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    How we Disappeared
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    How we Disappeared
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    How we Disappeared
    Audiobook11 hours

    How we Disappeared

    Written by Jing-Jing Lee

    Narrated by Angela Lin and Ryun Yu

    4.5/5

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    About this audiobook

    Weaving together two timelines and two very big secrets, this stunning debut opens a window on a little-known period of history, revealing the strength and bravery shown by numerous women in the face of terrible cruelty.
    Singapore, 1942. As Japanese troops sweep down Malaysia and into Singapore, a village is ransacked, leaving only two survivors and one tiny child. In a neighbouring village, seventeen-year-old Wang Di is bundled into the back of a troop carrier and shipped off to a Japanese military brothel where she is forced into sexual slavery. After sixty years of silence, what she saw and experienced there still haunts her present. in the year 2000, twelve-year-old Kevin is determined to find out the truth – wherever it might lead – after his grandmother makes a surprising confession on her deathbed, one she never meant Kevin to hear, setting in motion a chain of events he could never have foreseen.
    A profoundly moving novel, based partly on the author's great-grandfather's experiences.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherW. F. Howes Ltd
    Release dateMay 23, 2019
    ISBN9781528865234
    Author

    Jing-Jing Lee

    Jing-Jing Lee was born and raised in Singapore. She earned a master's degree in creative writing from Oxford in 2011 and has since seen her poetry and short stories published in various journals and anthologies. How We Disappeared is her first novel. She currently lives in Amsterdam.

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    Reviews for How we Disappeared

    4.5/5

    126 ratings13 reviews

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    Review must be at least 10 words

    • 4/5
      Deeply moving, explains why the Chinese hate the Japanese so much.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 5/5
      A heartbreaking, moving and vital insight into the brutal Japanese occupation of Singapore during WW2.
    • 5/5
      A heart wrenching story that shows the evils of war especially as it affects women and children.

      Told from two POVs and over two timelines, the story follows Wang Di's life from birth till she becomes a "comfort woman" to Japanese soldiers and now her life as a 75 year old widow.

      Kevin is a ten year old boy who is dealing with bullies, a possible loss of his sight and recently a family secret.

      Somehow, these two are connected more than they know.
    • 5/5
      Amazing book!
      Very sad story…
      Just can’t help hearing till the end.
    • 4/5
      The only thing that keeps this from me giving it 5 stars is that habit of overdoing the impersonation of each character and the over-emoting by both readers. The book itself is fantastic.
    • 5/5
      Brutal.
      Heart wrenching.
      The lengths we humans go to in orde to hurt and torture eachother.
      Why?
      This story is incredibly sad and horrific, especially because it is true. Not necessarily biographical, but true.
      These comfort women, enslaved and tortured and raped by their enemy, and then shunned, exiled, killed by their own families and communities for the things they had suffered. Without taking the horrific blame of these women's perpetrators, these families and communities that treated them in such a way seem even worse. Love, acceptance and help is what they should have given them. They did it with soldiers, even when they became violent due to PTSD, why then not these women who suffered just as much or more? AHH... we know the answer: they are women.
      This story showed me a part of Singapore's history that I was not aware of.
      Everyone should read this book.
    • 5/5
      Sad story of a women during war. It really makes me wonder how most of the unfortunate women cope with their horrible experience during war and how they have to live with their past. The ending is comforting for reader. At least there is a bit of happiness for the women.
    • 5/5
      This was a very piercing and poignant story. It had my attention from chapter one and held till the very last chapter. I definitely recommend this
    • 5/5
      Harrowing story but such a compelling listen, loved it and would recommend, really thought provoking history
    • 5/5
      This is such an important piece of history that highlights how we must always remember the past and how much people’s stories matter. It’s a brutal and affecting but very necessary read
    • 5/5
      Heartbreaking A slice of history not to be forgotten Beautifully written
    • 4/5
      This was a deeply engrossing read. How is it possible for a book to break your heart over and over again but with such beautiful sentences?
      The audio book was superbly narrated, I felt a full range of emotions.
    • 5/5
      What a beautiful story yet sad story. I enjoyed how the book was structured.