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vegantrav 's review for:
A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea
by Masaji Ishikawa
This is a fascinating first-hand account of life in North Korea. The author, Masaji Ishikawa, details the hardships and tragedies that he and his family endured for over 30 years under the brutal North Korean dictatorship.
In reading the story, I felt like Ishikawa himself were speaking directly to me. The book has a rough, visceral feel to it; it's not refined and not terribly well written, but it is unflinchingly honest.
This book allows you to walk in Ishikawa's shoes and experience his pain, disappointment, despair, and harsh physical suffering. Sadly, it doesn't have a happy ending: although Ishikawa himself escapes North Korea, his family does not, and as the book closes, he is beset with loneliness and depression because his family members (at least those who have not yet succumbed to death) are still trapped in North Korea.
A River in Darkness paints a graphic picture of just how horrific life North Korea is, and it left me deeply saddened for Ishikawa, his family, and his fellow citizens.
In reading the story, I felt like Ishikawa himself were speaking directly to me. The book has a rough, visceral feel to it; it's not refined and not terribly well written, but it is unflinchingly honest.
This book allows you to walk in Ishikawa's shoes and experience his pain, disappointment, despair, and harsh physical suffering. Sadly, it doesn't have a happy ending: although Ishikawa himself escapes North Korea, his family does not, and as the book closes, he is beset with loneliness and depression because his family members (at least those who have not yet succumbed to death) are still trapped in North Korea.
A River in Darkness paints a graphic picture of just how horrific life North Korea is, and it left me deeply saddened for Ishikawa, his family, and his fellow citizens.