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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
Adam Johnson’s The Orphan Master’s Son, is a creative telling and interpretation of what life may be like in the DPRK. As not much is known about the day-to-day lives of the North Koreans, Johnson sensibly weaves enough fictionality (loosely based on real experience) to communicate to the reader one person’s interpretation of life in the DPRK, rather than attempting to communicate it as fact.
While many aspects of the book led to my “mildly-disappointed” 2-star rating, my strongest dislikes came from 1) a lack of strong, authentic voice, 2) an overly congested plot line, and 3) an emphasis on corruption in the DPRK with no “normalcy” to balance it out—a missing theme that could have provided meaningful dissonance when pinned against the symptoms of dystopian decay.
Favorite passage:
“‘A name isn’t a person,’ Ga said. ‘Don’t ever remember someone by their name. To keep someone alive, you put them inside you, you put their face on your heart. Then, no matter where you are, they’re always with you because they’re a part of you.’ He put his hands on their shoulders. ‘It’s you that matter, not your names. It’s the two of you I’ll never forget.’”
While many aspects of the book led to my “mildly-disappointed” 2-star rating, my strongest dislikes came from 1) a lack of strong, authentic voice, 2) an overly congested plot line, and 3) an emphasis on corruption in the DPRK with no “normalcy” to balance it out—a missing theme that could have provided meaningful dissonance when pinned against the symptoms of dystopian decay.
Favorite passage:
“‘A name isn’t a person,’ Ga said. ‘Don’t ever remember someone by their name. To keep someone alive, you put them inside you, you put their face on your heart. Then, no matter where you are, they’re always with you because they’re a part of you.’ He put his hands on their shoulders. ‘It’s you that matter, not your names. It’s the two of you I’ll never forget.’”
This book provides what is supposed to be an insider perspective on North Korea, and comes stuffed with all our worst nightmares about what could be going on there. The narrative moved with painful slowness in the first 200 pages and I found it hard to get engaged with the story. Johnson gives away the ending fairly early in the second act, so the finish was anti-climactic; it would have been nice to be left guessing about a few story elements. Also, the author hits you over the head with a brick of awfulness right out of the gate, so I didn't feel particularly shocked by the parade of horror that continued through the story.
Given the truly disturbing content of this book, it's impossible for me to say that I enjoyed it. However, there was definitely a morbid fascination that kept me reading. I respect the author's attempts to give a voice to individuals in North Korea (and second his wish to hear from them directly one day), but I think this story was overly ambitious and not believable. Although I was horrified to learn that many of the inhumane and upsetting elements of this book are based on real accounts from defectors, the collision of so many experiences in the life of one person was hard to swallow.
Given the truly disturbing content of this book, it's impossible for me to say that I enjoyed it. However, there was definitely a morbid fascination that kept me reading. I respect the author's attempts to give a voice to individuals in North Korea (and second his wish to hear from them directly one day), but I think this story was overly ambitious and not believable. Although I was horrified to learn that many of the inhumane and upsetting elements of this book are based on real accounts from defectors, the collision of so many experiences in the life of one person was hard to swallow.
beautifully written and such a captivating and innovative story. loved it but also struggled throughout as there are no points if happiness...the story can leave you feeling depressed at the suffering north Korean life endures.
This book haunted me while reading and for days after. I felt the ending was rushed... but really enjoyed it
Brilliant. A thrilling, chilling, sometimes over-the-top story, told with dark humor, and thoroughly entertaining. I relished it.
I must admit, I found this book to be challenging, its no easy light read, but ultimately very rewarding and satisfying. Five stars for originality, three stars for the confusion I felt on multiple occasions. Man, living in North Korea must completely suck. The daily horrors the citizens experience there is almost dysotopian in nature. Adam Johnson certainly is a talented author and I am curious to know what he's working on next.
While, on the surface, this is a book about North Korea, even the author admits to pretty much making up the "North Korean" elements of it, as his tours through the country were of the limited, guided version and he did not get to know any one citizen intimately. So rather than extolling this book as a glimpse into NK culture, which it may or may not be, I'm extolling this book's beautiful and intense use of shifting identity and reality. Johnson's characters make you question what makes us us, as each goes through multiple redefinitions. He uses the idea of an utterly controlled state to provide a controlled background that truly brings perceived identity and reality into focus. Are we what we do, who we think or say we are, who others think or say we are? Johnson leaves you feeling uneasy, not because of torture and government control although those are present in abundance, but because of a sudden insecurity about what you hold true about yourself and the world around you.