Riding a crest of enormous praise, this debut novel by an American man about a North Korean citizen is a worthy achievement, and one I couldn't put down for two days straight. Despite twists of plot that in fiction often seem too coincidental, the reader's sympathy and alignment to the protagonist is so rich and deeply felt that these happenstances feel believable, and are forgivable. The book paints a harsh reality of life under Kim Jong Il, and though I think there is much basis for the events portrayed in this novel, it seems still to be a decidedly Western take on those difficult truths. The extremism of the ideology and the brutality of prison camp life and interrogation techniques are undeniable, and feel thoroughly researched. My question relates to the premise of the idea of a desire for freedom in the Western sense of freedom, a striving for an unknown entity that is at its core that sense of freedom for this people, who have a long history of oppression and suffering. The book is a page-turning thriller, with gravitas, and a heroic portrait of an exceptional man living under the pressure of exceptional times, undergoing gradual change that challenges his core identity and his pursuit of what it is to be human. Some of his characters, like the Captain and Mongyong, as well as minor incidental characters with mere walk-on roles, like the Japanese girl on the pier, will not soon be forgotten.
The telling of this story is structurally interesting, interwoven by DPRK Citizen’s broadcasts, and with shifting points of view to bring in several aspects to present a communal take on a story.
NY Times January 15 review
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