Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust

“I believe that God had spared my life, but I’d learn during the 91 days I spent trembling in fear with seven others in a closet-sized bathroom that being spared is much different from being saved...and this lesson forever changed me. It is a lesson that, in the midst of mass murder, taught me how to love those who hated and hunted me—and how to forgive those who slaughtered my family.”

Faith and spirituality, specifically Catholicism, are at the heart of Immaculée’s story. This quotation contains a snapshot of the trauma she endures during the Rwandan genocide in 1994: not only does she bear witness to the “slaughter” of her entire family, she spends over three months hidden in a “closet-sized” bathroom with seven other women. Immaculée’s understanding of what happened to her during the genocide is told through a spiritual lens.

“My name is Immaculée Ilibagiza. This is the story of how I discovered God during one of history’s bloodiest holocausts.”

As a spiritually-oriented biography, Left to Tell is told from Immaculée’s unique perspective. Stating her name at the outset of the book sets the tone that the story to follow is largely subjective. Not everyone believes in God or is religious, and so this accommodates readers of all backgrounds.

“How ironic that I was the one left to tell our family story.”

In the first chapter, it is revealed that Immaculée will be one of the very few survivors in her family, foreshadowing the violence to come. The “ironic” part of this sentence is a nod to Rwanda’s patriarchal society, where women are meant to be seen not heard. It is ironic that Immaculée, a woman, is the only one left with a