Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust

Immaculee Ilibagiza was the only daughter of upstanding, well-educated, charitable, civic-minded and devout Catholic parents living in the Kibuye countryside of Rwanda when an apocalyptic wave of ethnic "cleansing" was unleashed by simmering socio-political forces and government encouragement/complicity in 1994. Being members of the minority Tutsi tribe, Immaculee and her wonderful parents, brothers, neighbors and friends were the targets of the majority Hutu tribespeople who sought to wipe their countrymen out to the very last. Neighbor turned against neighbor, "friend" against friend and, in 100 days' time, 1,000,000 human beings were butchered without mercy. Men, women, children and infants were hacked to death or shot (but mostly hacked to death) and rivers of blood ran red as the bodies were piled into rotting towers of gore or thrown to dogs. Genocide was taking place as the streets and towns of Rwanda were patrolled by roving packs of savage citizens armed with machetes. In a last-ditch effort at survival, Immaculee was sent by her father to hide in a neighbor's house, where she was crammed into a 4ft. X 3ft. bathroom hidden behind a wardrobe for 91 days with six other terrified women. As mobs of killers searched the house sporadically and their voices chanted regularly in the neighborhood, Immaculee clung to her father's rosary and relied upon desperate prayer to get her through unspeakable horror, discomfort, anxiety and the realization that her entire family had been "exterminated." As a personal document from one of the relatively few who survived the Rwandan genocide, Immaculee's straightforward and uncomplicated account is both profound and direct. The agony of the living nightmare that afflicted her day after unending day would have reduced many human beings to madness and, unfortunately, that was indeed the fate suffered by many "lucky enough" to have survived this dark moment in human history. There is nothing in Immaculee's story that lacks verisimilitude, particularly given the copious journalistic documentation that came far, far too late regarding this blight upon the face of modern civilization. Immaculee's faith and frequent accounts of her intense prayer are intrinsic to this book, but even though I do not believe in quite the same kind of God as Immaculee (i.e. a deity that is actively "involved" while human murderers are hacking people to pieces, a busy God picking this one to "spare" by some sort of miracle-power over HERE, while not bothering to help the screaming children over THERE -- please, no wonder we are saddled with so many atheists when such a stupid deity is being "taught") I will not in any way mock Immaculee's desperate and extraordinary faith in the face of horrors that few of us would be lucky to endure visually, much less in the flesh. Immaculee does not preach or proselytize: she testifies to her specific experience of the whole unthinkable episode. In that sense, her book is undeniably a powerful lesson in the durability of the human spirit, the ability of the human person to overcome and even triumph against incomprehensible tragedy through forgiveness and, yes, if you wish, it is also a book that may demonstrate the real power of some kind of God -- namely a God who is an abiding source of love that does NOT interfere, allowing the sun to rise on the just and the unjust, but who remains ever-present and capable of transforming ruin into redemption for those who choose love ... come life or come death. It's a powerful book, a terrifying reminder of how dangerous we become when we dehumanize our neighbors, and it is a disgusting commentary on modern human neglect. Where was the "global community" for 100 days in 1994? Where were the cries of outrage from the great Catholic Church in Rome? Surely, someone there knew what was happening in an overwhelmingly Catholic nation of Africa. Where the heck was Oprah, for that matter? Or all of the other bleeding-heart Hollywood stars who can't wait to get photo-ops opening schools and sundry in Africa because it's fashionable in certain circles these days? The important and ambitious politicians -- where were they? Not bothering with Rwanda, that's for sure. A person does come away wondering how a million people could possibly have been left alone to be sliced apart in cold blood in 1994, with hardly a peep from the glorious powers of the world. Read it, absorb it, ask questions. Never forget. I dare anyone to call me cynical for asking such questions after reading the book himself or herself. But read it you should. Read it and weep.

