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A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea Kindle Edition
by Masaji Ishikawa (Author), Risa Kobayashi (Translator), & 1 more
Original Title
北朝鮮大脱出 地獄からの生還
4.6 out of 5 stars 5,436 ratings
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A New York Times bestseller and Amazon Charts Most Read and Most Sold book.
A Goodreads Choice Award nominee for Memoir & Autobiography.
The harrowing true story of one man’s life in—and subsequent escape from—North Korea, one of the world’s most brutal totalitarian regimes.
Half-Korean, half-Japanese, Masaji Ishikawa has spent his whole life feeling like a man without a country. This feeling only deepened when his family moved from Japan to North Korea when Ishikawa was just thirteen years old, and unwittingly became members of the lowest social caste. His father, himself a Korean national, was lured to the new Communist country by promises of abundant work, education for his children, and a higher station in society. But the reality of their new life was far from utopian.
In this memoir translated from the original Japanese, Ishikawa candidly recounts his tumultuous upbringing and the brutal thirty-six years he spent living under a crushing totalitarian regime, as well as the challenges he faced repatriating to Japan after barely escaping North Korea with his life. A River in Darkness is not only a shocking portrait of life inside the country but a testament to the dignity—and indomitable nature—of the human spirit.
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From the Editor
When I read headlines about North Korea, the first thing that comes to mind is a cartoonish image of the country’s leader, projected on large screens in front of military displays, bragging about testing nuclear weapons. But what about the regular people like you and me? It’s difficult to imagine the challenges they face while raising families, while living their everyday lives. Enter Masaji Ishikawa, who has risked his safety and the safety of his family members—if any of them remain alive—to come forward with a daring story of escape.
Only a few scraps of information make their way across the barbed-wire borders of nations and ideologies that divide America from North Korea. Add the physical distance between us and it’s clear why we don’t automatically feel a kinship with people living in Pyongyang, Dong Chong-ri, or Wonsan. But A River in Darkness breathed life into the “enemy,” revealing warmth, humanity, and dignity in the face of a man we come to know well. Mr. Ishikawa has lost everything, but he holds out hope that at least one of his sons is alive—and that, perhaps, if more people know his story, his son might learn that his dad is alive and safe in Japan.
It is my hope that by sharing this story with you I will share the empathy that overwhelmed me while reading. What do we do with this newfound connection to our fellow human beings—those living next door as well as those living across the world? Perhaps we will all feel encouraged to promote peace in our neighborhoods, vote for things we believe in, reach out to those in need, and realize that there are always real people involved in current events—some of them fathers who go to bed each night dreaming of reconnecting with their sons.
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- Gabriella Page-Fort, Editor
Editorial Reviews
Review
“A terrifying true story of life in North Korea…Told in simple prose, this is a shocking and devastating tale of a country’s utter contempt for its citizens.” —Kirkus Reviews
“In his achingly straightforward memoir, Ishikawa vividly describes the horrendous conditions that the tyrannical and cultish state inflicts on its people…Ishikawa relates his painful story with sardonic humor and unwavering familial love even in the depths of despair, making human the often impersonal news coverage of mysterious and threatening North Korea.” —Booklist (starred review)
“Like Kang Chol-hwan’s The Aquariums of Pyongyang (2001)—the book that spurred President George W. Bush’s commitment to helping the people of North Korea—Mr. Ishikawa’s…descriptions of North Korean poverty are chilling, as are his accounts of the corruption and repression that dominated every aspect of life there…searing, swiftly paced.” —Wall Street Journal
“Masaji Ishikawa was born in Japan to a Korean father but repatriated as a boy to the supposed paradise of North Korea. Newly translated into English, this account of his life and appalling times should become a classic.” —South China Morning Post
“We often turn to books to help us understand people, experiences, and worldviews different from our own. If you’re looking to further your education in 2018, pick up A River in Darkness: One Man’s Escape from North Korea. In his memoir, translated from Japanese, Masaji Ishikawa recounts his turbulent childhood and life under a totalitarian regime in North Korea. Yes, you’ll learn about the country’s politics, leaders, and economy. But more importantly, you’ll learn about the people who live there and what it’s like to be on the lower end of the social hierarchy.” —HelloGiggles
“Compulsively readable and heart-wrenching, A River in Darkness reveals the daily cruelty of North Korea’s government to its poorest people. In this memoir, the victim is a young Japanese-born Korean who settles in the North with his parents, only to endure privation and abuse, as those he loves die of exhaustion, hunger, and loss of hope.” —Blaine Harden, New York Times bestselling author of Escape from Camp 14 and King of Spies: The Dark Reign of America’s Spymaster in Korea
“In his achingly straightforward memoir, Ishikawa vividly describes the horrendous conditions that the tyrannical and cultish state inflicts on its people…Ishikawa relates his painful story with sardonic humor and unwavering familial love even in the depths of despair, making human the often impersonal news coverage of mysterious and threatening North Korea.” —Booklist (starred review)
“Like Kang Chol-hwan’s The Aquariums of Pyongyang (2001)—the book that spurred President George W. Bush’s commitment to helping the people of North Korea—Mr. Ishikawa’s…descriptions of North Korean poverty are chilling, as are his accounts of the corruption and repression that dominated every aspect of life there…searing, swiftly paced.” —Wall Street Journal
“Masaji Ishikawa was born in Japan to a Korean father but repatriated as a boy to the supposed paradise of North Korea. Newly translated into English, this account of his life and appalling times should become a classic.” —South China Morning Post
“We often turn to books to help us understand people, experiences, and worldviews different from our own. If you’re looking to further your education in 2018, pick up A River in Darkness: One Man’s Escape from North Korea. In his memoir, translated from Japanese, Masaji Ishikawa recounts his turbulent childhood and life under a totalitarian regime in North Korea. Yes, you’ll learn about the country’s politics, leaders, and economy. But more importantly, you’ll learn about the people who live there and what it’s like to be on the lower end of the social hierarchy.” —HelloGiggles
“Compulsively readable and heart-wrenching, A River in Darkness reveals the daily cruelty of North Korea’s government to its poorest people. In this memoir, the victim is a young Japanese-born Korean who settles in the North with his parents, only to endure privation and abuse, as those he loves die of exhaustion, hunger, and loss of hope.” —Blaine Harden, New York Times bestselling author of Escape from Camp 14 and King of Spies: The Dark Reign of America’s Spymaster in Korea
About the Author
Born in 1947 in Kawasaki, Japan, Masaji Ishikawa moved with his parents and three sisters to North Korea in 1960 at the age of thirteen, where he lived until his escape in 1996. He currently resides in Japan.
Product details
File Size: 3144 KB
Print Length: 174 pages
Publisher: Amazon Crossing (January 1, 2018)
Publication Date: January 1, 2018
Sold by: Amazon.com Services LLC
Language: English
Customer reviews
4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
5,436 customer ratings
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Top international reviews
M. Dowden
5.0 out of 5 stars Worth ReadingReviewed in the United Kingdom on November 30, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
Although originally published in Japan in 2000, this is I believe the first time that this memoir has been translated and published in English. Here Masaji Ishikawa recounts how his family emigrated from Japan to North Korea, and the experiences and trials that they went through.
Starting off when he was still little Masaji explains about life for him and his family in Japan. Although his mother was Japanese his father was actually Korean, coming from a place that is now in South Korea. We read of what life was like at home, and how the family was discriminated against because of his dad’s nationality.
Being given a chance to live and work in the new Democratic People’s Republic of Korea so the family transpose to North Korea, only to find the stories of some sort of wonderful utopia are completely false. We then read of Masaji’s growing up under the regime of Kim Il-Sung and then later under his son Kim Jong-il, before he made his escape.
I think most people have an idea of what life is like in North Korea, and the philosophy of Juche, plus how really although a supposedly communist country it is really more akin to a feudal system with a ‘royal family’ as such in overall control. What then makes this stand out from other books along these lines is that we learn of the difficulties of the family as well as those faced by Masaji. We know from the beginning of this that his father is a violent man, but as Masaji grows up and starts to learn so do we of why his father is like he is, and the discrimination he faced in Japan, where he was taken by the Japanese controlling forces at the time.
Returning then to Korea, albeit the North he finds there that he is discriminated because he lived in Japan and has a Japanese wife, thus not being that welcome. Of course, we see through the lies of North Korea, and the real conditions for the vast majority of the people who live there, as well as all the propaganda and brainwashing that goes on.
A relatively quick read there is a lot to take in here, and reminds us that for the people of North Korea, in general they have never known anything else than how they live now, because they have even before the rise of the regime lived under the control of others. We are also reminded that trying to leave the country, especially at the time that Masaji Ishikawa did and through somewhere like China, meant that if you were caught on the Chinese side of the border you would be returned. In all this makes for a thoughtful and poignant read and should do quite well.
