A review by reka111
Folyó a sötétben – A férfi, aki megszökött Észak-Koreából by Masaji Ishikawa

informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.25

I want to give this food to my family in North Korea. But I can’t. So I entrust it to the seagulls. And in my heart, they carry it off to my family. And I weep.

I have read about North-Korea before. I'm not new to it, so I thought I knew what to expect. I thought it would be no different. But I was wrong. Of course I was. Here faith was too little.

This memoir might be the one that has best captured life there so far. A life that, for me — for us — remains truly incomprehensible.

My words don't mean much, they would never be enough to express how terribly sorry I am. But I am. Sincerely. And I also know that my sorry, just as little as these letters, will not help them. If I had the power, I would help them - people who don't even know what the outside world is like. They are born into this, this is normal for them, because what they do not know they cannot really desire.

But this was not the case for the author. For another survivor. 

He went through hell, fighting with every step and breath, every inch of him. In fact, pages could be written about how brave, resourceful, and strong he was. And there was no one left for him. He lost everything. Absolutely everything. 

What was left for him were his memories. And he gave them to us. I don't know him and he doesn't know me either, but I sincerely hope that he has found some peace in this life. That not everything was in vain. I hope he stays strong. I hope he stays brave. He deserves every good thing in this world.