Korea The Impossible Country

Author : Daniel Tudor
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
ISBN 13 : 146291022X
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.29/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Korea: The Impossible Country written by Daniel Tudor and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-10 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Daniel Tudor covers all the important issues, yet does not simply tell the more familiar stories, but looks deeper and wider to give the full story of Korea today." —Martin Uden, Former British Ambassador to South Korea In just fifty years, South Korea has transformed itself from a failed state, ruined and partitioned by war and decades of colonial rule, into an economic powerhouse and a democracy that serves as a model for other countries. How was it able to achieve this with no natural resources and a tradition of authoritarian rule? Who are the Koreans and how did they accomplish this second Asian miracle? Through a comprehensive exploration of Korean history, culture and society, and interviews with dozens of experts, celebrated journalist Daniel Tudor seeks answers to these and many other fascinating questions. In Korea: The Impossible Country, Tudor touches on topics as diverse as shamanism, clan-ism, the dilemma posed by North Korea, and the growing international appeal of South Korean pop culture. This new edition has been updated with additional materials on recent events, including the impeachment of Park Geun-hye and the sinking of the Sewol Ferry. Although South Korea has long been overshadowed by Japan and China, Korea: The Impossible Country illuminates how this small country is one of the great success stories of the postwar period.

Author : Victor Cha
Publisher : HarperCollins
ISBN 13 : 0062906445
Total Pages : 479 pages
Book Rating : 4.41/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Impossible State written by Victor Cha and published by HarperCollins. This book was released on 2018-10-23 with total page 479 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Impossible State, seasoned international-policy expert and lauded scholar Victor Cha pulls back the curtain on provocative, isolationist North Korea, providing our best look yet at its history and the rise of the Kim family dynasty and the obsessive personality cult that empowers them. Cha illuminates the repressive regime’s complex economy and culture, its appalling record of human rights abuses, and its belligerent relationship with the United States, and analyzes the regime’s major security issues—from the seemingly endless war with its southern neighbor to its frightening nuclear ambitions—all in light of the destabilizing effects of Kim Jong-il’s death and the transition of power to his unpredictable heir. Ultimately, this engagingly written, authoritative, and highly accessible history warns of a regime that might be closer to its end than many might think—a political collapse for which America and its allies may be woefully unprepared.

Author : Daniel Tudor
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1462915124
Total Pages : 225 pages
Book Rating : 4.25/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book North Korea Confidential written by Daniel Tudor and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2015-04-14 with total page 225 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: **Named one of the best books of 2015 by The Economist** Private Markets, Fashion Trends, Prison Camps, Dissenters and Defectors. North Korea is one of the most troubled societies on earth. The country's 24 million people live under a violent dictatorship led by a single family, which relentlessly pursues the development of nuclear arms, which periodically incites risky military clashes with the larger, richer, liberal South, and which forces each and every person to play a role in the "theater state" even as it pays little more than lip service to the wellbeing of the overwhelming majority. With this deeply anachronistic system eventually failed in the 1990s, it triggered a famine that decimated the countryside and obliterated the lives of many hundreds of thousands of people. However, it also changed life forever for those who survived. A lawless form of marketization came to replace the iron rice bowl of work in state companies, and the Orwellian mind control of the Korean Workers' Party was replaced for many by dreams of trade and profit. A new North Korea Society was born from the horrors of the era--one that is more susceptible to outside information than ever before with the advent of k-pop and video-carrying USB sticks. This is the North Korean society that is described in this book. In seven fascinating chapters, the authors explore what life is actually like in modern North Korea today for the ordinary "man and woman on the street." They interview experts and tap a broad variety of sources to bring a startling new insider's view of North Korean society--from members of Pyongyang's ruling families to defectors from different periods and regions, to diplomats and NGOs with years of experience in the country, to cross-border traders from neighboring China, and textual accounts appearing in English, Korean and Chinese sources. The resulting stories reveal the horror as well as the innovation and humor which abound in this fascinating country.

