Shin Dong-Hyuk

The novel follows the story of Shin Dong-Hyuk from his birth in a total control zone camp. Due to the three generations punishment rule, Shin is forced to stay in the camp as a laborer until he dies. The novel tells of Shin's experiences in the camp as a young child, including his time in the schools (where he learned to read, write, and obey the state), food shortages, and his experiences with violent action from the prison guards. As a young teenager, Shin discovers that his mother and older brother are planning to escape the prison camp. Doing as he was taught, he reports them to a guard. They are arrested along with Shin, who is tortured for information about their plans. After residing in an underground prison cell for months, Shin is

I would certainly recommend this book to anyone interesting in learning more about what it's like on the inside of North Korea. I think this book mainly benefits from the idea that truth is stranger than fiction—not only is it a fascinating narrative, but the fact that it is someone's life makes it even more compelling. I'm positive there are many people who have a morbid curiosity about what goes on inside of North Korea's prison camps and what life there is like. This book satisfies that hunger but does so without making a spectacle of the human suffering the narrative involves. While it's certainly not The Diary of Anne Frank in terms of the personalization of a tragedy and narrator-reader intimacy, it goes much further to create an empathetic experience for the reader than, say, a Buzzfeed article on the Top Ten Most Terrifying Facts About North Korea. From a textual standpoint, the writing flows well and makes for an easy, enjoyable read. I also found the included photographs to be a valuable inclusion within the novel. Even though it has come out that Shin was not entirely honest about several aspects of his narrative, I personally don't think this impacts the quality of the book itself. The things he lied about only make the story more gruesome, in my opinion, and it is understandable that the sheer amount of trauma his life has caused him would make him reluctant to share aspects which may impact his