Never Fall Down Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
This National Book Award nominee from two-time finalist Patricia McCormick is the unforgettable story of Arn Chorn-Pond, who defied the odds to survive the Cambodian genocide of 1975-1979 and the labor camps of the Khmer Rouge.Based on the true story of Cambodian advocate Arn Chorn-Pond, and authentically told from his point of view as a young boy, this is an achingly raw and powerful historical novel about a child of war who becomes a man of peace. It includes an author's note and acknowledgments from Arn Chorn-Pond himself. When soldiers arrive in his hometown, Arn is just a normal little boy. But after the soldiers march the entire population into the countryside, his life is changed forever. Arn is separated from his family and assigned to a labor camp: working in the rice paddies under a blazing sun, he sees the other children dying before his eyes. One day, the soldiers ask if any of the kids can play an instrument. Arn's never played a note in his life, but he volunteers. This decision will save his life, but it will pull him into the very center of what we know today as the Killing Fields. And just as the country is about to be liberated, Arn is handed a gun and forced to become a soldier. Supports the Common Core State Standards.
Hardcover: 224 pages
Publisher: Balzer + Bray (May 8, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0061730939
ISBN-13: 978-0061730931
Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 0.8 x 8.2 inches
Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (235 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #86,182 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #9 in Books > Teens > Historical Fiction > Asia #15 in Books > Teens > Historical Fiction > Biographical #482 in Books > Teens > Literature & Fiction > Social & Family Issues > Family
Never Fall Down was one absolutely devastating read. I was not prepared for its searing authenticity and intensely emotional message; it took me by surprise, broke my heart to pieces and left me drained and breathless, but also very satisfied and enriched. Reading this book was an experience like no other. Profoundly harrowing and cathartic, Never Fall Down tells a true story of Arn Chorn-Pond, a child soldier in Cambodia who later became famous for his advocacy of peace and civil rights. With her raw and painfully realistic prose, Patricia McCormick weaves a gripping tale of death, abuse, starvation, terror, and brainwashing. A poignant story of survival against all odds and keeping one's humanity. This is a book with a beating heart, and one that everyone - and I mean EVERYONE - should read. Arn Chorn-Pond was born into a family of performing musicians that owned and ran a famous opera in Cambodia. When the Khmer Rouge (a ruthless organization that was following the Communist Party of Kampuchea) came to power, Chorn-Pond (and hundreds other children) was separated from his family and sent away to a work camp, where all the kids were forced to work in rice fields from sunrise to late night hours. Starved, terrified and growing weaker with every passing day, Chorn-Pond witnessed people dying all around him: from exhaustion and starvation, from sickness (like malaria), or simply being executed by the Khmer Rouge "Camrades" (for having too pale a skin, or too soft hands, or for not working hard enough). He had to learn how to bottle up his emotions, how to make himself numb and desensitized to all the death and horrors around him. He had to adapt and find a way to survive. Later on, Chorn-Pond and a group of other boys were chosen to play propaganda songs for the camp soldiers.
Never Fall Down Never Fall Down: A Novel Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea Never Girls #4: From the Mist (Disney: The Never Girls) John Flynn: Into the Never Never But My Family Would Never Eat Vegan!: 125 Recipes to Win Everyone Over_Picky kids will try it, hungry adults won't miss meat, and holiday traditions can live on! (But I Could Never Go Vegan!) Never Never Secret Stories of Walt Disney World: Things You Never Knew You Never Knew (Volume 1) We of the Never-Never How to Start a Electronic Record Label: Never Revealed Secrets of Starting a Electronic Record Label ( Electronic Record Label Business Guide): How to ... a Eletr Record Label: Never Revealed Secret The Greatest Music Stories Never Told: 100 Tales from Music History to Astonish, Bewilder, and Stupefy (The Greatest Stories Never Told) Pacman: My Story of Hope, Resilience, and Never-Say-Never Determination The Never Girls Collection #1 (Disney: The Never Girls) (Disney Fairies) Up, Down, All-Around Stitch Dictionary: More than 150 stitch patterns to knit top down, bottom up, back and forth, and in the round Early Communication Skills for Children with Down Syndrome: A Guide for Parents and Professionals (Topics in Down Syndrome) Structuring Zero Down Deals: Real Estate Investing With No Down Payment Or Bank Qualifying Down and Out Down Under (Geronimo Stilton, No. 29) Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures We All Fall Down: Living with Addiction
