reviewers and TESTIMONIALS what readers say
A survivor of the Khmer Rouge regime tells his story.
In his debut memoir, Ty recounts his childhood in Cambodia. The youngest child in a middle-class doctor’s family, Ty was 7 when the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975. His family was among the thousands relocated to rural villages, where they were forced to renounce their Westernized habits and remake themselves as agricultural laborers, always under the threat of reprisals from their guards. Ty vividly describes the horrors of the Khmer Rouge violence, but his tone is almost matter-of-fact, swaying the reader through brutal facts more than wrenching emotions: “The Khmer Rouge would have been treated as backward peasants, as children from the jungle who had never known city life, except for one thing; they had guns.” Although the family fought to survive—taking risks to steal extra food, avoiding the guards’ notice—Ty ended up an orphan. His father was murdered, and his mother died of malnutrition. He was separated from his older siblings—he later learned that several of them were also killed—and survived by himself, relying on intelligence, determination and a belief that his mother’s spirit was protecting him. Ty eventually made his way to the Khao-I-Dang refugee camp in Thailand, where American journalist Roger Rosenblatt featured him in an article in Time magazine. (Rosenblatt, who has remained in contact with Ty, writes the book’s introduction.) Ty’s eloquent description of his experience drew attention when the article was published in the United States. It inspired a woman named Marlena Brown to help settle Cambodian orphans in the United States. The Brown family adopted Ty, who writes compellingly of the cultural confusion and periods of adjustment that shaped his new life. His discomfort with indoor plumbing may bring a smile to the reader’s face, but when a camping vacation reminds him of his family’s jungle ordeal, the reader remembers how much he has endured.
An engaging, open memoir of one child’s wartime experiences.
---KIRKUS REVIEWS
--BOSTON NPR https://www.wbur.org/radioboston/2015/07/01/a-lowell-guidance-counselor-who-survived-a-genocide
A Lowell Guidance Counselor Who Survived A Genocide
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July 01, 2015
This article is more than 8 years old.
Seng Ty is a popular guy among students at Stoklosa Middle School in Lowell, where he's a guidance counselor. They have no problem saying so and go freely to him for advice about picking classes and transitioning in and out of middle school.
But it wasn't until they read his memoir, "The Years of Zero," that they understood all he had been through.
Forty years ago, he was seven years old living in Cambodia when the Khmer Rouge took over and he was caught up in the brutal genocide that killed 1.7 million people. He was the only one of his family to survive.
Despite all he's been through, Ty considers himself one of the luckiest people on the earth.
Guest
Seng Ty, author of "The Years of Zero" and guidance counselor at Stoklosa Middle School in Lowell
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The Lowell Sun: Lowell Author Writes of Surviving the Khmer Rouge
"The moon would rise above the muddy Cambodian rice paddies just when Seng Ty thought he had nothing left in his body to pull weeds out."
'60 Minutes: Getting Away With Genocide'
OWELL — Seng Ty was a boy when the Khmer Rouge launched its reign of terror in Cambodia, and his family was packed into a boxcar with countless others and taken to a labor camp. For three days, passengers went without food or water in the stifling heat, ‘‘fighting for space and air.” “People are crying, people are dying,” Ty recalled. “We had no idea where we were going or how long it would take.
— THE BOSTON GLOBEAuthor Seng Ty experienced firsthand the terrors of the Khmer Rouge genocides — horrendous events that left Cambodia ravaged in the 1970s. Within weeks, he and his family went from living a peaceful life in the
— PUBLISHERS WEEKLYA survivor of the Khmer Rouge regime tells his story.
In his debut memoir, Ty recounts his childhood in Cambodia. The youngest child in a middle-class doctor’s family, Ty was 7 when the Khmer Rouge came to power in 1975. His family was among the thousands relocated to rural villages, where they were forced to renounce their Westernized habits and remake themselves as agricultural laborers, always under the threat of reprisals from their guard
— KIRKUS REVIEWLOWELL — The moon would rise above the muddy Cambodian rice paddies just when Seng Ty thought he had nothing left in his body to pull weeds out.
