In a rocket made of ice among the children of Wat Opot

"A beautifully told, inspiring true story of one woman's volunteer experiences at an orphanage in rural Cambodia-a book that embodies the belief that love, compassion, and generosity of spirit can overcome even the most fearsome of obstacles. Gail Gutradt was at a crossroads in her life wh...

Full description

Main Author: Gutradt, Gail.
Format: Books Print Book
Language: English
Published: New York : Knopf, 2014.
Edition: First edition.
Subjects:
Summary: "A beautifully told, inspiring true story of one woman's volunteer experiences at an orphanage in rural Cambodia-a book that embodies the belief that love, compassion, and generosity of spirit can overcome even the most fearsome of obstacles. Gail Gutradt was at a crossroads in her life when she learned of the Wat Opot Children's Community. Begun with just $50 in the pocket of Wayne Matthysse, a former Marine Corps medic in Vietnam, Wat Opot, a temple complex nestled among Cambodia's verdant rice paddies, was once a haunted scrubland that became a place of healing and respite where children with or orphaned by HIV/AIDs could live outside of fear or judgment, and find a new family-a place that Gutradt calls "a workshop for souls." Disarming, funny, deeply moving, In a Rocket Made of Ice gathers the stories of children saved and changed by this very special place, and of one woman's transformation in trying to help them. With wry perceptiveness and stunning humanity and humor, this courageous, surprising, and evocative memoir etches the people of Wat Opot forever on your heart"--Provided by publisher.
Physical Description: 322 pages ; 24 cm
ISBN: 9780385353472 (hardback)
0385353472 (hardback)
Author Notes:

Gail Gutradt has volunteered at the Wat Opot Children's Community in Cambodia since 2005. Her stories, articles, and poems have appeared in the Japan-based  Kyoto Journal,  as well as in the  Utne Reader  and  Ashé Journal. Her first  Kyoto Journal  article, "The Things We've Gone Through Together," was nominated for a Pushcart Prize. She lives in Bar Harbor, Maine.