Reviews tagging 'Cancer'

In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom by Yeonmi Park

47 reviews

ajsterkel's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

I didn't like it, which is a terrible thing to say because it's a memoir. I feel like I'm judging somebody's life. Maybe this is why I don't read more nonfiction.

The author was born in North Korea and didn't have an easy childhood. When she was 13, her and her mother escaped into China and became victims of human trafficking. They jumped from one bad situation into an equally bad situation. It's a brutal story to read.

Aside from the difficult subject matter, most of the book is fine. The writing isn't great, but I can forgive it because the author doesn't have the same education level as other writers.

I think the pacing is too fast. I kept wishing the author would slow down and give more details. I wondered how she learned Mandarin faster than the other kidnapped refugees, and why she was so valuable to human traffickers that they were willing to "go to war" for her, and why her mother allowed a 13-year-old to make so many important decisions for the family. I wanted more information!

Then, a paragraph at the end of the book slightly ruined everything for me. The author admits that her story has changed multiple times. She gave different accounts to different journalists. Instead of telling the truth, she told reporters what she thought they wanted to hear. She says, "I was reacting, improvising like a jazz musician playing the same melody a little differently each time, unaware that there might be people out there keeping score."

My brain went in two directions with this. First, I said, "She obviously lived through something traumatizing. Of course she's not going to spill her secrets to every reporter who asks a question." The second part of me went, "Nooo! North Korea is a vault wrapped in propaganda. Changing your story will muddy the waters and cast doubt on the stories of other refugees." The North Korean government is going to grab these inconsistencies and use them to discredit survivors and keep people trapped.

I don't know what to think about this book. I'm not mad that I read it, but I can't recommend it to other people. I lost trust in the author. How do I know I'm reading the real story right now? Does it even matter if I'm reading the real story? 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Kidnapping, Sexual violence, Terminal illness, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Colonisation, Trafficking, Cancer, Death, Sexual assault, Violence, Chronic illness, Deportation, Abandonment, Classism, Confinement, and Death of parent

ernie_8's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective tense medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Sexual assault, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Physical abuse, Violence, Child abuse, Blood, Classism, Death, Rape, Sexual violence, Trafficking, and Sexual harassment

Moderate: Cancer and Confinement

Minor: Alcoholism and Abortion

ell_n's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring sad tense medium-paced

4.0

An incredible story, beautifully written 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Trafficking, Pedophilia, Self harm, Suicide, Death, Cancer, Rape, Abandonment, and Slavery

Moderate: War

deluna's review against another edition

emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Torture, Cancer, Grief, Infidelity, Misogyny, Suicide attempt, Trafficking, Rape, and Sexual assault

nookatdusk's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Rape, Gun violence, Trafficking, Cancer, Death of parent, Kidnapping, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse

julia_browns's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

5.0

This memoir is probably one of the most impactful books I've ever read. Honestly, everybody should read this and educate themselves about the crimes happening daily in that isolated country. If you haven't read this book already, go read it, right now! 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Child abuse, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Kidnapping, Rape, Sexual harassment, Stalking, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Torture, Trafficking, and Violence

Moderate: Murder

on_your_raedar's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

I’ll be the first to admit that I never knew what happened in North Korea because I never thought about it. I watched a YouTube video about the 8 ways to defect from the country and this story was mentioned, I knew I had to read it, educate myself about what’s happen in the world.

This entire story is heartbreaking and is a necessary read. It took weeks to get through because things were so hard to stomach but I truly cannot express the appreciation I feel toward Yeonmi for being brave and willing to share her experiences. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Police brutality, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Trafficking, Violence, Body horror, Classism, Confinement, Drug use, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, and Rape

Moderate: Infidelity, Kidnapping, Pedophilia, Torture, Abandonment, Adult/minor relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Alcohol, Cancer, Murder, and Alcoholism

Minor: Addiction, Medical content, Ableism, Misogyny, Stalking, and Suicidal thoughts

reading_bear's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring sad medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Trafficking

Moderate: Cancer, Confinement, Rape, Kidnapping, War, Violence, Torture, Suicidal thoughts, Slavery, and Sexual violence

aguattery's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

3.5

This review is more about the book itself then Yeonmi's life story. Her life and journey to freedom was so tragic and complex, and it was beautiful to watch her hold on to hope. 

That being said, the writing style didn't sit well with me. It was VERY choppy and at times I didn't understand how we jumped from one topic to the next. Each chapter felt like reading an essay written by a middle schooler. And maybe that was purposeful to make the story accessible but it didn't work for me. It almost felt like  I almost thought about dnf'ing it because of that but it's such an important story that I finished it anyway. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Death, Cancer, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Trafficking, Rape, and Sexual assault

Moderate: Medical content

Minor: Abortion, Stalking, and Xenophobia

karingforbooks's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad fast-paced

5.0

Read the trigger warnings! 
This was amazing. I don’t know much about North Korea beyond what’s taught in the west which is propaganda to showcase democracy as the best. I enjoyed learning about the details of North Korea and how bad it actually was. Not to say I enjoy human suffering but it was educational and well written. She writes in a conversational and emotional manner which will definitely pull at your remotiosn whether that’s anger, sorrow or compassion. It’s a hard read because of all the horrific things this woman experienced but it’s an important read, not only because we can learn about a repressive regime but because many of the events she experienced can be analogized to events in the west (immigration for one). 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Xenophobia, Rape, Eating disorder, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Grief, Kidnapping, Gaslighting, and Cancer

Minor: Police brutality, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, and Panic attacks/disorders