Nothing to Envy
Book description
An eye-opening account of life inside North Korea—a closed world of increasing global importance—hailed as a “tour de force of meticulous reporting” (The New York Review of Books)
NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST • NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD FINALIST
In this landmark addition to the literature of totalitarianism, award-winning journalist…
Why read it?
4 authors picked Nothing to Envy as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
This was the first book I read on North Korea.
North Korea is a combination of the Soviet Gulag and Auschwitz. Under the reign of the three Kims (grandfather, father, and son), North Koreans have endured malnourishment and starvation since the 1990s. Most of this would been avoidable if the government hadn’t had ridiculous economic policies forbidding private enterprise, and also imprisoned anyone who criticized the Kims’ rule.
Remick is a journalist who introduces North Korea to a general audience by interviewing six refugees. I “assigned” this book to one of my ladies’ book clubs and they found it very…
From Rhoda's list on readable stories on human rights.
I met Barbara at an international conference on human rights called Oslo Freedom Forum, in Norway, where we were both speakers at that conference. After talking to her, I read her book and learned more about the heart-breaking situation in North Korea. It was a real eye-opener for me and inspired me to see the courage of North Korean refugees who escaped the atrocities and speak out for their own homeland.
From Zoya's list on the Karen and human rights that inspire me.
Demick is a journalist whose book is based on interviews with over 100 North Korean refugees, all of whom have fled the city of Chongjin, in the north of the country. Chongjin is North Korea’s third-largest city and relatively close to the Chinese border; it’s also on the sea. As a result, the book paints the most representative and human portrait of what it’s actually like to live under the Kim regime – up to 2009. It’s gripping, eye-opening, and profoundly moving.
From Paul's list on North Korea.
Nothing to Envy follows the lives of six North Koreans, over fifteen years, as they come to the realization that their government has betrayed them. Based on interviews, the book meticulously recreates the struggles these North Koreans endured. She focuses on the story of Mi Ran and Jung San, two teenagers in love. But despite their devotion to each other, each keeps his or her plans to escape from North Korea a secret from the other. By the time they meet again in South Korea, it is too late. Every story Demick tells is emotional and humane. A masterpiece of…
From Robert's list on understanding North Korea.
Want books like Nothing to Envy?
Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Nothing to Envy.
Browse books like Nothing to Envy
5 book lists we think you will like!
Interested in the economy, North Korea, and Koreans?
10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about the economy, North Korea, and Koreans.