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Richard G. Monson
5.0 out of 5 stars Eye opening readReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 2, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
In the bleakest and simplest terms Masaji describes his life. There is no agenda put forth. There is no hidden meaning. There's just a glimpse into a life so harsh and brutal that we can barely comprehend it. It's almost as if he was sitting there with us, just telling his tale... almost as if to fulfill his promise to his mother that when he got back to Japan he would let the world know what happened to his family.
Don't expect a light or witty tale. There are no flourishes. Had there been it would have made the story more appreciable but much less real. Such things don't come easy to a person who has stared death down in desperation.
A good read for people looking to understand a bit about communism, social injustice and the will to live.
21 people found this helpful
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Sineddy
5.0 out of 5 stars Terrible situation to live throughReviewed in the United Kingdom on December 31, 2017
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
I have read numerous books on north Koreans escaping to the south and although life is still difficult for those individuals the life of returnees seems to be so much worse. Lied to, cheated and selected as the lowest of the low caste members it is difficult to comprehend how harsh their life was and still is to this day. We see well fed leaders with smiles of death who can say and do whatever the wish and if you disagree or are corageous enough to say no then you are beaten or become one of the disappeared . Ishikawa San story from childhood to present is written well, his family have suffered all their life and even though he made it back to Japan he is still suffering with guilt about who he left behind. The authorities should never ignore this story and they should be doing everything possible to help Ishikawa San help his remaining family. It is a sad thought that Ishikawa San is possibly one of many in the same boat who have made it back but stuck as a non gratis
11 people found this helpful
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M. Mullen
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the most harrowing books I've ever readReviewed in the United Kingdom on April 19, 2018
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
I picked this book up because it was on sale and I was interested in reading about North Korea.
From the very start it's a story of a hard life of extreme poverty in Japan. That's before they even get to North Korea. Once they get there the poverty is turned up to 11 and they are astounded by what they've signed up to. But too late, they can't return to Japan.
The writer is an incredibly humble man, full of humility, wisdom and the inner workings of the human condition. Particularly the human condition under extreme stress.
His life in North Korea is about as terrible as I could imagine. Seriously, the people in this story have nothing and starvation is a very real and constant threat.
All the while he has to deal with the 'Regime' and it's corruption, it's defiance of logic and common sense and it's insanity.
7 people found this helpful
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Stiven Skyrah
4.0 out of 5 stars Books like this are essential for us to know whats really happening in the world.Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 3, 2018
Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase
This is one powerful little memoir. It's a true story that sounds like dystopian fiction - for most of us, it is difficult to imagine families being lured to a new "paradise", only to be met with famine, concentration camps and violence. It's hard to accept that this is still part of our world.
I, like many, am fascinated and horrified by North Korea. Recent news stories have only fuelled that particular fire of fascination. I've read fiction about the history of Korea in books such as Pachinko, which showed many Koreans migrating to Japan during colonization and being seen as second class citizens. Then, later, when their home country was split in two, many were unable to return. I have also read Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, which documents a variety of different experiences from defectors.
A River in Darkness complements both those books and adds something very unique - a detailed first person account of what it was and is really like to live in this secretive nation.
Ishikawa was born in Japan but his Korean father was seduced by promises of "paradise" and having "everything you need" in North Korea. The Red Cross shipped Japanese families to North Korea; something which the Japanese government and the UN were all too aware of and made no effort to prevent. So Ishikawa's family packed up and got on the boat. They arrived in a wasteland of horrors and were given a shack to live in with no electricity or running water.
For over thirty years, Ishikawa and his family suffered and starved. No one dared to speak out against the system, and it would have done no good if they did. As Japanese nationals, they were labelled as "hostiles", which meant they were given the worst jobs and worst homes. Ishikawa lost loved ones, his freedom, and most of his life to North Korea.
It is a deeply sad memoir and even the ending brings little relief. Ishikawa admits that he can feel nothing but bitterness. It's a dark, haunting, and eye-opening look into one of the greatest atrocities of our time.
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A RIVER IN DARKNESS
ONE MAN'S ESCAPE FROM NORTH KOREA
BY MASAJI ISHIKAWA ; TRANSLATED BY RISA KOBAYASHI & MARTIN BROWN ‧ RELEASE DATE: JAN. 1, 2018
Aterrifying true story of life in North Korea.
Ishikawa was born in Japan in 1947 to a Korean father and Japanese mother. His father taught him that North Korea’s Kim Il sung was an “invincible general made of steel.” In 1958, the leader urged all Koreans to return home, proclaiming, “North Korea is a paradise on earth!” In 1960, Ishikawa and his family settled in the North Korean village of Dong Chong-ri as part of a mass repatriation campaign. Everyone had to join the Worker’s Party and pledge allegiance to Kim. The author learned in school that “thought was not free,” and no one could question the wisdom of Kim. He “played along” but knew he was now part of a “pseudo-religious cult.” Working on a farm as part of the Youth League, he learned that the sole cause of any failure was a total lack of respect for Kim and the party. Everyone was brainwashed. Despite being an excellent student, he was Japanese, the “lowest of the low,” and therefore condemned to the “very bottom of society.” As he notes, the farming process was “staggeringly crude and idiotic.” Food was taken away from them, and old people worked until they died. Poor workers went to concentration camps or were executed: “So many lives wasted.” After an arranged marriage, Ishikawa had a son in 1972. His mother died, and he carried her corpse on his back and buried her on a mountainside. His family suffered horribly, reduced to eating weeds and tree bark. It was even worse after Kim Jong il became leader. After 36 years and in utter despair, Ishikawa risked his life and, in darkness, crossed the Yalu River into China. He hoped to work in Japan and send money to his family, but by then, he was Korean, and the transition was extremely difficult.Told in simple prose, this is a shocking and devastating tale of a country’s utter contempt for its citizens.
Pub Date: Jan. 1, 2018
ISBN: 978-1-5039-3690-4
Page Count: 200
Publisher: AmazonCrossing
Review Posted Online: Oct. 9, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 2017
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Goodread review
Joan
This answer contains spoilers… [I have read quite a few of these types of stories, and with many similarities, I would bet money that it's true. The biggest difference with this book from the others is the escape to Japan instead of South Korea.
I don't know how he got it published, or maybe he found a loophole publishing it with an American company rather than a Japanese one. I too was shocked when what should have been a happy ending, ended with him still in limbo. (hide spoiler)]
flag
4 Likes · Like Comment 2 Years Ago
Michael Bonanno asked:
I'm left with a strange feeling after reading this. According to his own story he has broken his agreement with the Japanese government by publishing this. This leads to one of three conclusions: 1) The author had permission to publish, but it was not disclosed in the book, 2) He published surreptitiously, or 3) This is a work of fiction. Which is it?
Shannon In the Copyright area of my Kindle book, it says that he changed some names, withheld some details, and used a pen name...all to protect his family and friends back in North Korea. "Otherwise, all the events described in this book happened as he remembers them, or was told about them by others"
Marianne K Yes, I agree with Bettina. In the book it was requested he “wait” before implicating Japan. He escaped in 1996 and the book was published in Japan in 2000. I’ve read many memoirs written by escapees from NORK and I have no doubt that this is truthful.
This answer contains spoilers… [I have read quite a few of these types of stories, and with many similarities, I would bet money that it's true. The biggest difference with this book from the others is the escape to Japan instead of South Korea.
I don't know how he got it published, or maybe he found a loophole publishing it with an American company rather than a Japanese one. I too was shocked when what should have been a happy ending, ended with him still in limbo. (hide spoiler)]
flag
4 Likes · Like Comment 2 Years Ago
Duane I haven't read the book... But these comments have me completely confused.
Japan and Korea have *never* been on good terms and during WW II, the Japanese *enslaved* the Koreans - they shipped their women off to serve as prostitutes for the Imperial Japanese Army. IIRC when relations thawed somewhat, the Japanese *immediately* agreed to reparations with SK... and Korean movies *still* treat the Japanese as imperialist aggressors... Etc., etc. ...
So, not only why, but *how* could a Japanese emigrate to Korea after WW II, without getting brutalized? You'd have to be *nuts*, by my understanding of *that* situation... ??
Japan and Korea have *never* been on good terms and during WW II, the Japanese *enslaved* the Koreans - they shipped their women off to serve as prostitutes for the Imperial Japanese Army. IIRC when relations thawed somewhat, the Japanese *immediately* agreed to reparations with SK... and Korean movies *still* treat the Japanese as imperialist aggressors... Etc., etc. ...
So, not only why, but *how* could a Japanese emigrate to Korea after WW II, without getting brutalized? You'd have to be *nuts*, by my understanding of *that* situation... ??
Bettina I thought I read in the book that Japan just needed him to wait; at least that was implied. He escaped in 2010? I think... so the statute of limitations or whatever has run out and he is free to publish.
Richard D. Barr I felt the very same way after reading this book. Very interesting, but I truly wonder about its authenticity. It will be interesting to hear if anyone follows up on this with more factual information.
