First Kill Your Family

Reviews and Commentary

"This book is a call to action to help our brothers and sisters in Africa that we can no longer ignore."  —John Dau, president, John Dau Sudan Foundation, and coauthor, God Grew Tired of Us: A Memoir
 
"This fine firsthand account should be read by anyone seeking to grapple with the challenges of war and peace in coming decades."  —Douglas Farah, author, Merchant of Death and Blood from Stones
 
"You must read this powerful book. Peter Eichstaedt has given voice to the victims of the largely unheard-of tragedy of Uganda. This story calls out to our very humanity."  —Archbishop Emeritus Desmond Tutu
 
"A book filled with haunting images that leave one groping for answers."  —Mac Maharaj, South African author and activist.
 
Kirkus Reviews (Dec. 15) said this: "A chillingly lucid report on a terminally tragic catastrophe."

 

   

 

  
Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Ugandan Genocide, October 24, 2008
By deeper waters (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
Peter Eichstaedt spares no details as he describes the violence of the L.R.A. and the often equally oppressive national army towards the people of Uganda. For some reason, the systematic destruction of this country's human and natural resources has failed to draw the same attention that has been given to similar atrocities in Darfur, and this is a strong effort to create an awareness of and outrage about another African killing field. Eichstaedt shows the tragic interplay of witchcraft, despair, greed, psychological manipulation, modern military weapons and the inattention of the global community that has allowed Joseph Kony to create and expand the L.R.A which relies on children to carry out murder. The lack of commitment by the international community is a discouraging and frightening commentary on our values as well as a harbinger of what the future of the global community will become. This is a powerful and credible work not only because it is accurately researched, but because it is told by people who have first hand experience either as the kidnapped children or individuals who have had intimate contact with them and their families.

 

 
5.0 out of 5 stars I highly recommend this courageous firsthand account!, December 18, 2008
Customer review from the Amazon Vine™ Program (What's this?)
This courageous book is dedicated to the people of northern Uganda who lost their lives or suffered at the hands of the Lord's Resistance Army. Peter Eichstaedt has given voice to the child soldiers and other victims of the largely unheard-of tragedy of Uganda. We rarely hear about this on the evening news!

I highly recommend this firsthand account of events that are taking place in our lifetime for anyone seeking to understand the state of the world. We are all connected. "First Kill Your Family" should be read by the young people of our country as soon as they are old enough to comprehend the content, so that they can begin to understand the challenges humanity is faced with.

The book opens with a quote by Martin Luther King Jr.:

"Man's inhumanity to man is not only perpetrated by the vitriolic actions of those who are bad, it is also perpetrated by the vitiating inaction of those who are good."

--Suza Francina, yoga teacher, author, activist and volunteer with Global Resource Alliance (GRA),an organization based in Ojai, California, that is dedicated to improving the quality of life for the people of Africa. www.globalresourcealliance.org.