A Washington Post noteworthy book
‘I am still reeling. … How does one person carry so much — the pain of a family lost and life destroyed, and the joy and challenge of a new family and a new life in such an unfamiliar place?’ Financial Times
‘A gripping, suspenseful and cathartic memoir that tells a story of pain and perseverance and makes the moral case for asylum.’ David Lammy MP
‘A moving and insightful account of how tyrannical governance can squeeze all the joy and almost all the humanity out of its subjects and drain them of any power to revolt.’ Geoffrey Robertson KC
‘Extraordinary. … Elegantly written, reflective, wise, sad and at times almost unbearably painful.’ Marcel Theroux
‘Park’s story is shocking and a testament to her resilience.’ The Telegraph
‘Detailed and damning.’ TLS
‘Brave, tender, and intimate … A frank and balanced view of the reality of life under a dictatorship.’ Kirkus
‘A compelling and well-written account of life inside (and outside of) North Korea. Moving without being sentimental, comprehensive but never dry.’ Daniel Tudor, author of North Korea Confidential
‘An incredible story of survival and escape that provides tremendous insight … Anyone who wants to understand North Korea and be inspired by the strength of a true survivor must read this book.’ War on the Rocks
‘Courage and sacrifice befall few. Jihyun is one of those few. This fascinating and shocking book allows us to stand with Jihyun and others like her.’ Lord David Alton, Chairman of the British-DPRK All-Party Parliamentary Group
‘A riveting story of pain, suffering, starvation, betrayal, abandonment, and ultimately redemption. This deeply personal tale offers profound insights on human nature and the inhumanity of the North Korean state. Jihyun Park’s courage is a true inspiration.’ Professor Sung-Yoon Lee, author of The Sister
2022-10-12
A North Korean refugee describes her harrowing escape from a dictatorship amid a devastating famine.
When Jihyun Park was a young girl, her parents sent her to live with her grandmother, whom she didn’t know well but soon grew to love. After her grandmother’s death, Jihyun moved back to the family’s apartment in Ranam. While she was well fed at her grandmother’s house, in Ranam, she returned to what would become a lifelong struggle with hunger. Despite the tortuous “self-criticism sessions” and mandatory agricultural service, the author enjoyed school and was invited to take a prestigious entrance exam that would allow her to join the Corps of Young Pioneers, a government-run socialist youth group. Unfortunately, Jihyun’s maternal grandfather’s defection to South Korea years before stymied her ability to attend Pyongyang University. “I’d ranked third in the national university entrance exam,” writes the author, “but clearly that wasn’t enough for Pyongyang University—at least not for someone of my social rank.” Thanks to her mother’s ingenuity, Jihyun secured a position as a mathematics teacher in Chongjin in the early years of a decadelong famine spurred by the collapse of the Soviet Union, “a country on which North Korea had become highly dependent for crop production.” The threat of starvation forced the author to escape to China with her siblings, a decision that would lead to a betrayal that threatened to break her spirit. The brave, tender, and intimate narrative provides a frank and balanced view of the reality of life under a dictatorship. Particularly impressive is the author’s transparency about her difficulties overcoming her own "brainwashing" even when faced with harsh realities. The translator includes several unnecessarily disruptive chapters in her own voice that snap readers out of the story (“As Jihyun tells me about her life…I take on her perspective, I access her inner world. I become her”), marring an otherwise well-structured book.
An honest, human portrayal of the brutality of life in North Korea.
