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Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'
A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea by Masaji Ishikawa
7 reviews
meaganb914's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Xenophobia, Animal death, Alcohol, Child death, Violence, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Suicide, Self harm, Blood, Death, Suicide attempt, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Grief, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, and Racism
Moderate: Classism, Cannibalism, Police brutality, and Fire/Fire injury
hollireads's review against another edition
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse
japanasi's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Violence, and Physical abuse
Moderate: Child death, Death, Death of parent, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Police brutality, Pregnancy, Grief, Xenophobia, and Bullying
sergek94's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
Actual Rating: None.
“And I came to recognize that, no matter how difficult the reality, you mustn’t let yourself be beaten. You must have a strong will. You have to summon what you know is right from your innermost depths and follow it.”
We all like to believe that in the vast distance somewhere, despite all of the difficulties life throws at us, there is a happily ever after forever sparkling faraway, a happily ever after we will all reach sooner or later. We like to believe that all our life struggles have a purpose, and that purpose is that ever-elusive light at the end of the tunnel, that rainbow on the other side of the mountain.Sometimes, that is indeed the case, but at other times, like in Masaji Ishikawa's life, there really is no happy ending, and the purpose of life seems to be nothing other than endless tribulations that lead to even worse ones, like a growing cancer that just keeps spreading until the host is destroyed.
Little Masaji Ishikawa didn't have the best childhood, being part of a toxic family dynamic where his father beat his mother up regularly, because she came from a well-off Japanese family, while he was Korean, a nationality frowned upon and seen as brutish and barbaric by a great portion of the Japanese population back then. His father was resentful for being an outcast, and he channeled that resentment into rage and violence. Little did Masaji know that things were about to get a lot worse, when the regime in North Korea would use the weakness of people like his father to get them to leave Japan and go somewhere even worse, where the notion of liberty and freedom is non-existent, where instead of keeping dogs as pets, you had to eat them, and instead of spending stormy winter nights in cozy homes, warm by the fire with a hot drink in your hand, you were forced to come together with your other household members and use your body heat as a shelter from the freezing weather, even taking your shirt off to warm your babies, lest they die from the cold.
“When you find yourself caught in a crazy system dreamed up by dangerous lunatics, you just do what you’re told.”
This is a dark and brutal story, and what makes it more chilling is that it's not fiction. The only takeaway I had when I was done with this book was how insane human beings can be. Knowing that life is finite, and we are all destined to die eventually, why, just why, must we make life this difficult? Why must we be this cruel to each other? Yes, it is true that the people who are abused and are left with quite literally nothing, having to salvage trash to get some food during the best scenarios, and having to resort to cannibalism during the worst,will have little room in their hearts for kindness, however, what about the people at the top, who put these people through this misery? With what conscience can people commit such acts of cruelty, and continue doing so to this very day? The North Korean regime still stands, and armed with nuclear power, it is more robust than ever, and its 25.78 million population still live under this dictatorship. The soldiers, instead of rising up against this regime and liberating the people, continue to be the henchmen of this cruel rule. They have been brainwashed to believe the lies their regime wants them to, which leads me to believe that, for most people, committing these heinous acts of cruelty can only be done if they truly believe that what they are doing is right.
“If you suffer long enough, it almost becomes funny, and you can find yourself laughing at the most miserable situations. I guess it’s a kind of hysteria.”
I will not spoil Masaji Ishikawa's story, not because it is meant to be an entertaining read and knowing the ending will deprive the reader of the fun, but because experiencing this story yourself will likely give the needed emotional impact, and the least the more privileged people like us could do, is feel that impact completely. I thank all possible deities out there for the blessing of not being born in North Korea, and not having to experience that kind of hardship.These types of stories can make one feel grateful, regardless of how bad their life is. However, I finished this book with a deep feeling of sadness in my heart.
I will not be giving this book an actual rating, because how can I rate something this dark that is an actual real depiction of an unfortunate human being's life? However, I will give it 5 stars simply to let others know that this is a work I do recommend them to read, because the least we can do for this man is to know his story.
“There’s a saying, “Sadness and gladness follow each other.” As I see it, people who experience equal amounts of sadness and happiness in their lives must be incredibly blessed.”
“And I came to recognize that, no matter how difficult the reality, you mustn’t let yourself be beaten. You must have a strong will. You have to summon what you know is right from your innermost depths and follow it.”
