Nothing to Envy: Ordinary Lives in North Korea by Barbara Demick

My rating: 5 of 5 stars


I'm a big fan of historical fiction. I love to read about far-away places in time or distance. North Korea is certainly one of the latter and is a relic of the seemingly distant totalitarian states that thrived during the 20th century. Unfortunately the stories told in this book are not fiction...they are very real.



But North Korea is still a totalitarian state - the people there are completely cut off from the world and are raised from birth to believe their society is the greatest the world has ever known. Demick's book is a remarkable look into the lives of those who have lived through the regimes of Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il - and lived to tell the rest of the world about it.



Reading this book will provide perspective to anyone who thinks they have a bad station in life. North Koreans are an unlucky lot - unlucky only because they were born above the 38th parallel. I can't recommend this book highly enough it is deeply informative and moving.



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