Raura Chiang Not sure if anyone is still interested. This book isn't published in Japan, which means it's only translated in English and other languages. Hope the info helps.
goldie sapp Who cares. It is probably true.
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Feb 05, 2018Emily May rated it really liked it
Shelves: memoirs-or-bios, nonfiction, 2018
Serfdom is freedom. Repression is liberation. A police state is a democratic republic. And we were “the masters of our own destiny.” And if we begged to differ, we were dead.
This is one powerful little memoir. It's a true story that sounds like dystopian fiction - for most of us, it is difficult to imagine families being lured to a new "paradise", only to be met with famine, concentration camps and violence. It's hard to accept that this is still part of our world.
I, like many, am fascinated and horrified by North Korea. Recent news stories have only fuelled that particular fire of fascination. I've read fiction about the history of Korea in books such as Pachinko, which showed many Koreans migrating to Japan during colonization and being seen as second class citizens. Then, later, when their home country was split in two, many were unable to return. I have also read Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, which documents a variety of different experiences from defectors.
A River in Darkness complements both those books and adds something very unique - a detailed first person account of what it was and is really like to live in this secretive nation.
Ishikawa was born in Japan but his Korean father was seduced by promises of "paradise" and having "everything you need" in North Korea. The Red Cross shipped Japanese families to North Korea; something which the Japanese government and the UN were all too aware of and made no effort to prevent. So Ishikawa's family packed up and got on the boat. They arrived in a wasteland of horrors and were given a shack to live in with no electricity or running water.
For over thirty years, Ishikawa and his family suffered and starved. No one dared to speak out against the system, and it would have done no good if they did. As Japanese nationals, they were labelled as "hostiles", which meant they were given the worst jobs and worst homes. Ishikawa lost loved ones, his freedom, and most of his life to North Korea.
It is a deeply sad memoir and even the ending brings little relief. Ishikawa admits that he can feel nothing but bitterness. It's a dark, haunting, and eye-opening look into one of the greatest atrocities of our time.
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Dec 03, 2017Lo rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
1 note & 3 highlights
The short version: This is easily the best firsthand narrative about life in North Korea that I've found, and it's a gripping, well-written story in its own right. If you haven't read anything like this, it will be VERY educational. But be aware that it doesn't have the happy ending the title implies, and prepare yourself accordingly.
The long version: Some years ago, I realized that my view of North Korea was overly cartoonish. I didn't want to think of it as "the most hilarious awful dictatorship" anymore, so I started reading about it. There's an awful lot of political and economic posturing and maneuvering to read about, and tons of analysis about the leaders and the military, but what about the actual people who live there? What are their lives like?
Turns out that it's pretty hard to find out. The fact that regular citizens, especially the non-elite, are essentially hostages makes it hard to get information. I found and really enjoyed Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, a collection of stories from former North Koreans living in exile. That's interesting in that the stories come from a variety of people who came from different backgrounds in North Korea, but this book is a much more in-depth picture of a single life, and has better narrative flow. The prose is spare and impressively clear, and the book is quite short.
Ishikawa was born in Japan and moved as part of a mass migration program that essentially tricked huge numbers of Koreans to "return" from Japan to North Korea, facilitated by the Red Cross. Many had never even been to North Korea, and empty promises of opportunity were repeated for years. This program, and the subsequent ill treatment of the Japanese "returnees" by the "native" Koreans was eye-opening to discover. Because of this aspect, the story manages to be even more grim than other stories I've read, which is really saying something. Just the first few pages, while he's still a child in Japan, were enough to fill an entire teary daytime talk show. And while life after escaping is never easy for the fortunate Koreans who make it out alive, the poor guy has a worse outcome than any I've heard before.
The horrors in the lives depicted are many, from the extreme to the mundane - starvation, long propaganda meetings, being denied opportunity due to circumstances of your birth, facing inadequate shelter, and that's all before the 90s famine. But the greatest horror is revealed gradually across many small moments: to survive people must lose their humanity, stop seeing each other as people, no longer caring if their neighbors live or die. Then the government uses the citizens as the most effective tool to oppress themselves by turning them against each other, encouraging and rewarding reporting your own family for defying the regime. The most common lament I've read (across all accounts) about the famine was, "the kind people were the first to die." As much as I found myself deeply appreciating eating dinner after reading this, I was even more moved by the love and support of my friends and family, savoring the marvelous experience of not having to fear for their lives every day.
I would recommend that everyone read this, and probably try to convince them given the opportunity, because there's a lot more to North Korea than nuclear weapons. If more people knew what life there is like, it would undoubtedly help -- it's pretty hard not to care in the face of this insanity. But I wouldn't force this on anyone, because it really is a difficult read twice over. First, while you're reading, the events in the story are brutal. It's hard to watch an incredibly resilient protagonist be defeated again and again. Then after you're done with the book, it's depressing to watch the world let this situation continue because it's too much trouble to address. The political and economic arguments seem even more unsatisfactory. On the other hand, it's not all bad. Nothing has ever made me appreciate my life like reading this. Every time Ishikawa's story pops into my mind, and it's hard to forget, I feel a huge wave of gratitude in addition to the sadness and compassion.
So read it, but please be ready. (less)
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Oct 04, 2019Diane S ☔ rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: 5000-2019
A simply told, but harrowing take of one mans anguish and desperation, living in North Korea. We find how how he came to live there and the toll it took on his family, then and in the future. It is beyond a horrible existence for those who have no status, live on the fringes of the country, forced to work in whatever job is given. Work for food, but even that little bit of substinance is not provided. Starting, living in hovels, at the mercy of whoever is in authority, anyone with a status that is higher than you. What the eat is barely enough to substain life, and for many it didn't. I was surprised any managed to live.
His story, which is the story of many living there, highlights how little the regime they must give constant thanks to, cares about its people. Although he says all are not brainwashed, many living there know no difference. He also says, and I hope it's true, that those who are not brainwashed, though who are tired of barely surviving, will someday rise up and end the dictatiors hold on this country.
He escapes, has no choice, but even that has lasting effects. I can't believe that all other civilized countries has let North Korea get away with the way they treat their people and not interfere. There is just so much injustice in this world, it can be overwhelming. (less)
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Sep 04, 2018J.L. Sutton rated it really liked it
Masaji Ishikawa's harrowing memoir, A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea, is astounding! I recently read Suki Kim's Without You: There is No Us: Undercover Among the Sons of North Korea's Elite. I really liked Suki Kim's work and thought there were great insights on the mindset of North Koreans. A River of Darkness has remarkable insights on North Korea as well, but it is completely different. Ishikawa focuses on the mindset of average North Koreans along with the extreme privation of most of the population. He also focuses on a group of people who immigrated from Japan known as returnees. This book is recommended for those who are interested in knowing more about this very isolated country! (less)
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Apr 24, 2019Beverly rated it really liked it · review of another edition
1 highlight
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. The first and only book I've read about the brutal life of North Koreans, A River in Darkness is a sad, sad tale. What this poor man went through is beyond belief. Poverty in the United States while bad, is nothing like poverty in North Korea. The worse thing about his story, is while he was able to escape and eventually moved to Japan, since he was Japanese, his children and wife, still lived there and he was unable to rescue them. Some of them ended up dying of starvation and he had to stand by, helpless. (less)
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Jan 02, 2018Chrissie rated it really liked it
Shelves: bio, korea, audible, 2018-read
I liked A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea a lot. It is a personally told story. The author is speaking from his heart of what he has experienced—first ostracism in Japan due to his dual Japanese and Korean background, then the horror of the thirty-six years of his life spent in North Korea from 1960-1996 under the rule of Kim Il Sung and then Kim Jong Il, why he had to flee, how he did it and finally what happened when he returned to Japan. During his youth in Japan, where he was born in1947, he was discriminated against because of his Korean background. Emigrating to North Korea at the age of thirteen, he was again discriminated against, now because of his Japanese background. His mother was Japanese, his father South Korean. He has lived a very difficult life as a second-class citizen without a country to call home.
Successfully escaping from North Korea in 1996, perhaps this looks like a story with a happy ending. It isn’t. This man’s life is noteworthy. His life story needed to be published. It is a memoir written not for him but for us. The book was first published in 2000, but only now has it drawn attention, twenty-two years after fleeing North Korea. The Japanese government helped Ishikawa escape, but his escape was hushed up and he was not to tell anyone. Relations between Japan and China would otherwise have been strained. Back in Japan, he was no longer on the verge of death from starvation, but he was a-g-a-i-n without job, family or friends. He escaped for the sole purpose of rescuing his family, and this he has not been able to do. The dire situation existing in North Korea is today common knowledge. The Korean leaders are faulted, as they should be, but the complicity of Japan, China, the UN, the Red Cross and other world authorities should be acknowledged too. The events in Ishikawa’s life show this.