"Left to Tell" is an amazing story told by Immaculée Ilibagiza who survived one of the most unsettling disturbing events known as the Rwandan genocide. This is one of the greatest books I've had ever read that covers the themes of resilience, faith, God, family and forgiveness. There were moments of this book that left me to indescribable thoughts and led me to tears due to how heartbreaking her experiences were. Just the fact that this story was based on real experiences is absolutely mind boggling and nerve-wracking. Her descriptions of her family were so strong and meaningful--revealing heartfelt moments which makes us reader feel emotionally invested. Overall, I highly recommend this book which makes us reader appreciate life moments and understand the importance of forgiveness.

I had to read this book for one of many classes I'm taking this semester so before I started it just seemed like one more burden added to my heavy load, but that couldn't have been farther from the truth. Once I started the book I couldn't put it down and with every chapter I read my life burden seemed lighter and lighter. I had heard of the genocide in Rwanda and seen Hotel Rwanda, but they were nothing more than a blip on my awareness radar. With Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust, Immaculee gives the personal account she lived through in the early months of 1994 and the years leading up to that time. She weaves the history of Rwanda as a country in with her personal account of growing up as a Tutsi in Rwanda. She introduces us to all the members of her family as she recounts the happiness of her formative years and really allows us to connect with them in an emotional way. This of course makes it all the more painful and sad as she loses each of them when the Hutus sweep through Rwanda killing Tutsis like locust leveling a field of wheat without discretion. Immaculee was only 24 and home from college when the death of the Rwandan president became the spark that ignited a firestorm of savagery beyond imagination. Almost as one body the Hutus rose up with blades in hand and slaughtered their Tutsi neighbors, friends and classmates. In a short period of about 100 days over 1 million Tutsis were killed in the spring of 1994. In Left to Tell, Immaculee shares how a Hutu pastor hid her in a small bathroom with seven other women for 91 days while the genocide unfolded outside their confined hiding place with the killers so close they could hear their hate filled utterings as they talked to one another. It was in this stifling space, in a state of severe hunger and discomfort that Immaculee began to desperately call out to God for protection and spiritual comfort. It's a story of how God is still active and near, still very much wanting to comfort and help those who will call out to Him in faith. While unspeakable atrocities were being perpetrated all around that small hiding place, Immaculee would not let her eyes or heart be diverted from God's presence. By the end of her ordeal she no longer felt the discomfort of the confining space in her body and her desperation had been turned to a peace that passes all understanding. She had prayed and struggled with God for those 91 days and was able to leave that bathroom with a true heart of forgiveness for even those who had killed her family. This is a book that made me cry not just from sadness for Immaculee's loss and pain, but I also cried with uncontained joy and an overflowing sense of hope as I felt God speaking through the words of this book and touching my heart. It made forgiveness not just a conceptual term, but a physical occurrence manifested in Immaculee's testimony.

This is one of those books that everyone should read. It is a hard story to read because of man's unbelievable inhumanity to man being displayed like the holocaust of Rwanda. This story reaches deep into the heart of the reader evoking feelings of horror, shame, and sorrow that leads to penance that friends and neighbors can turn on one another because of prejudice and commit horrible gruesome acts of murder and mayhem that happened in Rwanda. And we cringe in shame that we turned our backs on an innocent Christ loving people who were being hunted and killed by those who hated them for no other reason than that they were just a little different. A repeat of history of the Jewish Holocaust that is so well known. However, the story tells of a beautiful young woman's faith and courage that helped her to survive by hiding in a small bathroom with 7 other women for three months while her enemies called her name just outside her window, looking for her and threatening her very existence. The story tells of that beautiful young woman learning that her family had been murdered and the strength and fortitude it took for her to put her life back together after the killing stopped. It is a story of how she held on to the faith she learned as a child and put it into practice when all else failed her and by the grace of God, she survived and lived to tell her story. Immaculee Ilibagiza is a wonderful storyteller. I have heard her speak in person and she is a beautiful speaker as well. God has greatly blessed her with the grace of telling her story and the story of Rwanda before and after the holocaust. She is very inspirational and really shares her faith and love to those who read her books or hear her tell her story. If you want to grow in your faith and your love for other people who are 'different' from you, read this book. It is powerful and life changing! You might find out those other people aren't so 'different' after all. I know I did and I thank God that he put this book into my hands. I look forward to reading other books written by this delightful Christian woman.

