I thought this was a fantastic read, couldn’t put it down. So little is known, but this journalist’s methodology seems pretty sound to me. Taking interviews from 6 defectors (from the same area of NK) now living in South Korea over several months and creating a compelling story that reads like fiction – it is fictionalized to some extent, to fill in gaps and pull the narrative together. She shows you a world through their words that so little is actually known about. I found myself left with so many questions that I’m sure many others have as well – they just can’t reliably be answered and I don’t feel like she tries to, it would be beyond any reasonable knowledge. No spoilers here, but this is a tough, emotional read in places with some fairly graphic details. There’s a lot of historical and geographic context too, which was helpful to me, as I did not start the book with a lot of knowledge in the area. Highly recommend to anyone curious to learn more about the North Korean peoples’ experiences after their country was divided. (Note: published in 2010, so some of it at the end might be a little out of date, but not by much)
by OtherlandGirl