It took me awhile to get caught up in the story. I approached the book from the wrong direction. I was looking for an impersonal presentation of clear facts, and it took me a while to understand what this book offers instead. I questioned some of the information laid at my feet. I found holes in what I was given. I would ask myself why did that happen and why did that person do that?! For example, it is hard to understand why Ishikawa’s mother married his father. Neither are we given a full explanation of how and why his father ended up in Japan. This is not a book written by an impartial third party, nor a book offering a thorough presentation of documented facts and research. The author does not have full information; he is telling us what he does know, and he is telling it as if you were sitting across the table from him. He is just talking, not in fancy words, not peppered with proof or statistics. He speaks in simple words, telling how, step by step, his life unfolded, how one event lead to another and another and how it has felt to live through these events! He swears. Yes, he complains. He isn’t stoical, but I came to completely understand his anger, his disappointment and his frustration. This is an engaging personal story. We need stories such as this.
We are not told how the author came to write this book nor what he is doing today.
I listened to the audiobook narrated by Brian Nishii. I have given the narration four stars. It felt as though the author was speaking to me directly. It felt as though there was nobody in between me and the author. I felt his exhaustion, his anger, his fear and his frustration.
There is a need for both non-fiction books that are well researched, without bias and provide an all-inclusive presentation of facts as well as those that have a more personal angle. It is the latter that we have here. This book shows us how it is to live through the events we hear of on the news. There, we are distanced from the facts. Here, events are brought up close, so we understand them on an emotional level.
Highly recommended reading :
*A River in Darkness: One Man's Escape from North Korea 4 stars
*Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea 4 stars
*The Great Leader and the Fighter Pilot: The True Story of the Tyrant Who Created North Korea and The Young Lieutenant Who Stole His Way to Freedom 4 stars
Each gives a different perspective.
More books on North and South Korea : https://www.goodreads.com/review/list... (less)
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Feb 06, 2018Sara rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: non-fiction, biographies-and-memoirs, historical-nonfiction, china-korea-japan
It's been a while since I read anything in one sitting, but this was utterly heartbreaking and compelling.
Masaji Ishikawa and his family moved to North Korea during the great migration of Japanese/Korean immigrants to the communist state in the 1960s. Promises of a paradise and jobs for all duped many a family at the time, but the reality was far from what was expected.
This is by far one of the best first hand accounts I've read of life in North Korea, and in some respects it completely overwhelmed me. The outpouring of grief, bitter regret and disappointment Masaji feels for himself and his family is palpable on every page. It's his passion to tell his story, and shame both the Korean and Japanese governments for their failings, that make this so readable - but never enjoyable. It follows Masaji from that fateful journey across the sea to North Korea, to his life as a tractor driver and endless search for a happy life with his growing family, to the famine of the late 1980s and early 90s which ultimately leads to his desperate escape.
The desperation of a whole nation is described so eloquently here, it's hard to read at times. But it should be read. The cruelty of human nature is all too evident, and shouldn't be ignored. I admire Masaji Ishikawa for the courage it must have taken to recall his past, and defy a nation in doing so. I can only hope that by doing so he's finally found some peace. (less)
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Apr 19, 2018Maxwell rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: kindle, translated, 2018
A devastating account of one man's life in North Korea. This also has the added element of examining North Korean life from the perspective of someone who is half-Japanese, half-Korean. A good companion piece of Pachinko and In Order to Live.
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Feb 03, 2019Jessaka rated it it was amazing
Shelves: non-fiction, north-korea
This was a disturbing true story about conditions in North Korea, so much so that I find that I don’t wish to go back and listen to parts of it again in order to make a better review.
If only the world was not so full of suffering. If only people were not beaten, killed, starved or worked to death, what a better place this would be. But what happened in North Korea, and could still be happening for all I know happens in many countries, and it makes me wish that the U.N. could step in and correct things all over the world. It is not to be. But then I read that humanitarian wars cause much more suffering.
This was a story about a man and his family that had lived in Japan as displaced people and were then sent back to North Korea from their new home in Japan. North Korea was said to be the land of milk and honey, a paradise. It was nothing but. It was hell.
Masaji tried to take care of his family, but the pay was not enough to feed them. This is beginning to feel like the poor class in America who can’t afford to eat or pay for their medical expenses, but, yes, I realize that it was much worse there. People were beaten, sent to concentration camps, murdered, and literally died in the streets. Part of that reminds me of how the black and brown people are sent to prison to rot for much less crimes than the white people in this nation.
Anyway, by the time that Masaji crossed the river into china, he was skin and bones, and he had lost family members.
This next paragraph may be a spoiler:
After the Chinese helped him to get back to Japan, he wanted so much to get his family out of N. Korea. That would not happen. I can imagine that he had wished that he had stayed in N. Korea just to be with them and to help them to survive as best he could. The guilt he must have felt. (less)
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Aug 28, 2019Constantine rated it liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: x-3-star, z2019-08
Rating: 3.0/5.0
Genre:
Nonfiction
Synopsis:
Masaji Ishikawa, a 13-year-old boy who is half Japanese and half Korean move from Japan to North Korea with his family. Once in Korea, they will have to adapt to a completely new life and a new world.
“There’s a saying, “Sadness and gladness follow each other.” As I see it, people who experience equal amounts of sadness and happiness in their lives must be incredibly blessed.”
My Thoughts:
This memoir is very hard to read for several reasons. It shows how life can be difficult in certain countries around the world, especially those countries with no democracies. North Korea is ruled by a totalitarian regime. I learned a lot from this book about living in North Korea, of course, this is one side of the story, not sure if there is another side to it if told from a different perspective. I haven't read about the country or visited it to have my own opinion or view about the things the author was talking about in his memoir.
I totally understand the devastating conditions that the author and his family lived in there. I feel many readers have already felt the difficulties that family has gone through. The book might have been getting high ratings because of that compassion. I personally felt the writing was too monotone for my taste, not sure if this is because of translation or what. There is no hope, not even a small dim light in the far. It felt very dark and negative to me. I really wanted something in the story to show or represent hope but there was none. I remember when I told a friend about this book he asked me "Why do you want to read it? I have read it and it is just an angry person who keeps whining from the beginning until end". I disregarded his remarks and still decided to give it a shot.
“Every day was like living in a nightmare. It sounds dreadful to say, but I grew immune to the horror of all the people lying in the streets. Sometimes, I couldn’t tell whether they were dying or already dead. And the awful thing was, I didn’t have the energy to care.”
While reading this I felt that the author was angry about his life there all the time, which is understandable. This was the only mood throughout the book. He channeled this anger the right way, through writing this memoir but to be honest I don't feel that reading this was a pleasant or even a beneficial experience for me personally. I will have to go with 3.0 stars out of 5.0
“In the West, I guess you’d call it corruption. In North Korea, it was just standard operating procedure.” (less)
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May 06, 2018Jo rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: inspirational, non-fiction
"Her desperation, her fear, her exhaustion-all of it seeped through her thin clothes and straight into my heart."
This is not the first non fiction book that I have read, regarding real people's lives in North Korea. It probably won't be my last, either. Much of the information in this particular account wasn't new to me, but this did not stop the utter disbelief washing over me, as I was reading.
This very personal memoir is just gut-wrenchingly tragic, and it is told with such honestly, that the horrors Masaji Ishikawa endured over all of those years, is all the more vivid and harrowing for the reader to digest. This memoir gives a powerful insight to what life was actually like in North Korea. I think countries know enough about this and should do more rather than simply turning a blind eye to it, in order to protect themselves.
This really is harrowing, and at the same time, compelling. It makes you sit up and appreciate the liberties you have that are quite often these days, just taken for granted. (less)
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Jan 04, 2018Nicki White rated it really liked it
While the life that Mr. Ishikawa live was horrifying by anyone standards, I found that at time the book was difficult to read. At moments it seemed as though a cohesive thought was not entirely transformed from reality to word. I think that has a lot to do with the fact that this book was written from translation, so I can’t really fault it.
I’m not a history buff, I will never claim to be. I know enough that I was able to graduate from school but never really gave much thought to what was being taught to me. I find the memoirs have become a much more effective way for me to comprehend the history throughout the world as opposed to reading from a textbook that seemed to just ramble facts off. For instance I’m sure I learn of what was happening in Korea prior to reading A River in the Dark. But as I read I became more invested in the journey, more invested in the political aspect, the trying nature of the events that unfolded.
I was left elated and heartbroken as I reached the end of one man’s journey to just return home to a life that was striped from him because he was a child. The worst part is that even though this is part of our global existence not enough is being done to rectify the situation for him and everyone who has and still are suffering. One can only hope that something even if it small can be accomplished with that talks between South and North Korea. Yes, after reading this memoir I found myself wanting to know what was happening. This was the first time in a long time that I voluntarily looked up anything along the political line.
Now with all the positive being said I still had one question left unanswered. Once you draw to the conclusion of the story Masaji Ishikawa openly tells that he is not suppose reveal that the Japanese authority helped in him in anyway. But by writing this novel is that not what he did. Did he not reveal the one part of the agreement that was the most crucial. There are also other questions that sort of had been left open. While some information was given to the whereabouts of his family that was left in Korea, there really wasn’t a complete conclusion.