Left to Tell is a non-fiction book about the intense life of Immaculee Ilibagiza. Ilibagiza survived Rwanda Genocide during which she saw many friends and family members die. Because she tells the story through her firsthand experiences she has a strong emotional connection with the reader. The most emotional part of the book is definitely at the end when she confronts the man that killed her mother. The book shows a need for awareness of current world events. It shows us how ignorant we can be at times and how aware we should be about what is going on in the world so that we can do something no matter how small it may be. Maybe we can’t do much, but every little bit helps. The deeper theme of the book is about forgiveness. Ilibagiza was able to confront the man that killed her mother and she didn’t do anything to him. All she did was tell him that she had forgiven him. Afterward, she felt as though there was a giant weight lifted off of her. It’s funny that at times we hold grudges and grow to hate people over little insignificant disputes. Although she was face to face with a man that she had every reason to hate she forgave. She’s a great example to all of us and showed true courage. We need to be more forgiving and more aware of others and opportunities that we may have to help lighten their load or lift their burdens.

What an astonishing story of unforgiveness. Every person on the planet should read this story. It should be required reading in every high school. I only have one tone of caution. Although some Catholics are saved, many are not. It appears that Immaculee understands that Jesus is the way, the truth and the life and that no one gets to the Father except through Jesus. But beware of the Catholic religion, of which I was a former Catholic personally, where they deify and worship people I. Addition to God. But the Bible is clear that no one deserves worship except for God alone. Sadly, many Catholics pray to people other than God, including the mother of Jesus and certain people whom they call saints. So read the Bible and understand that you should not pray to Mary or saints. I hope Imaculee will read this comment and turn from her worship of Mary. So many Catholics do it, and it is such an ungodly and unbiblical practice, yet the Catholic Church wrongly encourages such idolatrous practices. May Jesus be glorified by your book, by your life and by you example of forgiveness in the darkest of pain. And may people such as the mother of Jesus and other mere “people” never receive prayer or worship.

"Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust" by Immaculée Ilibagiza is a profoundly moving and inspirational memoir that recounts the author's harrowing experiences during the Rwandan genocide. Immaculée's storytelling captures the unimaginable horrors of the genocide while also offering a message of faith, hope, and forgiveness. The narrative follows Immaculée's journey from a peaceful and loving childhood to the devastating events of the 1994 Rwandan genocide. The author's ability to convey the intense emotions and challenges she faced during those dark times is both gripping and heart-wrenching. Her survival, both physically and spiritually, becomes a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. What sets "Left to Tell" apart is Immaculée's profound spiritual transformation amidst the horrors she witnesses. The book explores how faith and prayer became essential tools for survival and healing during the darkest moments of her life. Immaculée's discovery of God's presence amid such profound suffering adds a powerful layer to the narrative. The themes of forgiveness and reconciliation are also central to the book. Immaculée's ability to forgive those who committed unspeakable atrocities demonstrates an extraordinary strength of character. Her journey towards forgiveness, despite the unimaginable pain she endured, serves as a powerful example for readers grappling with their understanding of humanity and forgiveness. The writing style is straightforward yet deeply evocative, allowing readers to connect with Immaculée's experiences on a personal level. The memoir not only serves as a historical account of the Rwandan genocide but also imparts important lessons about the human capacity for cruelty and, ultimately, the healing power of forgiveness. In conclusion, "Left to Tell" is a powerful and thought-provoking memoir that goes beyond recounting historical events. Immaculée Ilibagiza's resilience, faith, and capacity for forgiveness make this book a testament to the strength of the human spirit in the face of unimaginable adversity. It is a must-read for those seeking stories of hope and healing in the aftermath of profound tragedy.

