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mwatts168's reviews
94 reviews
Escape from Camp 14: One Man's Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West by Blaine Harden
5.0
Summary:
Shin grew up in a North Korean prison camp, to basically be worked to death. The best way to explain how the culture is different from ours is, Shin's mother would work hard to bring home food (her quota) so Shin could eat. Shin saw her as a competitor for food, he felt no love. He was raised to be loyal to the guards, and the guards only.
When Shin went to school, they were taught to read and write, but for working purposes only. The school was used to form children into obedient slaves. This is when Shin learned not to trust anyone.
Shin caught his mom and his brother planning to escape the camp one night. Shin wanted to have something the guards would like, so he told one of the guards and the next day, Shin was arrested and taken to a prison which was held secret. Shin was held there for about 6 months, he was tortured, since the guards believed that Shin was plotting to escape with his Mother. After a while, Shin and his Father were forced the watch the execution of his mother and brother.
Shin worked at a garment factory and his job was to spy on another prisoner, named Park, but Shin and Park became friends. They potting to escape the camp and when they tried, Park was electrocuted by the fence. Shin used Park's body to escape. Shin had no idea of what the outside world was like, Shin managed to steal food and clothes from nearby houses.
Shin had bribed the North Korean soldiers to let him into China. While working in China, Shin met a South Korean journalist who flew Shin to South Korea. Shin worked for a non profit that helped Human Rights efforts in North Korea. Shin was adopted by a family, while he still suffers from PTSD and has trouble trusting others.
North Korea is culturally different from America obviously because the government dictates everything that happens. No liberty is present in the country, even for those that are considered to be living in luxury. Fodd is always short, so the prison camps are used for free labor. You could honestly say that there is no culture except for forcing citizens to worship the government.
The author wrote this book to bring awareness to what is really going on in North Korea. Harden didn't force Shin to tell his story but they both wanted to tell it. Shin had a hard time, due to the trauma he experienced. Shin has talked about wanting to share his story and with that getting help for other North Korean "defectors", while working to gain more rights for those still in camps.
One of the themes of this text is "Self-interest" Shin was taught to do things for himself and himself only. That was the only way to survive. Some examples of this are when Shin snitched on his Mother, In school Shin was the slowest worker and the whole group was punished because of Shin being slow, which turned the class against Shin. When Shin escaped he would steal from other people and their houses, Shin didn't care about those people he only cared about surviving.
I would definitely recommend this book, it is educational and highlights parts of the world that people don't normally think about. We focus on human rights in our own countries when terrible things like this are going on. It shows how hard the balance is between wanting to help those people or the dictatorship doing something rash. For example, when the US gave North Korea aid for food, Kim Jon Un took all of the credit for feeding his citizens. This book is exciting and helps people look into a life that is unimaginable.
Shin grew up in a North Korean prison camp, to basically be worked to death. The best way to explain how the culture is different from ours is, Shin's mother would work hard to bring home food (her quota) so Shin could eat. Shin saw her as a competitor for food, he felt no love. He was raised to be loyal to the guards, and the guards only.
When Shin went to school, they were taught to read and write, but for working purposes only. The school was used to form children into obedient slaves. This is when Shin learned not to trust anyone.
Shin caught his mom and his brother planning to escape the camp one night. Shin wanted to have something the guards would like, so he told one of the guards and the next day, Shin was arrested and taken to a prison which was held secret. Shin was held there for about 6 months, he was tortured, since the guards believed that Shin was plotting to escape with his Mother. After a while, Shin and his Father were forced the watch the execution of his mother and brother.
Shin worked at a garment factory and his job was to spy on another prisoner, named Park, but Shin and Park became friends. They potting to escape the camp and when they tried, Park was electrocuted by the fence. Shin used Park's body to escape. Shin had no idea of what the outside world was like, Shin managed to steal food and clothes from nearby houses.
Shin had bribed the North Korean soldiers to let him into China. While working in China, Shin met a South Korean journalist who flew Shin to South Korea. Shin worked for a non profit that helped Human Rights efforts in North Korea. Shin was adopted by a family, while he still suffers from PTSD and has trouble trusting others.