This was an eye opener for me. I think starting of my year with this has really grounded me. It has really made me realize just how lucky of a person I am in life. I don’t think I could have been as strong as Masaji Ishikawa or his sister or even his children who grew only to know one world. (less)
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Jan 31, 2018Books on Stereo rated it it was amazing
A breathtaking real, unfiltered view of life in North Korea as a Japanese-Korean. Not all tales end happily, but Masaji Ishikawa's story exemplifies the resilience of the human spirit and importance of optimism even in the darkest of times.
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Dec 02, 2017Marilyn Hitesman rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
The horror of life in North Korea
Beyond comprehension. The atrocities are being silenced but must be made known. No one should endure what these people do.
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Jun 19, 2019Caro the Helmet Lady rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: non-fiction, cultural-asia, bio, this-must-be-hell, 2019-reads
Winston Smith was a pussy. After reading this book his misery doesn't seem like a big deal to me. After all he only had to take care of himself, didn't have kids or relatives to take care of in the imaginary world of 1984. Love interest? Oh please. Masaji Ishikawa did have a family and was a caring son, father and brother. And he really tried to make lives better no matter what in that hell of a country and the hell of a system. Betrayed and left on his own for more than a couple of times he never abandoned hope for better tomorrow for his family. He was a true hero in my eyes. Victimized by the system, by the governments in one way or another himself he was never a victim, he always was looking for the light in the end of the tunnel.
But was it worth it in the end? I don't know... But that's just my pessimistic point of view.
I's a sad book and very hard to read, because of the feeling of complete hopelessness and darkness, but somehow you just can't put it down.
Definitely recommended for everyone in the first world who thinks his glass is half empty because of some shitty tiny problem. (less)
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Jan 02, 2018Chandra Claypool (wherethereadergrows) rated it it was amazing
Shelves: arc
My first love in books is horror followed closely by psychological thrillers. When I read nonfiction/memoirs, I typically stay somewhat within the same genre - true crime, etc. As a half South Korean woman, I also typically avoid reading anything regarding North Korea. I always assumed that these types of books would be the only ones that would get me "triggered"... and by that I mean PISSED OFF! However, when Ashley at Amazon Publishing gave me this book, I couldn't NOT read it.. and I'm SO happy she sold me on this. Turns out, it may as well be a horror book... unfortunately. Phew - I'm still trying to wrap my feelings around this one.
Masaji takes us on his journey. That's thirty-six (36) years of him living in North Korea with his family. Decades of trying not to starve to death. Decades of trying not to get shot, beaten up or turned away simply for being 1/2 Japanese - something that is (obviously) out of his control. Decades of wondering how the government did NOTHING that it promised them. Becoming walking skeletons and deciding that dying trying to escape was better than the alternative - because clearly dying was going to happen anyways. Watching family members, children and seniors alike, dying all around you. Uff. At 178 pages, Masaji manages to put you right in there with him. At one point he even apologies to the reader .. but then saying it was necessary to say to show exactly how bad they had it.
My heart hurts for him... for his family... for all the Koreans and Japanese living there in squalor as death surrounds them at every turn. An extremely emotional read but one that should be read. At the very least, let his story get out there. He didn't go through all of that and manage to escape just to not be heard. (less)
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Jan 07, 2020Christy rated it it was amazing
Shelves: memoirs, audiobook, non-fiction, read-in-2020
This is the true story of Masaji Ishikawa's life and escape from North Korea. He moved to North Korea when he was 13 years old, and spent 36 years living in horrific conditions with his family and children before fleeing with his life. It's so heartbreaking, appalling, and full of sadness and despair. However, If you like nonfiction or memoirs... I highly recommend. Bonus = It's a book in translation and I was able to learn about a place I knew nothing much about.
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Feb 02, 2018Alaina rated it it was amazing
Shelves: favorites, nonfiction, fiction, kindle-unlimited, historical-fiction, february-challenge-2018
I feel like I've been on a non-fiction kick lately and I've loved every minute of it.
What first got my attention was the cover. I don't really know how else to explain it other than say it intrigued me so much that I didn't even think twice before I clicked it.
Second, the title makes you think it will be a happy-ish book. Or that it will have a happy ending after all of the doom, sadness, and torture thrown upon you. Don't get your hopes up high people because this is one spoiler you will get ...more
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Feb 22, 2018Holly rated it really liked it
Shelves: non-fiction, 2018-read
This isn't the first non-fiction book I've read about real people's lives in North Korea (the first was Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea), so some of the information wasn't new to me this time around. However, this still was gut wrenching and captivating and horrifying. I can't imagine how so many people can endure so much needless suffering. I highly recommend reading either book - I think there's not enough people who realize how bad it really is in North Korea and why other countries turning a blind eye to it as long as they don't threaten their own welfare is a humanitarian atrocity we are now all complicit with. (less)
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Feb 02, 2019Zuky the BookBum rated it it was amazing · review of another edition
Shelves: kindle-books, made-me-cry, 5-stars, 2019
I honestly think this book is the modern day Night. It's just as harrowing a story and is something that needs to be talked about and pushed into the public eye more. I'm sat here worried about Brexit but at the end of the day, I'm going to have my family, food and a place to live - millions of people living in North Korea have none of these things. I know you can't always compare your situation to situations such as this but it puts things into perspective and makes you realise just how easy you have it.
There are a few reviews of this that talk about how the book is all pain and misery, which is certainly true, but they talk about that in a negative way. I'm not sure what those people were expecting to read when they picked up this novel about an escapee of North Korea? Admittedly there isn't a whole lot of resolution to the end of this book but I don't think one man's story of death and starvation could be anything other than pain and misery. I personally think this book was a courageous move on Ishikawa's part and informs a new generation of the horrors of North Korea.
There's not a lot I can say about this book other than it's a truly haunting memoir that needs to be experienced firsthand. It's a relatively short book but it drops us right into the middle of a modern-day nightmare that needs to be heard. This book has left a mark on me and it's not something I'm ever going to forget reading. It's brutal, dark, open, and honest, and it's worth reading. (less)
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May 28, 2018Joy D rated it liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: non-fiction, asia, politics, reviewed, zck, journeys
Memoir of Masaji Ishikawa wherein he relates the details of his life from being born in Japan in 1947 to moving with his family to North Korea, where they were promised “paradise on earth,” to his escape to Japan in 1996. Unsurprisingly, the so-called paradise never materialized, and his family’s standard of living gradually diminished until it reached starvation-level.
Ishikawa tells his story in a very straight-forward conversational manner. This memoir delivered educational information about life in North Korea under Kim Il-sung. It is often a gut-wrenchingly difficult read, as he and his family dealt with such an array of appalling circumstances, such as racism, brutality, discrimination, threats, policies that made no sense but were mandated to be followed, brainwashing of the masses by the government, and death of family members. Short but powerful. Recommended to those interested in Korean history, especially first-hand accounts of life in North Korea.
Memorable quotes:
“When you find yourself caught in a crazy system dreamed up by dangerous lunatics, you just do what you’re told.”
“No one thought or talked about anything except food. When we could manage to get around, we spent all our time searching and searching for anything remotely edible. We were nothing but a bunch of ravenous ghosts. The barely living dead.”
(less)
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Sep 26, 2018Malia rated it really liked it
Shelves: non-fiction
This is a short book, but what a harrowing, thought-provoking story it tells! It is not an easy read, this man's account of life in North Korea, his escape back to Japan and the terrible losses he and his family suffered in the process. I kept feeling stunned when the author mentioned the dates - so recent! - and that people dying of starvation seems a fairly common occurrence in North Korea. he paints a bleak picture, made bearable by the fact that he felt close bonds with his family. An eye-opening and important book!
Find more reviews and bookish fun at http://www.princessandpen.com (less)
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Jan 06, 2019Laura Noggle rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: nonfiction, biography-autobiography, 2019
2 highlights
One Word Review: Harrowing
"So there we were—the beneficiaries of smug humanitarianism—prisoners in paradise on earth."
After reading this book, my first inclination is: What right do I have to judge Masaji Ishikawa's life story? Not much as far as I can see, my opinion is irrelevant.
"I soon learned that thought was not free in North Korea. A free thought could get you killed if it slipped out."
This is a raw, honest story of extreme suffering told in a unique voice—I'm not sure if it was the translation or syntax, but the tone was almost childlike in its simplicity and straightforwardness.
"You don't choose to be born. You just are. And your birth is your destiny, some say. I say the hell with that. And I should know. I was born not just once but five times. And five times I learned the same lesson. Sometimes in life, you have to grab your so-called destiny by the throat and wring its neck."
There were a couple points where the timeline seemed to contradict itself, and got a little muddled, but the big picture is clear: North Korea is one of the worst places in the world to live.
