Please explain the communist feel in Cambodia during the book. Was it truly communism?

Yes, this was truly communism. Propaganda is mentioned several times throughout the book, as it plays a large role in shaping what Loung thinks of the events around her. While at the start of her experiences in the war, she did not know anything about the war and about who the Khmer Rouge soldiers were, their speeches to the villagers help her build an image of the agrarian society they wish to create. Like this, she becomes taught on the ideological tenets of their version of Communism, and later as she is moved from camp to camp, she becomes more involved in the meetings which take place in the villages, where propaganda speeches are given by those working for the Angkar to the child soldiers they are trying to indoctrinate.