Separated at Birth: How North Korea Became the Evil Twin (Hardcover)

by Gordon Cucullu (Author) "He stands five foot two in stocking feet..." (more)
Key Phrases: intercept tunnel, rolling coup, military demarcation line, North Korea, South Korea, United States (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Written with solid research from a soldier-scholar's perspective and sensitive feel for history, this book is very readable and replete with insights on Korean and Japanese culture, particularly as they pertain to current challenges on the Korean Peninsula. It is a 'must read' for all military, diplomatic, and commercial people posted to the Far East." --General John Wickham, USA (retired) Former Chief of Staff US Army and CINC in Korea.

"In the rogue's gallery of terrorist states, North Korea occupies a darkly prominent place. Its membership in the "axis of evil" is richly and dangerously deserved---and did not develop overnight. This book is indispensable to understanding how North Korea became one of the world's worst human rights violators and weapons proliferators---and how we should deal with this rogue, before it's too late."--Monica Crowley, Ph.D., Fox News Channel, WABC Radio

"Gordon Cucullu is a straightforward tough former soldier who knows Korea and writes with clarity and conviction. He does not mince words. The problem on the Korean peninsula is North Korea, a violent failed state. The salvation is the U.S.-South Korean alliance and the vigorous promotion of our values of democracy, human rights, and free market forces. For those who either care deeply about Korea or who want to know more about this fascinating divided country, this book is a must read."--James Lilley, former U.S. Ambassador to South Korea

Product Description
He stands five foot two in stocking feet, adding two inches to his dumpy physique with elevated shoes. He has taken a country blessed with natural resources and an educated populace with a dedicated work ethic and reduced it to the level of the most abysmal third-world pesthole. He has assassinated foreign statesmen, blown up civilian airlines loaded with innocent passengers, and sold weapons to terrorists around the world. He is diverting resources that his country cannot spare to accelerate a program whereby he can become a nuclear power capable of proliferating weapons of mass destruction to terrorist groups in return for hard cash. He has surrounded himself with sycophants and toadies, lives in hedonistic luxury, and threatens his neighbors and the world with nuclear weapons. Who is this strange person? He is Kim Jong Il, aberrant ruler of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea--or North Korea.

The more we are able to crack the facade of North Korea, the more we learn of the dark, repugnant secrets that have been held close for decades. Peering through the cracks, we are able to discern an implacable hatred for America, South Korea, and other free nations. There were good and sufficient reasons for President George W. Bush to declare North Korea a charter member of the "Axis of Evil." Americans heard him and wondered: Just what is going on over there that makes it such a threat? SEPARATED AT BIRTH addresses those concerns, exploring North Korea's twentieth-century history, its separation from South Korea, as well as its place in the East and its relation to China, the U.S., and Japan. Cucullu discusses our options--both military and diplomatic-and fills in some of the gaps in our knowledge so that we can be better prepared to deal with a nation easily described as a "rogue" one.


See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 320 pages
• Publisher: The Lyons Press (September 1, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1592285910
• ISBN-13: 978-1592285914
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.2 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #222,907 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

  Popular in this category: (What's this?)

  #47 in

  Books > History > Asia > Korea > North

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The One Book to Read re the NORK Crisis, February 13, 2005

By	Kent A. Davy "Sperwer" (Seoul, Korea) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I picked up a copy of "Separated at Birth" this morning and finished it this evening. I've lived in Seoul since November 1994 and, as a foreign investor in Korea, have followed events here and the commentary thereon closely. This is simply the most succinctly accurate account of, and the most compelling prescription for dealing with, the challenge posed by NK, that I've read in ten years.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A fascinating book of grave importance to our future., November 25, 2004

By	Laszlo Szechenyi (Nokomis, FL USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This work by Gordon Cucullu is sure to be very valuable to those of us who follow the world situation with serious thought and, let's face it, worry!

It's a very enlightening summary of the development and present-day status of one of the world's most secretive and most disastrous areas. Such insight can only be presented by one who spent many years living and working in close proximity of the people and the events which engulfed an innocent nation in almost unimaginable calamity.

I learned a great deal from Cucullu's keen observations regarding the history, development and extensive suffering of the Korean people. It touched me very closely, because I find their fate similar in many ways to that of my native Hungary. Maybe that is another reason why I felt so sympathetic to their terrible struggle and awful situation with the communist North.

This analysis of the geopolitical importance of the North Korean threat is not only excellent, but it brings home the extremely serious nature of that threat. The danger of a maniac such as Kim Yong Il doing something totally devastating is not only very real, but even likely, if he feels threatened to the point of no return.

Cucullu's suggestions on how to deal with the threat are very serious and can have not only far-reaching, but life saving effects on the Free World. It also contains a fascinating analysis of the South Korean role in all this which, I'm sure, is very little understood by those who aren't close to the situation. I can only hope that our present leadership will take the necessary steps in proving our country's strength, endurance, will-power and courage to face the threat posed by North Korea.

This book is a must-read for those of us who are seriously concerned with the security of our nation and the Free World.

9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars North Korea's 20th century history is explored in full, December 8, 2004

By	Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

With North Korea rising to become the new 'evil' in the world in its pursuit of nuclear weaponry, a book such as Gordon Cucullu's Separated At Birth becomes even more essential, providing a history of North and South Korea with a new emphasis on just how North Korean became the 'evil twin' of the two. North Korea's 20th century history is explored in full in Separated At Birth: from its initial separation from the south and changing relationships with China, Japan and the U.S. to its growing role as a nuclear force. The focus on Kim Jong-Il, ruler of North Korea, provides many condemning visions of the dictator and his approaches, but most importantly, Separated At Birth analyzes world concerns, options, and realities in working with the 'rogue' nation. Cucullu is a former Special Forces Green Beret colonel, serving over 20 years in the military in Asia: his analysis is personal - and astute.