"This was laughable, of course, but that's always the way with totalitarian regimes. Language gets turned on its head. Serfdom is freedom. Repression is liberation. A police state is a democratic republic. And we were 'the masters of our destiny.' And if we begged to differ, we were dead."
I started this book on a Sunday afternoon as it happened to be on my Kindle. Several times I tried to put it down to finish later, but I couldn't stay away. Finally, I finished reading it in bed at 2am—all in one "sitting."
A quick engrossing read, this book is heavy. I can't give such a collection of traumatic events five stars, it feels wrong.* Still, this account is important and something we need to be aware of to ensure it never happens in our country.
"And I came to recognize that, no matter how difficult the reality, you mustn't let yourself be beaten. You must have a strong will. You have to summon what you know is right from your innermost depths and follow it."
*I had the same issue with Roxane Gay's Hunger: A Memoir of (My) Body. Both Gay and Ishikawa are brave, and admirable for their strength and ability to share the worst days of their lives—but their stories are so sad, it's hard for me to give them a full stamp of approval. Does anyone else feel similar? (And for some reason, I have no problem giving books like Helter Skelter and The Stranger Beside Me five stars ... maybe because serial killers don't induce sympathy.) (less)
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Jan 02, 2018Janelle | She Reads with Cats rated it it was amazing
Shelves: nonfiction, autobiography-memoir-biography, from-publisher, 2018
A RIVER OF DARKNESS by Masaji Ishikawa (translated by Risa Kobayashi and Martin Brown) Thank you so much to Amazon Publishing for sending me a free copy - all opinions are my own.
“Someone once said, ‘If a crying baby could tear down the universe, it would.’ Thats how I felt that day. I wanted to demolish the whole universe, but the sad truth was, it had already come crashing down around my head.”
My Review:
This story is so personal—you feel as if your friend is telling you a story. It’s not overly dramatic—it doesn’t need to be. The details of this little book are very upsetting and hit straight to the heart.
Masaji Ishikawa tells his life from his childhood in Japan, up through his escape from North Korea. He was born in 1947, just after the conclusion of the Second World War, and after Japanese colonial rule in Korea ended. His father, Do Sam-dal, was Korean and his mother, Miyoko Ishikawa, Japanese. It was a tumultuous childhood, full of fear, anger, and pain. Even though his mother’s family was respected, his father was not. His father was very resentful towards his mother and took it out on her.
When Masaji was thirteen, his father insisted they move to North Korea under the regime of Kim Il-Sung. He thought he’d have a better life in North Korea, which he had told would be “paradise on Earth”. Except, as Masaji describes it, it was hell on Earth, and after reading his story, I am in 100 percent agreement.
His childhood was difficult but it did not hold a handle to the struggles of living in North Korea for thirty-six years and every time I saw the phrase, “Luckily I...” I couldn’t believe how optimistic he was—the human spirit is an amazing thing. I also thought it was interesting to see the change in his father’s temperament over the years in North Korea. And how Masaji finally understood what made his father who he was.
I loved how matter-of-factly Masaji speaks. It is very well-written memoir and I believe 170 pages is all it needed to be extremely impactful. This is an important story and one that everyone should know and understand.
For all of my reviews, please visit https://shereadswithcats.com (less)
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Mar 05, 2018Sarah rated it really liked it
Shelves: non-fiction, memoir, 조선
I've long been interested in North Korea - writing my undergraduate dissertation on female North Korean refugees and their treatment in China - so I always try to check out any new memoirs or non-fiction books on the country. I've previously read Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea, This is Paradise!, Somewhere Inside: One Sister's Captivity in North Korea and the Other's Fight to Bring Her Home and parts of Under the Loving Care of the Fatherly Leader: North Korea and the Kim Dynasty ...more
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Jan 05, 2019Helly rated it it was amazing
A mortifying account of a man's escape from North Korea - that will leave you hollow inside. How little does man actually need, and how often even that is deprived.
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Aug 16, 2019Amanda rated it it was amazing
Shelves: 2019-reads
This is one of those books that has been hiding in my kindle for about a year now. A River in Darkness by Masaji Ishikawa is a first-hand account of his life in North Korea and ultimately his escape. Masaji Ishikawa was born to a Japanese mother and a Korean father. Growing up in Japan, he often felt like he did not belong. However. at a young age, his father took him and the rest of his family to North Korea under the impression that they would have a better life. This is not the life they found in North Korea. They had to endure starvation, government oppression, and fierce propaganda. Masaji Ishikawa finally realizes he needs to escape to give his family their best chance at survival. His chances of succeeding are not high, but that does not stop him.
It is impossible to fathom what the author had to endure. This first-hand account reveals the terror of what is happening in North Korea. This is not a book that one read for entertainment or for a happy ending. The entire story is depressing and bleak, but it exposes the suffering that the people of North Korea are experiencing. It is meant to be educational, to open people’s eyes.
The book is told from a personal point of view. I felt almost as if the author were sitting across from me, explaining his story. He is very honest and forthcoming with all the details of his life. Not only did he suffer abuse at the hand of North Korea, but also at the hand of his father. He discusses how he tries to find his place also within his family, who feel like they don’t belong to any country. The loss, death, and torture they experience will make readers think about the opportunities that are presented in their life and how much they have to be thankful for. I really recommend that everyone read this memoir. It is short, but straight to the point. I rate this book 5 out of 5 stars. (less)
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Dec 05, 2017Staci rated it really liked it
Shelves: read-in-2017
Tragic. That one word sums up this entire memoir.
I've read both Fiction and Non-Fiction books about North Korea which has provided me a pretty good background about what life is like there. What I didn't know until reading this memoir is nearly 80,000 Japanese moved to North Korea after WWII. They were told North Korea was a land of paradise. The author was born in Japan and moved to North Korea in 1960 when he was 13 years old. He lived there for 36 years. It is truly astounding that so many moved their families to North Korea. The details the author shared about his life in North Korea was heart breaking. I've read about the famine of the mid 90s, however the author shared details I had not previously heard.
This memoir was incredibly interesting and I highly recommend it for anyone wanting a better understanding of what life is like in North Korea. The memoir is available as a Kindle First offer to Amazon Prime members in December 2017. The book releases in January.
There is some foul language and disturbing details in the pages. (less)
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Nov 30, 2018❄️Nani❄️ rated it really liked it · review of another edition
Shelves: historical, east-asia, near-favourites, nonfiction
4.5⭐️
An emotional memoir.
Ishikawa’s account of life in North Korea reads like a chilling dystopian novel. (less)
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Jul 08, 2018Calzean rated it really liked it
Shelves: biography-autobiography-memoir, culture-japan, culture-north-korea, author-north-korea
I you think you have it tough go and read this book. The author is born in Japan to a Korean father and Japanese mother. In the early 60s his family happily accept the propaganda that life back in North Korea was a paradise. On their return reality was a life of poverty, corruption, ostracism, starvation, homelessness, unemployment and despair. After 38 years, the author escapes to China to find a country that will return escapees. Luckily some local Japanese government officials help him get back to Japan where he is again an outsider, unable to find work and with no contact with his family back in Korea.
