Overall Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Grimness Rating: ☠☠☠
NSFW Rating: 💢
While the author is not a North Korean herself, I decided to include this book here. First of all, there aren't so many first person North Korean books that reached international acclaim, popularity, and were translated to English. Secondly, the author does not make up stories herself and gives voice to the people she interviewed. Finally, she spent a significant amount of time reporting on both South and North Koreas as a Los Angeles Times reporter and is as familiar with the area as an outsider could be.
*** SPOILERS AHEAD ***
The book focuses on several North Koreans who defected during Kim Jong Il's dictatorship. It goes through North Korea's history via stories by these defectors. Everyone's story is different but joined together by struggle and living through similar experiences like famine, surveillance state, widespread deaths and apathy. It is reported that some 10% of NK population died from starvation during this time (and maybe 20% in Chongjin where the book is set) and that loss affected every single family.
The learning that surprised me the most is that up to '70s North Korea was the one considered developed, rich, and was shown to everyone as the example of working communism. When analysts used to talk about Korean economic miracle they used to mean North not South! Obviously the things changed with Soviet Union collapsing and China stopping donations.
The only thing missing right now would be a follow up on the country and the events there. This book was published in 2009, and I feel like so much has happened in NK since! Including change of leadership, nuclear programme, Trump-Kim relations, and I am sure much more.
Photo by Thomas Evans on Unsplash
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