Under the Naga Tail is a memoir penned father and son duo, Mae Bunseng Taing and James Taing. It is a true story about Mae’s unthinkable experiences under Khmer Rouge, Cambodia’s genoocidal regime, and his harrowing escape.
This books was definitely a difficult one to read for the subject matter. Mae and James tell us Mae’s story of survival including the torture, loss, cruelty, and inhumanity suffered by Cambodians. However the story itself was written so well and in a manner that gripped me and held me there until the very last page. This book is not only elucidating and educational, it’s a commentary on human nature—both the good and the bad—and the importance of remembering the past for those who had been through it and in the hopes that we learn enough to keep it there, in the past. In history.
I highly recommend this memoir for the richness of the story, the value of its message, and so that neither is ever forgotten.
This books was definitely a difficult one to read for the subject matter. Mae and James tell us Mae’s story of survival including the torture, loss, cruelty, and inhumanity suffered by Cambodians. However the story itself was written so well and in a manner that gripped me and held me there until the very last page. This book is not only elucidating and educational, it’s a commentary on human nature—both the good and the bad—and the importance of remembering the past for those who had been through it and in the hopes that we learn enough to keep it there, in the past. In history.
I highly recommend this memoir for the richness of the story, the value of its message, and so that neither is ever forgotten.