Broken Glass By Williams Alumni 2010

Broken Glass: A Young Girl Named Ginger

Book By Williams Alumni, CDE 2010

By Utara Norng CDE' 10. Northshire Bookstore. Based on a true story, the life of a young girl growing up in a society shattered by the horrors of the Khmer Rouge regime and governed by sex, drugs, gangs and violence.

Web link:

http://ephsbookshelf.williams.edu/category/by-alumni/

Eph's Bookshelf by Williams Alumni

"Icame across this book between exams at Williams, being really busy I would not even consider reading it, but just a few minutes and I was captured! Next thing, I knew I did not even leave the book for a moment and finished it in a few hours. The best thing about the book is that it is an incredibly honest. It is really a story of three brave women; Ginger, her mother and the author. At the same time, it gives an insight to modern Cambodia. And overall, it's just an exceptionally well written piece!" Veronica Sarkyan from Armenia, MA graduate 2010 in Economic Policy, Williams College (USA).

"A mother and daughter tell their dramatic stories to author Utara Norng, who creates out of them a rich portrait of a changing Cambodia. The mother survived the devastation and genocide of the Khmer Rouge regime through shee grit, miraculous luck and the kindness of strangers. Her daughter grew up in a very different Phnom Penh--- a ic city with few elders, moral leaders or role models. Norng vividly conjures up these different worlds and times in a chronicle that is colorful, sobering, and deeply significant." Deborah Burns, Acquiring Editor, Storey Publishing, Massachusetts (USA).

"I just wanted to spend a few minutes reading several pages of the book; I ended up finishing the whole book. I love the way the story was told inter-connectedly about mother and daughter. In a rather untraditional Cambodian fashion, I know, and talk about, most, if not all, things about lives of girls and boys in Cambodia. There are, however, matters in the story completely unknown to me. As a Cambodian lady, Utara took lots of guts to delve so deep into what she was writing about." Rithisal Kang, was a Program Coordinator for Amrita Performing Arts and currently a Fulbright scholar 2009-2011, MA in Arts Management, SUNY Buffalo.

"As Cambodia's nightmare years are receding from memory into history, this book beautifully weaves two poignant stories of generations fighting to survive in their respective times. These twin tales of love and courage are deeply moving and deeply humbling, and infuse into us the strength to climb our own mountains." Settivoine You, Assistant Professor, University of Washington (USA).

"One of few to publish a major work as a current student, Norng has written an important and original piece." Sara Harris-Senior Writer, The Williams Record (USA).

Web link information:

http://ephsbookshelf.williams.edu/category/by-alumni/

Book Review on Broken Glass: A Young Girl Named Ginger

A Book Review


"I came across this book between exams at Williams, being really busy I would not even consider reading it, but just a few minutes and I was captured! Next thing, I knew I did not even leave the book for a moment and finished it in a few hours. The best thing about the book is that it is an incredibly honest. It is really a story of three brave women; Ginger, her mother and the author. At the same time, it gives an insight to modern Cambodia. And overall, it's just an exceptionally well written piece!" Veronica Sarkyan from Armenia, MA graduate 2010 in Economic Policy, Williams College (USA).




"One of few to publish a major work as a current student, Norng has written an important and original piece." Sara Harris- Senior Writer, The Williams Record (USA).




Website Link to Northshire Bookstore, Vermont, MA, USA



http://www.northshire.com/siteinfo/bookinfo.php?isbn=750594&item=0

High School reunion

High School Reunion
By Utara

It has been quite a while that our high school batch have not got together. My friend Sophea, her husband and her son Ethan came all the way from Australia to visit Cambodia. My friend Sandap is currently doing his Master in Singapore National University of Singapore. Both of my friends Morokat and Saly are now working at ANZ. Currently, I am an intern at UNDP. Sophea is a mom of such an adorable son Ethan, and a wife.

Laughing non stop at Khmer Thai restaurant near Russian Market. More than a decade that we have known each other. Though, we did not spend much time, but the good old times always come to our head whenever we meet. Things keep changing. Some start having their own families, some start having new circle of friends especially with new colleaques or friends at different universities, different countries. However, good old times, with an old circle of friends will always remain as long as we care and remember.
Another person is missing here, A Po, Ponika. Hope she will return from Korea soon. She will be speaking fluent Korean by then.

LA visit

Nothing much in Hollywood, except bricks. What I like about LA the most is FOOD, REAL FOOD.

America's Best College on Shine

By David M. Ewalt


"One of the things that we really embrace is that we are tiny and very aware of where we are in the world. This fosters an incredible sense of community," says Amanda Esteves-Kraus, a double major in art history and biology in the class of 2012. "It takes a very specific type of students to go to Williams, and there is a quirkiness here that you can't find anywhere else. This all makes the fact that we are in the middle of nowhere totally irrelevant because you don't actually want to be anywhere else."


http://shine.yahoo.com/event/backtoschool/america-amp-39-s-best-colleges-2293942/

http://www.forbes.com/2010/08/01/best-college-university-ratings-rankings-opinions-best-colleges-10-intro.html?partner=shine

Saint Marry College

South East Asian female Fulbrighters gathered at Saint Marry College, Moraga, California.

So deeply in loved with the beauty of Sanfrancisco. The seminar was very useful, meaningful, and practical as it prepared the fellows to be aware and alert of the culture shocked returning back to their home countries.

In the beginning, students may experience culture shocks when arriving in the USA for the first time.

After all, student may at the same time find it is also hard to return back to their home countries after having absorbed for many new things they have gained in the USA. Without preparing oneself, Fulbright fellows may also experience culture shocks after their studies completions. The seminar was quite interesting, useful, full of joys, and truly memorable.

I had chance to meet so many new friends from South East Asian Countries. We had shared great time together. We shared a lot of similarities between our cultures, foods, and ways of living.

During the 5 days seminar, I lived with an American host family; Deborah Davis, a writer in Berkeley Hills. It is an absolute hidden beauty all the way long to her home in which the roads are curving higher up and down and on the top of the mountain where it overlooks the Golden Bridge. I was treated warmly from Deborabh Davis and her whole family members as well as her neighbor.

I am so fond of Sanfrancisco and I would love to visit there again.