I purchased this book from Amazon.com back in 2008. I had to re-read it again as I just read two of her other books as of late. Since my first reading of this book, I find literally hundreds of others have not only read it, but have written Reviews of it on Amazon.com. I doubt this Review will ever be read due to all those prior, but I must reach out to say that this woman has given us (Christians to non-religious sects) a lot to think about..in all of her books; yet this one is of her own strength in her belief system...as it strengthened her as well as tided her over...thus giving her the skills to survive while hiding only inches away from a machete custom made for her, so to speak. (That is not a true statement but a true admission of those Hutu's looking for her in the Tutsi holocaust in Rwanda.) Because she was left to tell of the story of Rwanda, her childhood set precedent to this book and in the other books she penned, as to the type of person she was, from a well-to-do family known for their 'upscale value system', and NOT from material things. I know that situation but I don't know if I could have done as well as she did hiding from machetes ready to take Tutsi people apart limb by limb. Because this genocide took place and the Western countrys were not intervening is so damaging to those of us who would have wanted to help. What was our President and Congress thinking? Though in the early 1990's, not only this was happening, but so was Eastern European States coming unglued and dividing accordingly, well located far from Rwanda, Africa. There too a tragic story was unfolding for people so unjustly. This is a 'must read' because it is historical and it took place in our lifetime. It is well explained in this book. That is why many of us readers are damn-well angered we were not informed until the aftermath. Many of us learned of this genocide from the movie HOTEL RWANDA. And I think a lot of people wondered if it were a true story of one man in just a small county in Rwanda, or was his plight just a Hollywood movie. It was real and thankfully, Immaculee Ilibagiza made it through it all, with the urgency to let the world know what happened to her country by ways of her own. It's educational, historical, spiritual, an autobiography, political, uncanny, insane, and could have ended differently if we in the West would have intervened while it happened and not just after it happened. That part is a bit embarrassing as I live in one of these Western 'all for human rights' countries. But bless her soul, she continues to educate us about Rwanda, and is making money and bringing it back home to her native country to help them with their poverty. I hope she will continue to make strides with her foundation. I highly recommend this book, along with two others that she has written, as well as any other book her pen, paper and mind bring together for us to learn about. This was a great read but not for you if you do not care for the gruesome parts of what makes a massacre of a nation...a genocide. If that bothers you, please, try to work on that aspect so that you can read it. Peace to all those Rwandan Tutsis left, after the Holocaust, as well as those Hutu's who did all they could...putting themselves at the blade of the machete for hiding the Tutsis they loved or felt sorry for. They kept a tribe in Rwanda alive and from extinction. And Blessings of Peace to you, Immaculee, for all of your writings. Your beloved family is very proud of you!

I liked that although it’s a very sad story about surviving a genocide it is most inspiring and uplifting. A testament to really having faith and hope in God and power of positive thinking. This story leaves me wanting to be a better human being, to be more forgiving even when the atrocities are beyond my comprehension and most importantly to focus on connecting with God, my creator through prayer, faith and hope. Fantastic easy read. This is a book that everyone needs to read especially in light of the current political and international pandemic crisis.

If you are someone to grow in the faith in God , and if you can’t forgive to somebody go for it.

ルワンダというアフリカの小さな国で起こった民族虐殺の実話。 フツ族によるツチ族の民族虐殺の（数ヶ月で80万人とも100万人ともいわれる人たちが虐殺されたようです）話なのですが、内容以上にショックだったのが、事件の発生が1994年という、つい最近の出来事であったことです。当時どれほどの報道がなされたのか、国際世論はどのように反応したのか、小生の記憶の中に定かなものがありません。今しばらくは当時を探る旅をしてみたいと考えさせられました。 翻訳本もありますが、原書（といっても英語への翻訳ですが）はきわめて平易ですので、お勧めです。

This is such an important book specially since another genocide is taking place right now. Immaculee is what I would call a Saint. Due to her tragic circumstances she built this wonderful relationship with God.

“Left to tell…” should be worked out as a film. It tells better than the Hollywood “Hotel Rwanda”. It talks about compassion, gratitude, forgiveness, reconciliation, real peace. It gives room to God and humankind. Reading the book, I guess what Immaculée Ilibagiza went through to reach to living reconciled with herself, with those who killed her family members and with God whom she felt was deaf at a certain moment. Don’t we all need to live reconciled? The world would be a better place to live. Though I would recommend the book to those who went trough the same experience in Rwanda.