Left to Tell: One Woman's Story of Surviving the Rwandan Genocide - Softcover

Immaculee Ilibagiza

Softcover

ISBN 10: 1401915388 ISBN 13: 9781401915384

Publisher: Hay House Publishers, 2007

Synopsis

Immaculee Ilibagiza grew up in a country she loved, surrounded by a family she cherished. But in 1994, her idyllic world was ripped apart as Rwanda descended into a bloody genocide. Immaculee's family was brutally murdered during a killing spree that lasted three months and claimed the lives of nearly a million Rwandans. Incredibly, Immaculee survived the slaughter. For 91 days, she and seven other women huddled silently together in the cramped bathroom of a local pastor while hundreds of machete-wielding killers hunted for them. The triumphant story of this remarkable young woman's journey through the darkness of genocide will inspire anyone whose life has been touched by fear, suffering, and loss. This is Immaculee's first book.

About this title

About the Author

Immaculee Ilibagiza lost most of her family during the 1994 genocide. Four years later, she emigrated to the United States and began working at the United Nations in New York City. In 2007 she established the Left to Tell Charitable Fund, which helps support Rwandan orphans. Steve Erwin is a writer and award-winning journalist working in the print and broadcast media. Most recently, he was a foreign correspondent for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. He lives in Manhattan with his wife, journalist Natasha Stoynoff.

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. In 1994, Rwandan native Ilibagiza was 22 years old and home from college to spend Easter with her devout Catholic family, when the death of Rwanda's Hutu president sparked a three-month slaughter of nearly one million ethnic Tutsis in the country. She survived by hiding in a Hutu pastor's tiny bathroom with seven other starving women for 91 cramped, terrifying days. This searing firsthand account of Ilibagiza's experience cuts two ways: her description of the evil that was perpetrated, including the brutal murders of her family members, is soul-numbingly devastating, yet the story of her unquenchable faith and connection to God throughout the ordeal uplifts and inspires. Her account of the miracles that protected her is simple and vivid. Her Catholic faith shines through, but the book will speak on a deep level to any person of faith. Ilibagiza's remarkable path to forgiving the perpetrators and releasing her anger is a beacon to others who have suffered injustice. She brings the battlefield between good and evil out of the genocide around her and into her own heart, mind and soul. This book is a precious addition to the literature that tries to make sense of humankind's seemingly bottomless depravity and counterbalancing hope in an all-powerful, loving God. (Mar.)
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Edition details

• Publisher: Hay House Publishers
• Publication date: 2007
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 1401915388
• ISBN 13: 9781401915384
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304