Product Description

'I still don't understand why those men in the militias didn't just put a bullet in my head and execute every last person in the rooms upstairs but they didn't. I survived to tell the story, along with those I sheltered. There was nothing particularly heroic about it '. Paul Rusesabagina was an ordinary man - a quiet manager of a luxury hotel in Rwanda. But on 6 April 1994 mobs with machetes turned into cold-blooded murderers, and commenced a slaughter of 800,000 civilians in just 100 days. Rusesabagina, with incredible courage, saved the lives of 1,200 people. In this powerfully moving autobiography, Rusesabagina tells his story and explores the complexity of Rwanda's history and the insanity that turned neighbours and friends into killers.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #18540 in Books
• Published on: 2007-04-02
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 288 pages

Review
'Read this book. It will humble and inspire you' Mark Doyle, Daily Mail 'Part memoir, part polemic, part social history, An Ordinary Man is a deeply impressive work that pays fitting tribute to the 800,000 who lost their lives' Scotland on Sunday 'He recounts the ordeal with a narrative tension worthy of a superior thriller, and the passages on the build-up to the genocide are particularly compelling it is quite as harrowing as you'd expect' Observer 'A fascinating book by an ordinary man, about ordinary people, the kind of daring it takes to survive, and most of all the courage it takes to endure' Sunday Telegraph

Scotland on Sunday
`Part memoir, part polemic, part social history, An Ordinary Man
is a deeply impressive work'

Sunday Telegraph
`A fascinating book ... by an ordinary man, about ordinary people,
the kind of daring it takes to survive, and most of all the courage it
takes to endure'

Customer Reviews

An Ordinary Man
This is the powerful story of Paul Rusesabagina and how he survived the Rwandan genocide, whilst trying to help as many others at the same time. The film 'Hotel Rwanda' was based upon his story. The writing style is extremely easy to read, even if the subject matter makes for harrowing and even uncomfortable reading at times. Paul comes across as a modest man, with the utmost integrity and you can't help but be impressed by how he behaved during the genocide and worked toward saving as many refugees as possible. He explains the historical context to the genocide, as well as some of the politics, both national and international as it was carried out and this makes for an enlightening read. Fortunately, he is able to write this harrowing story and is still able to finish the book leaving you feeling inspired and not without hope for the future. A great book of a turbulent time that was ignored by western nations and international bodies as it occurred. Well worth a read.

An Ordinary Man
This is the powerful story of Paul Rusesabagina and how he survived the Rwandan genocide, whilst trying to help as many others at the same time. The film 'Hotel Rwanda' was based upon his story. The writing style is extremely easy to read, even if the subject matter makes for harrowing and even uncomfortable reading at times. Paul comes across as a modest man, with the utmost integrity and you can't help but be impressed by how he behaved during the genocide and worked toward saving as many refugees as possible. He explains the historical context to the genocide, as well as some of the politics, both national and international as it was carried out and this makes for an enlightening read. Fortunately, he is able to write this harrowing story and is still able to finish the book leaving you feeling inspired and not without hope for the future. A great book of a turbulent time that was ignored by western nations and international bodies as it occurred. Well worth a read.

Saviour
Confronting killers with a combination of diplomacy, flattery and deception, Paul Rusesabagina managed to shelter more than 1,200 Tutsis and moderate Hutus while homicidal mobs raged outside his hotel with machetes during the Rwandan genocide. His autobiography explores the inner life of the man in a way the film could not. Rusesabagina discusses the racial complexity within his own life, he is a Hutu married to a Tutsi, and his complete estrangement from the madness that surrounded him during the genocide.

The book takes the reader inside the hotel during those 100 days, relates the anguish of those who saw loved ones hacked to pieces, and describes Rusesabagina's ambivalence at pouring the Scotch and lighting the cigars of killers in the Swimming Pool bar, even as he hid as many refugees as possible inside the guest rooms upstairs. Never-before-reported elements of the Rwandan genocide will be disclosed in this book, such as the lack of interest of the international community , and the disgraceful behavior of some of the UN peacekeeping troops, who purchased the cars of the Tutsis who had taken shelter inside the hotel.

"An Ordinary Man" draws parallels between what happened in Rwanda with other genocides throughout history and asks the question: what causes an entire nation to go insane? It also offers an inside look at the problem of genocide and the responsibilities of ordinary people caught up in extraordinary events. It concludes with an exploration of the tremendous power of words to sow hatred, but also to bring life and hope.

A great read about a totally selfless humble man who faces the impossible madness of genocide and survives whilst saving a great many lives in the process....the western nations should hang their heads in shame, Paul Rusesabagina deserves to hold his high!