Led By Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide [Paperback]

Immaculee Ilibagiza (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2009

For three months in the spring of 1994, the African nation of Rwanda descended into one of the most vicious and bloody genocides the world has ever seen. Immaculée Ilibagiza, a young university student, miraculously survived the savage killing spree that left most of her family, friends, and a million of her fellow citizens dead. Immaculée’s remarkable story of survival was documented in her first book, Left to Tell: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust.

In Led By Faith, Immaculée takes us with her as her remarkable journey continues. Through her simple and eloquent voice, we experience her hardships and heartache as she struggles to survive and to find meaning and purpose in the aftermath of the holocaust. It is the story of a naïve and vulnerable young woman, orphaned and alone, navigating through a bleak and dangerously hostile world with only an abiding faith in God to guide and protect her. Immaculée fends off sinister new predators, seeks out and comforts scores of children orphaned by the genocide, and searches for love and companionship in a land where hatred still flourishes. Then, fearing again for her safety as Rwanda’s war-crime trials begin, Immaculée flees to America to begin a new chapter of her life as a refugee and immigrant—a stranger in a strange land.

With the same courage and faith in God that led her through the darkness of genocide, Immaculée discovers a new life that was beyond her wildest dreams as a small girl in a tiny village in one of Africa’s poorest countries.

It is in the United States, her adopted country, where Immaculée can finally look back at all that has happened to her and truly understand why God spared her life . . . so that she would be left to tell her story to the world.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Immaculée Ilibagiza was born in Rwanda and studied electronic and mechanical engineering at the National University. She lost most of her family during the 1994 genocide. Four years later, she emigrated to the United States and began working at the United Nations in New York City. She is now a full-time public speaker and writer. In 2007 she established the Left to Tell Charitable Fund, which helps support Rwandan orphans.

Immaculée holds honorary doctoral degrees from The University of Notre Dame and Saint John’s University, and was awarded The Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Reconciliation and Peace 2007. She is the author, with Steve Erwin, of LEFT TO TELL: Discovering God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust.

Product Details

• Paperback: 275 pages
• Publisher: Hay House; Original edition (September 15, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1401918883
• ISBN-13: 978-1401918880
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 5.8 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (35 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #47,661 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #9 in Books > History > Africa > Rwanda
  • #10 in Books > History > Africa > East Africa

More About the Author

Immaculee Ilibagiza lost most of her family during the 1994 genocide. Four years later, she emigrated to the United States and soon began working at the United Nations in New York City. In 2007 she established the Left to Tell Charitable Fund, which helps support Rwandan orphans, and was awarded the Mahatma Gandhi International Award for Reconciliation and Peace.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

48 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Powerful Spiritual Gem, September 16, 2008

By 

A. Ryan (Spokane, WA. USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Led By Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide (Hardcover)

Following up her incredible,life-changing book, LEFT TO TELL, this volume reveals Immaculee's intense, profound and deeply moving spiritual journey after the horrific Rwandan genocide that she survived by God's providence. It shows the spiritual fruit of those 91 days of constant prayer and suffering she endured in that tiny bathroom packed like sardines with 7 other women.

She emerged from those 91 days of terror as a spiritually transformed woman, who was about to encounter unspeakable grief at the knowledge of the carnage that happened in her country, and to her own family. But with her deep faith and prayer life, we see in this book how she was able to abandon herself to Divine Providence, and draw ever closer to the God whose love she came to deeply experience and trust in, even in the face of such horrors.

This book is filled with many inspiring stories of how Immaculee experienced God's mercy and strength to face so many new challenges and difficulties, as well as stirring stories of others who also were survivors of the Rwandan holocaust. It is reminiscent of other spiritual classics by people who have gone through incredible times of darkness and suffering (like Walter Ciszek's powerful HE LEADETH ME)and how they learned to draw close to God in that crucible and be spiritually transformed by a deep spirit of faith, prayer and charity that countless others benefit from when they read or hear the stories of these heroic souls.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Truly Inspiring!, October 15, 2008

By 

Teresa Ayudame (Heartland, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Led By Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide (Hardcover)

Fans of Left to Tell will be equally entranced by Led by Faith, the latest effort of Rwandan genocide survivor Immaculee Ilibagizia. Left to Tell riveted readers with details of extraordinary faith, determination and hope in unspeakably horrific circumstances.
In Led by Faith, Ilibagizia navigates the aftermath of the genocide, rebuilding relationships in a country where trusting one's neighbors was risky business indeed. It is incredibly uplifting and inspiring to read how her unshakable faith in God is rewarded tangibly time and time again in problems big and small.
If every person who had big dreams read and applied the lessons in both of these books, I have no doubt it would be raining miracles. Her tale of convincing the UN committee to fund her project at the orphanage is an inspiration for anyone facing obstacles at work. Immaculee shows how even the small challenges in life - in this case, coping with her daughter's head cold in the middle of the night - can be powerfully transforming if met with love and faith. The late-night maternal challenge made Immaculee long for the guidance of her own mother. She was then compelled to record much of her story in a manuscript. These memories became the foundation for Left to Tell. When Immaculee finished writing, she wrote a letter to God, asking for his help in finding a way to have her story published. Three days later she met Dr. Wayne Dyer and the rest is history.
Led by Faith is a beautifully written book and I thank the author for once again sharing her inspiring story of faith.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Must Read!, October 8, 2008

By 

Timothy J. Van Damm - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Led By Faith: Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide (Hardcover)

Led by Faith; Rising from the Ashes of the Rwandan Genocide is the page turning follow up to Immaculee's first book Left to Tell; Discovering God Amist the Rwandan Holocaust. Led by Faith is life changing book which is written in a very simple, personal style. Immaculee is an incredible woman of faith and a survivor of the Rwandan Genocide. During the Genocide she and 7 other women hid for 91 days in a tiny bathroom while their families were being brutally murdered. While in the bathroom, Immaculee prayed and eventually came to a place where she was able to forgive the people hunting her.

In Led by Faith, Immaculee talks about how she went on after the Genocide and how she applied the faith she found in the bathroom to every day life. She also talks about how she miraculously met best selling author Wayne Dyer who promised to publish her book on their first meeting. Immaculee has inspired me and profoundly changed my life. In addition she gives insight as to what happened to the killers after the genocide and how Rwanda adjusted when over a million refugees re-entered the country.

Led by Faith is an important book as is Left to Tell and I have no doubt that anyone who reads Led by Faith won't walk away disappointed. I highly recommend Led by Faith to anyone who is looking to gain perspective in today's ever changing world.