Whoever helped him write and translate this book has done a wonderful job. (less)
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北朝鮮大脱出 地獄からの生還
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宮崎 俊輔
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北朝鮮大脱出 地獄からの生還 (新潮OH!文庫) (日本語) 文庫 – 2000/10
宮崎 俊輔 (著)
5つ星のうち4.1 9個の評価
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「地上の楽園」は生き地獄だった。36年間北朝鮮で暮らし、抑圧と差別、飢餓に苦しみ辛酸をなめつくした男性が、日本に極秘帰国後肉声で語る驚愕のレポート。
著者略歴 (「BOOK著者紹介情報」より)
宮崎/俊輔
在日朝鮮人の父と日本人の母の間に生まれる。1960年13歳のとき一家で北朝鮮に渡る。’96年中国国境より決死の脱出を試み、見事に成功。外務省の保護下、密かに日本に帰国する(本データはこの書籍が刊行された当時に掲載されていたものです)
登録情報
文庫: 248ページ
出版社: 新潮社 (2000/10)
haohao
5つ星のうち5.0 脱北者が「日本語で」語った北朝鮮2005年7月20日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫Amazonで購入
この本に出会うまでに私は数十冊の北朝鮮関連本を読んだ。それらの本と比較すると、日本人脱北者が自分の言葉で語った北朝鮮という点においてこの本は非常にユニークである。ゴーストライタとまでは言わないまでも、相当優秀な編集者ないしは著者のまわりにいる人が執筆ないし推敲を相当手助けしたと思われるものの、日本での生活、北朝鮮への帰国、北朝鮮での生活、脱北から日本へ到着するところまで非常に訥々と語られている。どちらかといえばびっくりマーク！が多発する翻訳本に比べ、おとなしい表現ながらも、地獄のそこからわき出るような怖さがある。
著者は在日（父）と日本人（母）との間に生まれたハーフなのだが、日本では朝鮮人として、北朝鮮では日本人として差別され続ける。その内容は悲惨を極める。また、著者の家族が亡くなるその亡くなる時の様子は、典型的な日本人における日本人の亡くなり方とは異なる。日本社会には日本社会の問題点、不条理が存在するのも事実ではあるが、日本ではどんなに貧しくとも人間に関する尊厳はある程度保証されていると言っても良く、その点で日本は北朝鮮に比べ非常に恵まれていると思う。
最後に、著者も述べているが、北朝鮮から帰国する日本人や（現在基本的に受け入れていないが）日本へ亡命する朝鮮人が日本社会に定着するための教育・訓練施設は今後拡充される必要があると思われる。★５
12人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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fang_fang
5つ星のうち5.0 歴史の被害者2003年9月27日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫Amazonで購入
世の中には、本当に普通では考えられない苦労をする人がいるのですね。 父が朝鮮人、母が日本人という背景で、北朝鮮では日本人としてひどい偏見にあい、日本帰国後、なかなか社会に受け入れてもらえ難い著者のことを、私には歴史の被害者としか呼び様がありません。 ひどい飢え偏見の中の生活で、著者の両親が苦労の末に、やっとお互いの心をいたわるようになったところは、本を読む私にとって、せめてものなぐさめになりました。
確か当時の日本の法律は、父親が外国籍の場合、その子供は日本国籍を受ける事ができなっかたと思います。 何の為かよく知りませんが、全くこれもまた偏見に満ちた法律ですね。 この様にして歴史の下敷きになった人達の事を知る必要性を深く感じました。 読んでみる価値大です。
著者が、亡くなられたお母様の祖国で、少しでも幸せな暮らしができますように、心からお祈り申し上げます。
11人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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探偵
5つ星のうち5.0 衝撃の一冊！ここまでリアルに北朝鮮を語った手記は、他に無い。執筆者本人が北朝鮮に囚われており、脱北後日本で書いた本です2015年7月5日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫Amazonで購入
まさか、北朝鮮での生活が、ここまで凄惨な状況だったとは思っておりませんでしたので、カルチャーショックを受けました。
たまたま、筆者が日本の朝鮮学校や朝鮮で必死に勉強をしていた事実が、このような文献として残ったのでしょう。
被害者本人の書籍がここまで、リアルに残る事は稀の中の稀だと思います。
難を言えば、今や歴史書でもあるので、地図や挿絵、特に詳細な地図が欲しい所でした。（惜しいです。この本に地図、挿絵は全くありません）
出版当時は明らかになっていない？あやふやな部分も多数あったのでしょうか？
今でしたら航空写真や鉄道の状況等も詳細に把握できているのでしょうから、
色褪せない臨場感を精一杯全面に出すなら朝鮮の地名入りの地図は絶対に必要です。
移動の全ルート、（その他、移動の可能性ルート）その他の移動体験談は残しておけば、必ず後に繋がると思います。
＜こういった書籍はドローンとかでガンガン北朝鮮に落としたい(笑)＞
3人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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バナナ
5つ星のうち4.0 とことんついてない(ネタバレあります)2019年5月5日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
ハーフの著者が北朝鮮に連れられひょんな事から一気に貧乏生活。
とことん蔑まれ飢えて最終的には単身で日本に辿り着く。
半日本人という事で、敵対階層への差別をとことん受け、運も悪いのもあってとことん報われない生活を強いられる。
腐敗した北朝鮮社会の仕組みも上手く説明されていて読みやすい。
とても生きづらい北朝鮮社会に加え、幼い頃からの貧困と差別。著者は既に人間不信の鬱状態にいたのであろう。だがそれでも疑問を言いたい。
・何故望まぬ結婚をし、破綻が目に見えていたのに子供を作ったのか。これはまだ仕方ないか。
・せっかく理解ある妻と再婚出来たのに、人間社会が嫌だと今の仕事も家族も捨て山奥に行ってしまう。仕送りしてた？出来ないでしょ。ちょっと無責任じゃなーい？
・そのあと家族で一緒になれるチャンスが来たのに仕事無い、家もない、配給も無い→掘っ建て小屋に住み盗みばっかで家族皆ロクなのも食べれない。もうちょっと頑張ろうよ…
・正規の仕事はムリ→人伝ての仕事で繋ぐ。お陰で家が手に入ったけど、飢饉が来たら配給無い食べ物無い何にも出来ない。ちょっと頑張ろうよ…
・日本に来たはいいけど人間関係うまくいかず仕事も出来ない。呼び寄せるどころか仕事もままなりません。もうちょっと頑張(略)
北朝鮮は確かに腐敗した国家で得体の知れぬ恐ろしい国とは思う。当方は所詮部外者の戯言を連ねているに過ぎない。
でも同じ日本人の斎藤博子氏が貧しいながらも人に恵まれたりそれなりに適応出来ていた状況を知ると、この著者ももうちっと家庭を持った以上何とか頑張れなかったのかなぁと思ってしまう。
とはいえ妹さんや著者のお母様の描写などはグッとくるものがあった。
役に立ったコメント 違反を報告
浅川晃広
5つ星のうち5.0 戦後最大最悪のプロパガンダ「帰国事業」の犠牲者2005年5月23日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
本書は、父を朝鮮人に、母を日本人に持つ著者が、一九六〇年代に行われた北朝鮮への「帰国事業」によって渡航する経緯と、渡航後の北朝鮮での恐るべき生活、そして、生死の危機が迫ったところ、家族を残して、中国側に脱出し、日本に帰国するまでが記述されているものである。
まず、北朝鮮への帰国事業が、なぜ成立したのかというと、当時社会経済的地位が低かった在日朝鮮人が「地上の楽園」であると、総連とマスコミによる強烈なプロパガンダにより信じてしまった結果であることが明らかになっている。この意味では、戦後最大、最悪のプロパガンダであり、それに積極的に加担した『朝日新聞』のようなメディアは、断罪されなければならない。
そして、「帰国者」を待ち受けていたのは、身分制度と同様の、制度的な差別であった。さらに、北朝鮮社会が、封建王朝そのもので、すなわち封建専制体制が社会主義の装いをしているということだ。そうした中で、「王」たる「首領」体制に従順であれば最低限の生活は保障される体制で、人々の思考能力そのものが失われ、「領民」と化している様が明らかになっている。
そうであるがゆえに、金日成の死は、こうした王朝体制が一気に弛緩し、結果「最低限の生活」すら成り立たなくなり、それが餓死に直結するようになったところ、著者は北朝鮮脱出を試み、辛うじて成功している。結果、帰国するが、再定住支援は一切なく、結果として、「豊かな」日本において社会的に阻害される結果となっている。
しかしながら、帰国事業そのものが、北朝鮮、マスコミの壮大なウソによって成立したことからも、著者は正真正銘の「被害者」であり、現在進行形の北朝鮮の国家犯罪を断罪するためにも、著者のような人物に対しては支援を惜しんではならないのではないか。おりしも、坂中英徳・元東京入管局長によって「脱北帰国者支援機構」が設立されるが、こうした活動が極めて重要であろう。
16人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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halfmoon
5つ星のうち5.0 まさに地獄からの生還。強烈すぎる。2009年12月23日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
これは素晴らしい。
これだけ強烈なノンフィクションはないのではないか。
まさに、この世の地獄としか思えない北朝鮮の実態が、
その地獄の底辺で30年も生きてきた人によって語られるのだから。
「生きるということ」「国家とは」「家族とは」など様々なことを考えさせられる一冊だ。