Author : Daniel Tudor
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
ISBN 13 : 1462919863
Total Pages : 260 pages
Book Rating : 4.64/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Ask A North Korean written by Daniel Tudor and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2018-03-20 with total page 260 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "In his new book, Ask a North Korean, Daniel Tudor--a former Economist journalist and current Korean beer entrepreneur-- wants people to understand the true lives of everyday North Koreans. Using translated essays written by defectors, the book covers topics from politics to pornography." -- The Boston Globe Understanding North Korean Through the Eyes of Defectors. The weekly column Ask A North Korean, published by NK News, invites readers from around the world to pose questions to North Korean defectors. Adapted from the long-running column, these fascinating interviews provide authentic firsthand testimonies about life in North Korea and what is really happening inside the "Hermit Kingdom." North Korean contributors to this book include: "Seong" who went to South Korea after dropping out during his final year of university. He is now training to be an elementary school teacher. "Kang" who left North Korea in 2005. He now lives in London, England. "Cheol" who was from South Hamgyeong in North Korea and is now a second-year university student in Seoul. "Park" worked and studied in Pyongyang before defecting to the U.S. in 2011. He is now studying at a U.S. college. Ask A North Korean sheds critical light on all aspects of North Korean politics and society and shows that, even in the world's most authoritarian regime, life goes on in ways that are very different from what outsiders may think.

Author : Bruce Cumings
Publisher : W. W. Norton & Company
ISBN 13 : 0393347532
Total Pages : 544 pages
Book Rating : 4.31/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Korea's Place in the Sun: A Modern History (Updated Edition) written by Bruce Cumings and published by W. W. Norton & Company. This book was released on 2005-09-17 with total page 544 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "Passionate, cantankerous, and fascinating. Rather like Korea itself."--Nicholas D. Kristof, New York Times Book Review Korea has endured a "fractured, shattered twentieth century," and this updated edition brings Bruce Cumings's leading history of the modern era into the present. The small country, overshadowed in the imperial era, crammed against great powers during the Cold War, and divided and decimated by the Korean War, has recently seen the first real hints of reunification. But positive movements forward are tempered by frustrating steps backward. In the late 1990s South Korea survived its most severe economic crisis since the Korean War, forcing a successful restructuring of its political economy. Suffering through floods, droughts, and a famine that cost the lives of millions of people, North Korea has been labeled part of an "axis of evil" by the George W. Bush administration and has renewed its nuclear threats. On both sides Korea seems poised to continue its fractured existence on into the new century, with potential ramifications for the rest of the world.

Author : Daniel Tudor
Publisher : Tuttle Publishing
ISBN 13 : 9780804842525
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.23/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Korea: The Impossible Country written by Daniel Tudor and published by Tuttle Publishing. This book was released on 2012-11-10 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Korea's amazing rise from the ashes: the inside story of an economic, political, and cultural phenomenon Long overshadowed by Japan and China, South Korea is a small country that happens to be one of the great national success stories of the postwar period. From a failed state with no democratic tradition, ruined and partitioned by war, and sapped by a half-century of colonial rule, South Korea transformed itself in just fifty years into an economic powerhouse and a democracy that serves as a model for other countries. With no natural resources and a tradition of authoritarian rule, Korea managed to accomplish a second Asian miracle. Daniel Tudor is a journalist who has lived in and written about Korea for almost a decade. In Korea: The Impossible Country, Tudor examines Korea's cultural foundations; the Korean character; the public sphere in politics, business, and the workplace as well as the family, dating, and marriage. In doing so, he touches on topics as diverse as shamanism, clan-ism, the dilemma posed by North Korea, the myths about doing business in Korea, the Koreans' renowned hard-partying ethos, and why the infatuation with learning English is now causing massive social problems. South Korea has undergone two miracles at once: economic development and complete democratization. The question now is, will it become as some see Japan, a prosperous yet aging society, devoid of energy and momentum? Or will the dynamism of Korean society and its willingness to change—as well as the opportunity it has now to welcome outsiders into its fold—enable it to experience a third miracle that will propel it into the ranks of the world's leading nations regarding human culture, democracy, and wealth? More than just one journalist's account, Korea: The Impossible Country also draws on interviews with many of the people who made South Korea what it is today. These include: Choi Min-sik, the star of "Old Boy." Park Won-soon, Mayor of Seoul. Soyeon Yi, Korea's first astronaut Hong Myung-bo, legendary captain of Korea's 2002 FIFA World Cup team. Shin Joong-hyun, the 'Godfather of Korean Rock.' Ko Un, poet. Hong Seok-cheon, restaurateur, and the first Korean celebrity to 'come out.' And many more, including a former advisor to President Park Chung-hee; a Shaman priestess ('mudang'); the boss of Korea's largest matchmaking agency; a 'room salon' hostess; an architect; as well as chefs, musicians, academics, entrepreneurs, homemakers, and chaebol conglomerate employees.

