The Aquariums of Pyongyang: Ten Years in the North Korean Gulag Paperback – August 24, 2005

With this book the tally of books about North Korea I've read must be nearing a dozen and I have many more in my TBR stack. What keeps me reading is the near disbelief that a country in the 21st century can be so paranoid beyond belief and that the people of North Korea live with a complete disregard for human rights that are violated on a daily basis. They are poor, often sick and malnourished. That the Communist regime under which they live keeps everyone under surveillance must make for a life of uneasiness. The author of The Aquariums of Pyongyang spent 10 years in a prison camp before escaping with a friend to China and then on to South Korea. Without rampant bribery with goods and cash he would have found it much harder to make it out. Whether the Dear Leader, at the time Kim Jung-Il, liked it or not, if cash was available it could buy goods on the black market.

Kang Chol-hwan and his family were sent to a prison camp by association with his grandfather who disappeared and was put in a camp for making statements against the regime. The rest of the family had done nothing wrong but they were sent to a camp after enjoying a wealthy life in Japan. They moved to North Korea at the grandmother's urging because she was a big believer in Communism, and at first they were moved into luxurious housing in Pyongyang. When they were in the camp it is hard to believe that any of them survived. I couldn't help but think about those people and especially Kang Chol-hwan when I went out this evening. It was 29 degrees F and I recall reading that the children worked outside as long as the temperature didn't go below -13 degrees F.

This book will open eyes to the strangest country and the most isolated country in the world, but it is inevitably going to crack one day and hopefully the people can join the rest of the world who will hopefully have compassion for them.

The enigma that is North Korea has become a fascinating subject for me of late. This book is highly detailed and thorough in its descriptions. It reads a little clumsily however and could have used a better effort at proof reading. Inconsistent spellings are jarring, but that can be overlooked. The somewhat disconnected story line is difficult to follow. Still the subject bears study, as it's nigh impossible for anyone raised in a free democratic society to comprehend the evil that manages to keep the population at the point of starvation yet all the while worshiping the very person(s) who are perpetuating their plight. North Koreans are so brainwashed that they believe they are living in heaven compared with other countries but they are in hell beyond understanding. What they believe about their arch enemy, the U.S., is so far from fact as to be ludicrous. We are the starving population worse off by far than they according to what they have been forced to believe.

I work in the travel industry and have seen and worked with people from all over the world. One day it occured to me that I had never once met someone born in North Korea, this piqued my interest so I decided to do some research. I am in no way an expert on politics or foreign affairs or civil rights. I'm just a regular shmo who was curious about life in North Korea. Reading this book opened my eyes to a country I knew virtually nothing about. I ignorantly thought North Korea and it's leaders were just a bunch of punch lines to insensitive jokes. This book really gives the reader a glimpse into the everyday people of a nation utterly isolated from the rest of the world and denied everyday experiences many of us take for granted.

The book centers on one man born in North Korea to an affluent family with ties to Japan. He is a rare breed in the country as most North Koreans know only poverty and struggle. The book follows his early years, his families decline in favor and his ultimate imprisonment in one of North Korea's many horrifying prison camps. The majority of his young life and early adulthood is spent in one of these forced labor camps reserved for family members of citizens imprisoned in much stricter and terrifying conditions. His only crime was being related to someone the North Korean government deemed guilty of crimes against their great leader and country.

This book is unique in many ways. I've read several biographies now on life in North Korea written by prior citizens of DPRK who ultimately defected to non communist countries. This particular biography is one of the most interesting to me for several reasons. It's a story of a boy who experienced both extremes of North Korean living. He was born into a rich family that was well taken care of and had many privledges the majority of the country did not. He had a television, ample food, a large house and nice clothing. Where most other families were lucky to have enough to eat each day. This early life gave him a unique perspective gave the reader a fleeting glimpse into what the elite lived like in this communist regime. At the age of 10 he and his family were sent to a forced labor camp thus hurling him into a life which was the polar opposite of everything he knew. His description of his time in the camp is heart breaking, graphic and surreal. At such a young age to be treated worse than anything I could imagine in conditions no living thing should ever experience he managed to survive at any cost.

The book chronicles his life in the camp, his ultimate release, his life back in regular society during the infamous famine and his ultimate decision and journey to defect to the South. He also touches upon the difficulties of life in a westernized society and his experience transitioning to a country that viewed him not as an equal of Korean heritage but as a lesser version. Overall a bittersweet escape.

Mr. Kang has seen both extremes, the privledge and the horror of his birth country's communist regime. He experienced how fragile life, favor, and status can be in such a government. His tale is one of deep saddness, bravery and an infallible will to survive. While reading this book it's difficult to remember and keep in perspective that these events are true, that such a country exists that it isn't some made up cautionary fairy tale but rather a real life hunger games. These people lived this horror, they still live it today and we and the rest of the world barely even know about it.

I finished this book and instantly wanted to learn more and see what other people experienced and most of the books I've read are very similar. All the defectors are incredibly brave people who fought for their lives and their families and decided to escape and create new lives in a world they knew nothing about. In my opinion everyone should read this book, everyone should be made aware of the living conditions and the grotesque human rights violations that is their reality. Kim Jong Il, his father and his son, none of them are just silly little men ripe for parody. They are real monsters and they are causing suffering on a level I never could have imagined before reading this book. No country is perfect but it does put into perspective our lives and the way in which we live.

I've read many reviews on this book and several other biographies written by DPRK defectors and some concerns from readers are that details may have been exaggerated or embellished from these people's lives to make a more compelling biography. Perhaps they have, but even if only 25% of the horrors this book and other's like it describe are true than that's more than anything I can imagine. All of these people have experienced hardships we as westerners will most likely never know and they are brave enough to tell their stories in great detail. This book is an eye opener, it makes you appreciate the life we have, the freedoms we take for granted daily and the opportunities we are given everyday that others may only dream of. I recommend reading this book, to take the time to learn a bit about a country that so desperately wants to remain a secret. It inspired me to be thankful for my life, my luck and my world and inspired me to become more involved in organizations that can help others maintain and achieve all the civil rights every human being deserves.

This is a very important autobiography. The author was in a North Korean prison camp for ten years with members of his family. He explains clearly how this camp was run, why people were there, and how the government chose who would go there and how they were treated. His family had been in Japan, came back to North Korea and were very well-to-do until a problem came up that got them all sent to prison camps. He eventually was set free and escaped to China (he described that part of his journey in some detail) and to South Korea. The author gives a perspective on the different stages of the North Korean dictatorship, which he suffered under during the 1970s-1980s. He notes some of the things that changed over the years.

The book is very clearly written, with the help of a co-author, and hard to put down.