Raami is seven when the Khmer Rouge force her and her family from their home in Phnom Penh. No one is safe under this new regime, but as members of royalty, there is even more danger for the Sisowaths. Their exodus takes them into the country, and things go from bad to worse. Raami’s father is the first to be taken away. Then she, her mother, Aana, and younger sister, Radhana, are separated from Grandmother Queen, Aunt Tata, Big Uncle, and his wife, Aunt India, and their children. Travelling further and further from home they are stripped of everything they own bit by bit and forced to work, first in the fields and later building useless embankments to keep the floodwaters at bay. Tragedy follows everywhere. Life in a forced labor camp means sickness, starvation, and death. Through it all, Raami remembers the stories that were told to her, the myths that explain life, religion, and tradition. She stops speaking, but holds on to her stories. She protects herself, but never forgets who she is.

Ratner’s writing is eloquent and lyrical, reminiscent of Jhumpa Lahiri. This book is lush with metaphor, myths, and stories. The narrative voice of Raami is imbued with a child’s understanding and the knowledge that comes with hindsight. It’s a story of survival, a firsthand account of life during war like Agnès Humbert’s Résistance. It’s a story that resonates and is as riveting as it is moving.