The Cambodian Dancer: Sophany's Gift of Hope

About this book

Winner of the Moonbeam Childrens Book Award Silver Medal for Non-Fiction Picture Book This Cambodian childrens book teaches that not even the most terrible brutality can destroy the human spirit. The Cambodian Dancer a Cambodian book for children is the true story of a Cambodian refugee a dancer and teacher who built a life in the U.S. after fleeing the Killing Fields of the Khmer Rouge. She then became a counselor to other Cambodian refugees and created a school of dance for children. Her gift of hope was to teach children in the Cambodian community the traditional dances of their country so young people growing up far away from the land of their ancestors would know about Cambodian culture and customs. Through straightforward language and colorful illustrations this multicultural childrens story communicates to children a sense of the joy sadness injustice and triumph that lives on in young Cambodian Americans. It shows that it is possible to overcome great hardship and that a single decision can do much to heal oneself and others. This touching multicultural childrens book brings a message of positivity to a true story of human hope and resilience.