Reviews for In North Korea: An American Travels through an Imprisoned Nation

The average rating for In North Korea: An American Travels through an Imprisoned Nation based on 2 reviews is 5 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2007-08-29 00:00:00 Travis Neufeld I hadn't known much about the situation in North Korea, other than that Kim Jong Il was a megalomaniac and that Pyongyang was a pretty grim place to visit. Somehow I had this book on my to-read list and got it at the library. The author is a Chinese American woman who had grown up during the Cultural Revolution and had heard about the similar mass starvation happening in contemporary North Korea. She wanted to see what it was like for herself, so she used her Chinese citizenship to take one of the few and heavily monitored sight-seeing trips. What she describes is more stark and repressive than I had imagined. The life of ordinary citizens is ultra regulated and no one has enough food to survive, but the constant surveillance and executions keep people in line. What's interesting is Nanchu's recommendation of what needs to happen. She feels that both internal or external government overthrow would overwhelm both South Korea and China with essentially a whole country of refugees, which would greatly destabilize the region. And any kind of extreme international economic or political pressure would just cause further self-isolation by the leadership, endangering the hungry population and increasing the threat of using the many weapons they have stockpiled. A lot of progress had been made during the Clinton administration, warming relations between the North Korea, China, the US and most importantly, South Korea. This allowed Kim Jong Il to see some of the benefits to more openness, and would have allowed for slower, but steady, internal changes that could have lead to a smooth transition into the global world over a decade. However, that all changed, like Iran, with the Axis of Evil speech and tactics, and we are in the current standoff predicament. Thanks again, George W! Is it November yet?

Review # 2 was written on 2007-08-29 00:00:00 Steven Cosnett Directly from my blog, [] "Somewhat recently I've been fascinated by North Korea (Okay--somewhat obsessed). Beyond the accounts of nuclear bomb testing, the starving people, and that crazy Kim Jung Il--I wanted to learn about the history--the DMZ--the life of the people. I decided to take advantage of reader privileges at a big library here in our Nation's Capitol. The first read: In North Korea: An American Travels Through an Imprisoned Nation. Nanchu, a Chinese-American brought up in China discusses the situation in North Korea as well as life for refugees (known as illegal immigrants)i n Northeast China. The book is absolutely enthralling. VERY RECOMMENDED--especially for those frustrated by the lack of Web information. Nanchu goes into much detail regarding: her trip into North Korea in 2001, interviews with the people (when she is able to escape her 'golden prison' trip), and the conditions for life for North Koreans. Nanchu secures the trust of many North Koreans (because of the "lips and teeth" relationship of North Korea and China). Because of this, her candid details depressed and at times--disturbed me. At other times Nanchu uses poetic metaphors to describe her thoughts...women as bright flowers, poverty full of thorns and tears. What is most surprising is the relationship of the Chinese government AND the South Korean government towards North Korean defectors. In most cases, the fate isn't friendly for those that are able to make it out of North Korea...they will likely be sent back. The Chinese, South Koreans, and North Koreans alike are working hard to hide the details of life in North Korea to the rest of the world."