— THE PHNOM PENH POST 
Testimonials what readers say
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---Nepali KT
5.0 out of 5 stars Get ready to laugh, cry and be humbled.Reviewed in the United States on January 11, 2021
Verified Purchase
Higley recommend this book. Books like these should be made available all over our planet to enlighten young and old people and make us realize what has gone on around us, within and out side of our own personal lives. To appreciate what we have and how lucky we are in comparison to others around the world.
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—Katherine
“I have just finished your book and was deeply touched by it. I cried four times whilst reading it, and the bits that made me cry the most was the descriptions of your relationship with your mother. It is clear that she made such an impact on you, and her spirit really did protect you in your darkest times. What you went through during the regime was absolutely horrific, but it is so inspiring how you managed to stay positive and resilient. The book also reminded me at times of books that I have read by North Korean escapees.Thank you for sharing your story.”
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—Darlene
“WOW! I just finished reading “The Year of Zero-Coming of Age Under the Khmer Rouge”. I couldn’t put it down! Well written and so informative and inspiring!! Congrats to you! I have so much respectfor you and the Cambodian people who went through so much. I would recommend to all to read and wish you success with the exposure of your story.”
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—Suzanna
“This is a powerful and often deeply painful read. It is important to read these accounts of the atrocities committed by the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia lest they be forgotten and repeated. I was and still am deeply awed by Mr. Seng Ty‘s resilience and unbreakable spirit even in the face of the brutality of his childhood experiences, glimpsed again and again throughout the pages of this memoir like brilliant flashes of light in the midst of a vast darkness. He is a very honorable and good-hearted person to have survived and triumphed, and is a great inspiration.”
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---eorge Chigas, Ph.D.
“I just want to thank you again for taking the time to speak to my class. It was a very special treat to be able to talk with you in person and learn more about your story and the writing The Years of Zero. As I said, I think your book is something unique, different from many of the other memoirs of KR survivors. Your special relationship with your mother and her spirit; your resolve to preserve your humanity and love for others despite the cruelty you endured; your will to bear witness; all of this combine to make your book an incredibly important contribution to Cambodian survival literature.”
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-- David Paulson
During the time (1975-1980) if the writing of this book I was a China scholar, and was living in Taiwan and Japan doing research. My motivation for studying Far Eastern history was to learn what the personal motivations were of the participants in the Communist movement in South East Asia and China, and also about how it felt on the ground. During that time we could not travel to any of these countries so frankly what it was almost impossible to answer the questions I had. Since that time many personal accounts have been written, and for Cambodia, I think this is one of the best ones (there are some other books by eye-witnesses that are also of excellent quality).
I saw Mr. Seng speak at Columbia University yesterday, and then I sat down and read his book in one setting. I couldn't put it down. EXCELLENT.
These are the things that I think are unique about his book:
o Child's POV.
o Very straightforward and truthful. He does not shy away from reporting anything, even the abuses in Thai refugee camps.
o He does not trash Cambodian culture the way some Western Writers have. He does not blame the culture.
o We get insight into Cambodia's unique culture, including the teachings of Buddhism.
o He gives us insight into the motivations of the Khmer Rouge without prettifying them.
o We appreciate his personal courage in surviving and seeking to emigrate.
o The story of his acclimatization to American culture is also interesting. He applies the same honesty to every subject.
I was very moved and inspired by his story, and I think it deserves to reach a wide audience.
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-- Jenni Lipa
I have read many of the Khmer Rouge Survivor's Stories BUT the Years of Zero was the most compelling read. Amidst tears, I couldn't put the book down until I finished it. The forward and the last chapter were the ones most poignant for me. It is a monument to the human spirit and a lesson to be learned. Please can we stop the human genocide and have compassion for each other.
Congratulations to Seng Ty and his continued teachings of knowledge and compassion.
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--genevieve chandler, Rn PhD. School of Nursing UMASS, Amherst
5.0 out of 5 stars A story of unimaginable horror, ultimate resilience, unrelenting persistence & self determination.
Reviewed in the United States on February 26, 2019 Verified Purchase
The cold honest truth through the eyes of a child forced to be an adult in Cambodia
The fear and warmth from the adult who could learn to be a child who grew up again, in America.
The deep love of his first family, his American family and now his own family
A survival miracle of a young boy who carried out the wishes of his mother realizing the best revenge was education & forgiveness.
Thank you for sharing your inspirational story.