How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child
Written by Sandra Uwiringiyimana and Abigail Pesta
Narrated by Sandra Uwiringiyimana
4/5
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About this audiobook
Junior Library Guild Selection * New York Public Library's Best Books for Teens * Goodreads Choice Awards Nonfiction Finalist * Chicago Public Library’s Best of the Best Books for Teens: Nonfiction * 2018 Texas Topaz Nonfiction List * YALSA's 2018 Quick Picks List * Bank Street's 2018 Best Books of the Year
“This gut-wrenching, poetic memoir reminds us that no life story can be reduced to the word ‘refugee.’"" —New York Times Book Review
“A critical piece of literature, contributing to the larger refugee narrative in a way that is complex and nuanced.” —School Library Journal (starred review)
This profoundly moving memoir is the remarkable and inspiring true story of Sandra Uwiringiyimana, a girl from the Democratic Republic of the Congo who tells the tale of how she survived a massacre, immigrated to America, and overcame her trauma through art and activism.
Sandra was just ten years old when she found herself with a gun pointed at her head. She had watched as rebels gunned down her mother and six-year-old sister in a refugee camp. Remarkably, the rebel didn’t pull the trigger, and Sandra escaped.
Thus began a new life for her and her surviving family members. With no home and no money, they struggled to stay alive. Eventually, through a United Nations refugee program, they moved to America, only to face yet another ethnic disconnect. Sandra may have crossed an ocean, but there was now a much wider divide she had to overcome. And it started with middle school in New York.
In this memoir, Sandra tells the story of her survival, of finding her place in a new country, of her hope for the future, and how she found a way to give voice to her people.
Sandra Uwiringiyimana
Sandra Uwiringiyimana is co-founder and director of partnerships and communications at Jimbere Fund, an organization that aims to revitalize distressed communities in Congo by investing in women. Since her family’s resettlement in 2007, Sandra has fought hard to call for justice for the Gatumba massacre and has become a voice for women and girls, refugees and immigrants, and forgotten people like the Banyamulenge Tribe. In telling her story, Sandra has shared the world stage with Angelina Jolie, Hillary Clinton, and Tina Brown at the Women in the World Summit. She addressed the United Nations Security Council at the request of Ambassador Samantha Power to plead with world leaders to act on the pressing issue of children in armed conflict. Sandra is finishing her studies in New York City.
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Reviews for How Dare the Sun Rise
68 ratings5 reviews
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Sandra tells her story so softly, intellectually , full of sensitivity .
Every minute of her story scratch my heart. - Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Lovely Book and very informative of the atrocities that go unreported. A story of tragedy and hope. Sandra is a true Hero. It's a must read
- Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5This brilliant author brings the audience into her world and gives us such a real point of view through her experiences, emotions, and revelations. A heartbreaking story that is followed by courage and a strength that shines through the darkness of the souls that tried to silence her and her loved ones.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The story was compelling. Sandra brought a perspective that was important, particularly her observations of race in America and cultural biases among Africans in our country. She has devoted her life to this important activism while describing an honest window to her process of healing.
- Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Sandra tells her story of being displaced due to war. It was something that happened to her family frequently growing up in the Congo. When her family was at a refugee camp in Burundi, she survived a massacre that took the life of her younger sister and seriously injured her mother and brother. This trauma and flashbacks haunted her. The family eventually moved to America and became citizens but it was not a smooth transitions. Sandra's activism put her on a world stage at a young stage, bringing incredible opportunities but also bringing back the trauma that she experienced. The first chapter shocks you into her reality, describing the massacre.