North Korea is culturally different from America obviously because the government dictates everything that happens. No liberty is present in the country, even for those that are considered to be living in luxury. Fodd is always short, so the prison camps are used for free labor. You could honestly say that there is no culture except for forcing citizens to worship the government.
The author wrote this book to bring awareness to what is really going on in North Korea. Harden didn't force Shin to tell his story but they both wanted to tell it. Shin had a hard time, due to the trauma he experienced. Shin has talked about wanting to share his story and with that getting help for other North Korean "defectors", while working to gain more rights for those still in camps.
One of the themes of this text is "Self-interest" Shin was taught to do things for himself and himself only. That was the only way to survive. Some examples of this are when Shin snitched on his Mother, In school Shin was the slowest worker and the whole group was punished because of Shin being slow, which turned the class against Shin. When Shin escaped he would steal from other people and their houses, Shin didn't care about those people he only cared about surviving.
I would definitely recommend this book, it is educational and highlights parts of the world that people don't normally think about. We focus on human rights in our own countries when terrible things like this are going on. It shows how hard the balance is between wanting to help those people or the dictatorship doing something rash. For example, when the US gave North Korea aid for food, Kim Jon Un took all of the credit for feeding his citizens. This book is exciting and helps people look into a life that is unimaginable.
1984 by George Orwell
4.0
Okay wow!! I’m not a fan of further dystopian novels but THIS was good as he*k
Tuesdays with Morrie: An Old Man, a Young Man, and Life's Greatest Lesson by Mitch Albom
5.0
Literally this book was AMAZING! I cried so much. I am planning on rereading it.
A GOOD MF READ
A GOOD MF READ
Writing My Wrongs by Shaka Senghor
5.0
WOW. I’m not even sure where to start. Shaka’s journey through growing up in Detroit and in the prison system is eye opening. He takes about how he was raised and how that influenced him. The scars and walls that he built emotionally to be “good” but also as a coping mechanism from the emotional trauma he had to face. I would love to go further but seriously everyone needs to read this. This book definitely is going down as one of my favorites.
Ratf**ked: Why Your Vote Doesn't Count by David Daley
4.0
I could probably write an essay about this book. It was GREAT. The book started off a tad boring but I think that was due to the first few chapters were laying background info, etc.However, things got VERY interesting.
Some of the things I think Daley did well were:
- He showed how campaign finance and redistricting/ gerrymandering are usually intertwined
- He showed the masterminds of the GOP's efforts to gerrymander the heck of districts and how they successfully planned a strategy that would essentially shape the future of politics (Even if it's undermining democracy, well flirting with the "legal" line)
- He explained how the GOP created a monster that they could not control. The gerrymandered lines were getting worse and worse (Or better, depending on your political affiliation) and the lines are responsible for our polarized politics. Since lines were usually drawn to protect incumbents and create districts with no competition, the politician would see no reason to compromise with someone from the other party. (e.i. how John Boehner was kicked out of his party for being too moderate)
One thing I wish Daley did was utilize oxford commas.
Also, I gave 4 stars because I felt that if an average person were reading this book, it'd be a chore. I couldn't see someone who isn't passionate about the anti-gerrymandering movement to really enjoy this book.
Some of the things I think Daley did well were:
- He showed how campaign finance and redistricting/ gerrymandering are usually intertwined
- He showed the masterminds of the GOP's efforts to gerrymander the heck of districts and how they successfully planned a strategy that would essentially shape the future of politics (Even if it's undermining democracy, well flirting with the "legal" line)
- He explained how the GOP created a monster that they could not control. The gerrymandered lines were getting worse and worse (Or better, depending on your political affiliation) and the lines are responsible for our polarized politics. Since lines were usually drawn to protect incumbents and create districts with no competition, the politician would see no reason to compromise with someone from the other party. (e.i. how John Boehner was kicked out of his party for being too moderate)
One thing I wish Daley did was utilize oxford commas.
Also, I gave 4 stars because I felt that if an average person were reading this book, it'd be a chore. I couldn't see someone who isn't passionate about the anti-gerrymandering movement to really enjoy this book.