Korean Job Discussion Forums

[rapier]

-So, have you read it yet? You know, the life story of Kang Chol Hwan, in all the book shops right now?
Its a pageturner, very interesting tale of a North korean escapee who spent 10 years in the Gulag. Highly recommended, for a fairly recent depiction of what's going on as we speak, not far away in the North. To me its reminiscent of Khmer Rouge survivor accounts...
Just an excerpt for your taste buds:

"stealing three ears of corn, responding to a guards command with insufficient zeal, missing a roll-call,even if the absence clearly had no wrongful intent- any of these was reason enough for being sent to the sweatbox. Yet all were faults that anyone could commit, and often had to commit, to survive."

If you 've read it, what did you think?

[lala]

I'm just reading it now...I picked it up at chapters last week...I'm not in Korea yet, I'm heading there in about 3 weeks, but I want to understand as much about Korean culture as possible before I get there. I'm about 1/4 thru it and it's just starting to get really awful. So far what has surprised me the most is the normal life the main character lived until his family fell in disfavour with the "government". I don't think I quite realized that it was possible to live as luxuriously as he did as a child.

The author lives in Seoul now and works for a newpaper...do you know does he write or is he involved in other aspects of the newpaper?

I wonder if he lives in fear of the reprocussions of his actions as perceived by Kim Jong-Il....is there talk in Korea of this book??

[kylehawkins2000]

I read this book about 5 months ago.

It's a good read, and really gives in inside look at the North Korean Gulag. I enjoyed it immensely.

I feel for those North Koreans who had it so good in Japan, and went looking for a better life in Communist North Korea just to end up in work camps.......

[rapier]

It interests me because of the insight into Korean culture that must resmble how the South was prior to 1950.. For example, of the relations between men and women, the author writes:
Women are supposed to take notice and stop talking when a man speaks" and
"A woman would never dream of asking a man to dance".
The propoganda espoused about the south is interesting:
"Ewha women's university is a finishing school for Korean whores who do the unthinkable, sleeping with imperialist American Servicemen"..

[The King of Kwangju]

One thing I found interesting in that book is how he escaped from the North. I'm not going to spoil it for you, but it burst a few stereotypes I had about what its like over there.

Great book.

[Yu_Bum_suk]

I just finished reading it. I'd also highly recommend it. It's frightening to think that since he escaped things have got much worse up there.

[Kaypea]

Can you find this book in Korea, in English?

[definitely maybe]

great book! it is readily available in english. just about any major bookstore that has an english section will either have it in stock or be able to order it for you. if you're in seoul, what the book? in itaewon is guaranteed to have it.

[antoniothegreat]

[HapKi]

On a related note, this book is available on-line.
http://www.hrnk.org/TheHiddenGulag-press.pdf

The Hidden Gulag: Exposing North Korea's Prison Camps,
by David Hawk, 2003

[Yu_Bum_suk]

[cdninkorea]

Not related to the gulags, but here goes anyway:

"A Year in Pyongyang"
by Andrew Holloway
http://www.aidanfc.net/a_year_in_pyongyang_p.html

The author worked there as a language reviser in the late 80's. If you are not a socialist or not sympathetic to North Korea, you will roll your eyes at some parts of it (I certainly did). Despite this, it makes for an excellent read.

[endo]

I've read a few books about North Korea, but not this one. Thanks for reminding me OP, I'll have to pick it up when I get back to Seoul.


Reading material like this really put the lunacy of the mad cow protests into perspective. You'll see hundreds of thousands protesting the Yanks and yet the South Korean public is relatively silent on the horrors going on north of the 38th.

[bassexpander]

[Yu_Bum_suk]