“This work is too difficult … It’s not meant for women … You might get hurt.” Malen knew that working as a deminer would be challenging, but she was determined. Growing up, Malen stuck to the familiar paths and plowed fields of her village, knowing that—unlike many parts of Cambodia—they concealed no dangerous landmines left over from a past war. Initially Malen learned to locate mines using a metal detector, but soon a more efficient method arrived all the way from Tanzania: giant African pouched rats. Light enough to walk across mines without setting them off, the rats were trained to scurry back and forth across a marked area, sniffing out TNT. One rat, named Magawa, excelled at his job, clearing fields faster than any other rat. Along with his human teammates, Magawa “found hundreds of mines and cleared dozens of fields.” It is hoped that, due to the courageous work of deminers, Cambodia will one day be “free of secrets,” a place where “all Cambodians can live, farm, and play without any fear at all.” Authors’ and illustrator’s notes, information about HeroRATs and rat training, and a timeline follow this fascinating and moving account.

Heroes come in all shapes, sizes, and species!

Growing up in Cambodia, Malen knew that dangers from a long-ago war lay hidden underground. Buried explosives forced her and many others to live, farm, and play in fear. As she got older, Malen learned how to use a metal detector to find and safely dispose of these landmines.

Five thousand miles away, in Tanzania, Magawa was also learning how to find landmines. But he didn’t need a metal detector—he had his nose. Magawa was a rat, and his smelling superpower and light weight helped him safely sniff out dangerous explosives.

After completing his training, Magawa joined Malen in Cambodia, and together they cleared more than a hundred landmines from fields all across the country. A fascinating true story with a hopeful ending and rich back matter from Scott Riley, author of The Floating Field, with Sambat Meas, a Cambodian deminer, and Cambodian American illustrator Huy Voun Lee.