ぜひ、映画化して全世界の人に知って貰いたい内容であるが、
映画化は無理だろうね。
すさまじい描写が多いが、特に母親が死んだときに
それまで近寄りもしなかった近所の人々が食い物目当てでやってきて
お供え物を必死で食べてた、という描写には寒けがした。
まさに犬畜生の世界だな。
日本のノンフィクションの賞はこういう小説に賞を与えるべきだと思う。
5人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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モンド
5つ星のうち5.0 帰国事業は産経新聞も賞賛していた2008年7月28日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
本書は、1959年12月14日に二隻の船が新潟港を出航したことに端を発する、北朝鮮への帰国事業で渡航し 35年間辛酸を舐め尽くした挙げ句日本に極秘帰国した、日本人の母と在日朝鮮人の父との間に生まれた男性の数奇な半生記である。 社会主義幻想の崩壊した今、北朝鮮の惨状を知らぬ者はいまいが、帰国事業当時に反対していたのは韓国系の民団くらいだったのを声を大にして言いたい(政治的な立場では自然だろうが)。 朝日新聞は当然として、帰国事業は共産党の陰謀だと矮小化する謀略本を出した公明党=当時は公明政治連盟、果ては意外にもあの産経新聞の記者までが訪朝して北朝鮮を絶賛していたのである。 帰国者の立場では、総連は良いことしか言わないし、民団は政治的な立場も絡み正確な判断に悩んだことだろう。 そこへ我々日本人の新聞記者、作家らが北朝鮮を地上の楽園だとする訪朝記を書いたことで、 第三者の立場の日本人が書いたのだから間違いないだろう、と地上の地獄へ送り出してしまったのだ。 なお、私の知る限り著者のように北朝鮮から極秘帰国した帰国者は既に二桁に達している。 半世紀前、無責任に北朝鮮幻想を振りまいた朝日新聞から産経新聞までのマスコミが帰国者の呪詛の声を聞く日は来るのだろうか。
5人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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リアーナ
5つ星のうち5.0 生々しく、迫力ある内容2008年11月21日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
著者は子供の頃に北朝鮮に行き、その後ろくな教育は受けていないはずなのだが、本書の文章構成は非常に理知的で、北朝鮮での凄まじい日々の中でも冷静さと逞しさを秘めて生き延びた著者の強さがうかがえるものであった。
北朝鮮に残された家族は今どうしているのだろうか??そして著者の現在も気になる。
3人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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日本からのレビューをすべて見る
ククル
5つ星のうち1.0 あきれた2006年8月3日に日本でレビュー済み
形式: 文庫
まったくあきれた。脱出の際外務省の力を借りることができただけでも日本人としては驚き。あの外務省が！というのが私の気持ち。なんせ我国の外務省は、国内でなにも波風がない問題を、異国で立たせるようなことは決してしない。どんなに日本人が困っていても・・・この内容が真実なら別の意味で奇跡だ。そのような奇跡に巡りあいながら帰国して生活がウンヌンとはよく言えたものだ。文庫版２４８ページの締めくくりの言葉「朝鮮では死ぬのを待つだけだが家族と一緒に居れた・・・」
だったら北へ帰ればいいではないか。日本においては日本人でも日本社会から拒絶さられる場合がある。それは、いちいち腹を立て、すぐ人に手を上げ、困ったときだけに助けを求めるような人間に対しては拒絶する。それが日本だ。（恐らく日本だけではないだろう）この作者は現在ご健勝なのだろうか。ご健勝麗しいのであれば北へ帰ればいい。何もかも日帝のせいにするな。
7人のお客様がこれが役に立ったと考えています
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感想・レビュー
7
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ネタバレ
おいしゃん
この国の本はいくつか読んだが、こんなに過酷で人間とは思えない生活を送った人の記録は初めて見た。何十年も餓死寸前を耐え抜いてきた筆者が、念願の帰国を果たした後の様子がまた切ない。
ナイス★32コメント(0)2019/05/15
Solveig_X
北朝鮮から命からがら脱出した男性が、当時（1960~1996）の悲惨極まる境遇と”地上の楽園”の実態を語っている。北がどんな国なのか興味のある方は是非。
ナイス★1コメント(0)2015/08/14
Billy
１９６０年に朝鮮人の父、日本人の母、妹らと共に、バラ色の夢をみて、朝鮮へと海を渡った人の手記。彼らの日本での暮らしは貧しかった。そして、人種差別など様々な苦しみがあった。北朝鮮で待っていたのは、日本の生活以下の暮らし。人種差別はそこでも無くならなかった。しかしながら、人間は逞しい。不自由な生活でも36年間、北朝鮮に生きながらえた。さて、この本は、タイトルからも分かるように「地獄」となっている。そう、豊かで自由な国家「日本」という視点から、この本は描かれている。
ナイスコメント(0)2014/05/08
小池達也
★★★★☆４点。壮絶。想像をはるかに超える北朝鮮の実態がノンフィクションで書かれています。
ナイスコメント(0)2013/06/12
太陽の塔
★★★★☆ 本人にはまったく縁のなかった、北朝鮮に１３歳で渡り命からがら帰国したのが４９歳。３６年間本当よく生き抜いたなぁと....ＴＶのニュースなどでは北朝鮮の現状を伝えていますが、こんなにも生々しくリアルな地獄の生活を垣間見れることはなかったです。決して帰国してからも、満足な生活は送れていないみたいですし未だに北朝鮮に家族が残されていたりして不安な日々だと思いますが、この先少しでもいい方向に進みますように。しかしこの本が発行されたのが２０００年。果たしてこの１０年で北朝鮮問題は進展したんだろうか？
ナイス★1コメント(0)2010/11/10
greenpeanuts
北朝鮮帰国事業の光と影。日本の親族から仕送りをもらい裕福な帰国者、一方身寄りのいない著者のような極貧の帰国者。北朝鮮にも不要と放置される家族。極貧で雑草、ゴミを食べる日々。半日本人と差別をうける日々。生きる希望がなくなり自殺未遂。家族を生かすためと命懸けで国境を越える。しかし日本で待ち受けていたものは…。今や家族、兄弟はどうしているのかはわからない。悲惨な残酷なつらいつらい著者の半生。
ナイス★2コメント(0)2009/08/13
キューポップ
ネタバレ1960年代といえば私が生まれた年代。でもまだ産まれていなかったか赤ちゃん幼児期の時代だったから、日本でそんな事が行われていたなんて全く知らなかった。かなり大人になるまで北朝鮮て全く分からなかったしね。 これこそ日本の新聞やﾒﾃﾞｨｱ、赤十字等の罪なのではないか。「北の楽園」等と大キャンペーンを張ってたんでしょ。差別ある日本で暮らすなら未来が開けている北へと大いなる期待を抱いて渡った人達ばかりでしょうに。これは本当に酷で罪な話だと思う。その後の状況等全く報道が無い事にも不信感を抱くばかりだ。
ナイス★1コメント(0)日付不明
感想・レビュー
7
全て表示
ネタバレ
おいしゃん
この国の本はいくつか読んだが、こんなに過酷で人間とは思えない生活を送った人の記録は初めて見た。何十年も餓死寸前を耐え抜いてきた筆者が、念願の帰国を果たした後の様子がまた切ない。
ナイス★32コメント(0)2019/05/15
Solveig_X
北朝鮮から命からがら脱出した男性が、当時（1960~1996）の悲惨極まる境遇と”地上の楽園”の実態を語っている。北がどんな国なのか興味のある方は是非。
ナイス★1コメント(0)2015/08/14
Billy
１９６０年に朝鮮人の父、日本人の母、妹らと共に、バラ色の夢をみて、朝鮮へと海を渡った人の手記。彼らの日本での暮らしは貧しかった。そして、人種差別など様々な苦しみがあった。北朝鮮で待っていたのは、日本の生活以下の暮らし。人種差別はそこでも無くならなかった。しかしながら、人間は逞しい。不自由な生活でも36年間、北朝鮮に生きながらえた。さて、この本は、タイトルからも分かるように「地獄」となっている。そう、豊かで自由な国家「日本」という視点から、この本は描かれている。
ナイスコメント(0)2014/05/08
小池達也
★★★★☆４点。壮絶。想像をはるかに超える北朝鮮の実態がノンフィクションで書かれています。
ナイスコメント(0)2013/06/12
太陽の塔
★★★★☆ 本人にはまったく縁のなかった、北朝鮮に１３歳で渡り命からがら帰国したのが４９歳。３６年間本当よく生き抜いたなぁと....ＴＶのニュースなどでは北朝鮮の現状を伝えていますが、こんなにも生々しくリアルな地獄の生活を垣間見れることはなかったです。決して帰国してからも、満足な生活は送れていないみたいですし未だに北朝鮮に家族が残されていたりして不安な日々だと思いますが、この先少しでもいい方向に進みますように。しかしこの本が発行されたのが２０００年。果たしてこの１０年で北朝鮮問題は進展したんだろうか？
ナイス★1コメント(0)2010/11/10
greenpeanuts
北朝鮮帰国事業の光と影。日本の親族から仕送りをもらい裕福な帰国者、一方身寄りのいない著者のような極貧の帰国者。北朝鮮にも不要と放置される家族。極貧で雑草、ゴミを食べる日々。半日本人と差別をうける日々。生きる希望がなくなり自殺未遂。家族を生かすためと命懸けで国境を越える。しかし日本で待ち受けていたものは…。今や家族、兄弟はどうしているのかはわからない。悲惨な残酷なつらいつらい著者の半生。
ナイス★2コメント(0)2009/08/13
キューポップ
ネタバレ1960年代といえば私が生まれた年代。でもまだ産まれていなかったか赤ちゃん幼児期の時代だったから、日本でそんな事が行われていたなんて全く知らなかった。かなり大人になるまで北朝鮮て全く分からなかったしね。 これこそ日本の新聞やﾒﾃﾞｨｱ、赤十字等の罪なのではないか。「北の楽園」等と大キャンペーンを張ってたんでしょ。差別ある日本で暮らすなら未来が開けている北へと大いなる期待を抱いて渡った人達ばかりでしょうに。これは本当に酷で罪な話だと思う。その後の状況等全く報道が無い事にも不信感を抱くばかりだ。
ナイス★1コメント(0)日付不明
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