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4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
I am having the toughest time summarizing this book! It was very unique in the way it was written and the voice changed throughout the story, almost as if reading another book, but with the same characters. I was drawn to it based on its setting in North Korea and I found that part to be so interesting and disturbing at the same time. I had no idea the conditions endured by many in that country! It was challenging to read but in the end I was interested enough to stick it out.
Really great! I know some people will find tedious or annoying, but as a scholar of North Korean politics in a previous life, I really appreciated the massive amount of research that Johnson obviously put into this book. It is a total page turner. There are some totally bizarre situations which seem contrived, but this book operates in a limbo that isn't quite magical realism but hovers between the exaggeration of propaganda material and the stranger than fiction harsh reality of North Korean life. Maybe you won't like it, but you won't be able to put it down.
Tremendous storycraft. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll even retch a bit.
Stunning, unsettling, and subtly terrifying. Slow burning in the beginning before tumbling into dark humor and fast paced, page-turning, action. I am typically hesitant about fictional media that takes place in North Korea, but Johnson's story is thoughtful and careful in that regard. I felt completely lost in the environment Johnson had created and found myself missing it for days after I'd finished reading. His elusive and dynamic main character serves almost as a vehicle to carry you through the story that is somehow about him, but also not at all about him. Phenomenal writing, compelling not only on its face, but in its deeper explorations of purpose and identity as well.
This is easily the best book I have read in years. It is not an easy book. It is distressing to read but intensely compelling and wonderfully written. It calls to mind Marquez, which makes sense, given the themes and settings.
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
it’s been years since I’ve finished this book and I still find myself thinking about it often