"I am here today to tell you of a fable. After I finish, some of you may whisper that it is not true. You may say that my words are made up, that my story is nothing but a myth-and you may be right. But as a wise and great teacher once explained so patiently, all good stories-stories that touch your soul, stories that change your nature, stories that cause you to become a better person from their telling-these stories always contain truth." -pg.265 of the Rent Collector
5 stars and 2 thumbs up! Wowza! This book was fabulous! It's poetry! It is based on the true story of Ki Lim and Sang Ly who live with their sickly son, Nisay, in a municipal waste dump in Cambodia. Life is a daily struggle as they collect trash to trade for money so they can eat barely enough food and pay rent to their cranky rent collector. The dump is a dangerous place with the danger of gangs, combustible piles of trash, and the big dump trucks who don't care if you get in their way. Sang Ly longs for a better life for her family. Redemption comes in many forms in this book where people are not who they seem and it's not where you are but who you are that really matters. And my favorite character in the story is the infamous rent collector, Sopeap Sin. You have to read this book for her! I can't go in depth without being super spoilery! Nothing worse than spoilers! The main thing that I LOVED about this book was the love of reading and literature! Knowledge is power! This books main theme is hope and anyone can rise from the ashes even in the dumps of Cambodia! I say again-read this book! You won't be sorry! :D
We are literature-our lives, our hopes, our desires, our despairs, our passions, our strengths, our weaknesses. Stories express our longing not only to make a difference today but to see what is possible for tomorrow. Literature has been called a handbook for the art of being human." -pg.93 The Rent Collector
Okay now the official synopsis-(this is not like who wore it better)
Survival for Ki Lim and Sang Ly is a daily battle at Stung Meanchey, the largest municipal waste dump in all of Cambodia. They make their living scavenging recyclables from the trash. Life would be hard enough without the worry for their chronically ill child, Nisay, and the added expense of medicines that are not working. Just when things seem worst, Sang Ly learns a secret about the ill-tempered rent collector who comes demanding money--a secret that sets in motion a tide that will change the life of everyone it sweeps past. The Rent Collector is a story of hope, of one woman’s journey to save her son and another woman’s chance at redemption. It demonstrates that even in a dump in Cambodia--perhaps especially in a dump in Cambodia--everyone deserves a second chance.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR!!!
Camron Wright has a master’s degree in Writing and Public Relations. He has owned several successful retail stores, in addition to working with his wife in the fashion industry, designing for the McCall Pattern Company in New York. He currently works in public relations, marketing and design. Camron began writing to get out of attending MBA School at the time and it proved the better decision. Letters for Emily was a “Readers Choice” award winner, as well as a selection of the Doubleday Book Club and the Literary Guild. In addition to North America, Letters for Emily was published in several foreign countries. He lives with his wife, Alicyn, in Utah, at the base of the Wasatch mountains and is the proud father of four children.
If you would like to buy the book OR read more reviews you can click on the link below!
That's it for me! Go find yourself a good book to read today! Big fat kisses to you all!
No comments:
Post a Comment