; however, they instead execute all of these individuals. One of these individuals is Him's father. The memoir traces Him's memories as she travels from labor camp to labor camp, suffering from various ailments (mostly extreme hunger and dysentery), being separated from her family members, and finding glimpses of hope amongst mass violence, death, and terror. Miraculously, Chanrithy survives, eventually removed to both Thailand and the Philippines, where an Uncle in Oregon sponsors her remaining family members to come to the United States and begin a new life. Chanrithy has strong hopes to become a doctor, mainly because she was unable to save her oldest sister from illness in the "killing fields." She also currently works for the Khmer Adolescent Project, which studies post-traumatic stress disorder among Cambodian survivors.
Characters:
Theme:
Quotes:
When Broken Glass Floats: Growing Up Under the Khmer Rouge is an absolutely heart wrenching coming-of-age tale detailing the author's experience being forcibly removed from her home and transported to rural labor camps under the Khmer Rouge during the 1970's. Chanrithy Him was originally from a family of 12, yet only 5 of the Him children end up surviving the horrors experienced during the Khmer Rouge takeover. Him takes time detailing her experiences, beginning with the Viet Cong and US bombings of her home town and the capital city, Phnom Penh. Therefore, readers can truly witness the power mechanisms in place during the takeover and the ideological systems at work, as well. Him does not simply relate facts about her experience, but intertwines emotion into her stories, as well, offering a truly humanizing account. While this memoir could undoubtedly be read in its completion in a high school environment, it may be more worthwhile and more time-savvy, to only read specific chapters that deal with particular themes the instructor wishes to highlight. My only criticism of the novel is that there did not seem to be enough background knowledge as to the Khmer Rouge really was, what historical events precipitated the takeover, and why they had the ideological beliefs they did. While I know the memoir is not a history book, I felt it would be a lot more meaningful for readers if more of a context was developed. Therefore, if the novel (or parts of it) were taught in a classroom, the instructor would have to provide historical context before reading.
Summary:
The memoir begins in 1969, when Chanrithy Him is only 4 years old. At this time, both Vietnamese and US forces begin bombing portions of Cambodia to attempt to eliminate North Vietnamese communist guerilla forces. The Him home is destroyed and must move to Phnom Penh, the capital city of Cambodia and move in with extended family members. While this experience is extremely violent and emotional for the Him children, as time progresses, the Khmer Rouge take Phnom Penh and begin to forcibly remove the Him family to rural labor centers. While they are originally moved to a rural area in which they can live with more extended family, the Khmer Rouge are clearly in power - holding constant meeting to preach new rules, a new vocabulary, and new ideologies. The Khmer Rouge lies to families, saying they are only temporarily taking people away for "orientations"; however, they instead execute all of these individuals. One of these individuals is Him's father. The memoir traces Him's memories as she travels from labor camp to labor camp, suffering from various ailments (mostly extreme hunger and dysentery), being separated from her family members, and finding glimpses of hope amongst mass violence, death, and terror. Miraculously, Chanrithy survives, eventually removed to both Thailand and the Philippines, where an Uncle in Oregon sponsors her remaining family members to come to the United States and begin a new life. Chanrithy has strong hopes to become a doctor, mainly because she was unable to save her oldest sister from illness in the "killing fields." She also currently works for the Khmer Adolescent Project, which studies post-traumatic stress disorder among Cambodian survivors.
Characters:
- The Him Family: Pa, Mak, Chea, Ra, Tha, Ry, Than, Chanrithy (Athy), Avy, Bosdaba, Vin, Map
- Uncle Seng
- Various Khmer Rouge members/officials
- Cheng
- Savorng
- Syla
- bang Vantha
Theme:
- Survival/Resilience
- Strength of family relationships
- Political Ideology
- War
- Genocidal Atrocities
Quotes:
- Even though I am only nine, my mind constantly chants the Buddhist wish, something only adults do. But I've watched, listened to them, and learned. With the crowded population of Phnom Penh braces for the impact of artillery, I chant the wish again and again: "If the enemy comes before you, make it pass over. If it comes behind, make it vanish" (53).
- " 'Comrades, now we are all equal. There are no longer rich and poor. WE ARE EQUAL. WE ALL WEAR BLACK UNIFORMS'...'We fought the American Imperialists with bare hands, and took victory over them. We're brave...chey yo [Long live] Democratic Kampuchea, chey yo, chey yo.. Para chey [Down with] the American Imperialists" (83).
- "We toil under the unwavering chlops and brigade leaders, dressed in black uniforms standing on the bank. Yet I see them through different eyes. Is their cruelty a mask, hiding humanity deep within? The world is no longer as black as their uniforms, as white as rice" (169).
- "Our family ebbs and flows like the tide. With one wave, Chea and Ra are gone, but Than returns from a labor camp, a relief to Mak. Ry finds refuge at the hospital pretending to be sick. It is a tricky gamble. By staying behind, she escapes possible detah from exhaustion and labor, but she must be clever to avoid amoebic dysentary, grown rampant among patients at the hospital. The rest of the family have to survive our own way, working in the woods since we're not in the age group needed at the labor camp" (176).