We all like to believe that in the vast distance somewhere, despite all of the difficulties life throws at us, there is a happily ever after forever sparkling faraway, a happily ever after we will all reach sooner or later. We like to believe that all our life struggles have a purpose, and that purpose is that ever-elusive light at the end of the tunnel, that rainbow on the other side of the mountain.Sometimes, that is indeed the case, but at other times, like in Masaji Ishikawa's life, there really is no happy ending, and the purpose of life seems to be nothing other than endless tribulations that lead to even worse ones, like a growing cancer that just keeps spreading until the host is destroyed.
Little Masaji Ishikawa didn't have the best childhood, being part of a toxic family dynamic where his father beat his mother up regularly, because she came from a well-off Japanese family, while he was Korean, a nationality frowned upon and seen as brutish and barbaric by a great portion of the Japanese population back then. His father was resentful for being an outcast, and he channeled that resentment into rage and violence. Little did Masaji know that things were about to get a lot worse, when the regime in North Korea would use the weakness of people like his father to get them to leave Japan and go somewhere even worse, where the notion of liberty and freedom is non-existent, where instead of keeping dogs as pets, you had to eat them, and instead of spending stormy winter nights in cozy homes, warm by the fire with a hot drink in your hand, you were forced to come together with your other household members and use your body heat as a shelter from the freezing weather, even taking your shirt off to warm your babies, lest they die from the cold.
“When you find yourself caught in a crazy system dreamed up by dangerous lunatics, you just do what you’re told.”
This is a dark and brutal story, and what makes it more chilling is that it's not fiction. The only takeaway I had when I was done with this book was how insane human beings can be. Knowing that life is finite, and we are all destined to die eventually, why, just why, must we make life this difficult? Why must we be this cruel to each other? Yes, it is true that the people who are abused and are left with quite literally nothing, having to salvage trash to get some food during the best scenarios, and having to resort to cannibalism during the worst,will have little room in their hearts for kindness, however, what about the people at the top, who put these people through this misery? With what conscience can people commit such acts of cruelty, and continue doing so to this very day? The North Korean regime still stands, and armed with nuclear power, it is more robust than ever, and its 25.78 million population still live under this dictatorship. The soldiers, instead of rising up against this regime and liberating the people, continue to be the henchmen of this cruel rule. They have been brainwashed to believe the lies their regime wants them to, which leads me to believe that, for most people, committing these heinous acts of cruelty can only be done if they truly believe that what they are doing is right.
“If you suffer long enough, it almost becomes funny, and you can find yourself laughing at the most miserable situations. I guess it’s a kind of hysteria.”
I will not spoil Masaji Ishikawa's story, not because it is meant to be an entertaining read and knowing the ending will deprive the reader of the fun, but because experiencing this story yourself will likely give the needed emotional impact, and the least the more privileged people like us could do, is feel that impact completely. I thank all possible deities out there for the blessing of not being born in North Korea, and not having to experience that kind of hardship.These types of stories can make one feel grateful, regardless of how bad their life is. However, I finished this book with a deep feeling of sadness in my heart.
I will not be giving this book an actual rating, because how can I rate something this dark that is an actual real depiction of an unfortunate human being's life? However, I will give it 5 stars simply to let others know that this is a work I do recommend them to read, because the least we can do for this man is to know his story.
“There’s a saying, “Sadness and gladness follow each other.” As I see it, people who experience equal amounts of sadness and happiness in their lives must be incredibly blessed.”
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death, Emotional abuse, Child abuse, Death of parent, and Physical abuse
thesaltiestlibrarian's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Death, Violence, Suicidal thoughts, Racial slurs, Physical abuse, and Domestic abuse
Moderate: Death of parent
scarafaggy's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
4.25
I was born not just once but five times. And five times I learned the same lesson. Sometimes in life, you have to grab your so-called destiny by the throat and wring its neck.
A straightforward (but nevertheless heartbreaking) account of a man's time in North Korea. The author's writing is extremely effective in conveying his pain and desperation without being too overwhelming. However, the instances where he chooses to be graphic (see the bark cake bit) serve as a reminder that he is holding much more back.
I’m sorry. You didn’t need to know that. Except you did. It’s the only thing that shows how desperate we were.
If readers are already shocked by the details he has chosen to share, we can only imagine what true horrors he and his family have experienced. An educational and harrowing read.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Blood, Body horror, Child death, Confinement, Death, Excrement, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Police brutality, and Vomit
silver_valkyrie_reads's review against another edition
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
4.5
I put off reading this for quite a while, thinking it was going to be a difficult read. In one sense, it is a very difficult read, given the many awful circumstances the author went through in North Korea. It is very readable, however, and I'd recommend it to anyone who can handle the harshness, for an understanding of what's going on at ground level in North Korea.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child death, Death, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Torture
Minor: Miscarriage and Cannibalism
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