Author : Ramon Pacheco Pardo
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0197674542
Total Pages : 358 pages
Book Rating : 4.43/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book Shrimp to Whale written by Ramon Pacheco Pardo and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2022-07-15 with total page 358 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: South Korea has the most remarkable of histories. Born from the ashes of colonialism, partition and a devastating war, back in the 1950s there were real doubts about its survival as an independent state. Yet South Korea did survive, and first became known globally for the export of cheap toys, shoes and clothing. Today, South Korea is a boisterous democracy, a vibrant market economy, a tech powerhouse, and home to the coolest of cultures. In just seventy years, this society has grown from a shrimp into a whale. What explains this extraordinary transformation? For some, it was ordinary South Koreans who fought to change their country, and still strive to continue shaping it. For others, it was all down to forward-looking political and business leaders, who had the vision that their country would one day be different. Whichever version you prefer, it's clear that, at its core, South Korea's is the story of a people who dreamt big, and saw their dreams coming true. This is the history of South Korea, from its millennia-old roots, through its foundation as a nation-state and economic development under dictatorship, to its present as a rich, free and cool country on the world stage.

Author : Eunsun Kim
Publisher : St. Martin's Press
ISBN 13 : 1466870885
Total Pages : 240 pages
Book Rating : 4.88/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book A Thousand Miles to Freedom written by Eunsun Kim and published by St. Martin's Press. This book was released on 2015-07-21 with total page 240 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Eunsun Kim was born in North Korea, one of the most secretive and oppressive countries in the modern world. As a child Eunsun loved her country...despite her school field trips to public executions, daily self-criticism sessions, and the increasing gnaw of hunger as the country-wide famine escalated. By the time she was eleven years old, Eunsun's father and grandparents had died of starvation, and Eunsun was in danger of the same. Finally, her mother decided to escape North Korea with Eunsun and her sister, not knowing that they were embarking on a journey that would take them nine long years to complete. Before finally reaching South Korea and freedom, Eunsun and her family would live homeless, fall into the hands of Chinese human traffickers, survive a North Korean labor camp, and cross the deserts of Mongolia on foot. Now, Eunsun is sharing her remarkable story to give voice to the tens of millions of North Koreans still suffering in silence. Told with grace and courage, her memoir is a riveting exposé of North Korea's totalitarian regime and, ultimately, a testament to the strength and resilience of the human spirit.

Author : Brad Glosserman
Publisher : Columbia University Press
ISBN 13 : 0231539282
Total Pages : 234 pages
Book Rating : 4.89/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Japan–South Korea Identity Clash written by Brad Glosserman and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 2015-05-26 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Japan and South Korea are Western-style democracies with open-market economies committed to the rule of law. They are also U.S. allies. Yet despite their shared interests, shared values, and geographic proximity, divergent national identities have driven a wedge between them. Drawing on decades of expertise, Brad Glosserman and Scott A. Snyder investigate the roots of this split and its ongoing threat to the region and the world. Glosserman and Snyder isolate competing notions of national identity as the main obstacle to a productive partnership between Japan and South Korea. Through public opinion data, interviews, and years of observation, they show how fundamentally incompatible, rapidly changing conceptions of national identity in Japan and South Korea—and not struggles over power or structural issues—have complicated territorial claims and international policy. Despite changes in the governments of both countries and concerted efforts by leading political figures to encourage U.S.–ROK–Japan security cooperation, the Japan–South Korea relationship continues to be hobbled by history and its deep imprint on ideas of national identity. This book recommends bold, policy-oriented prescriptions for overcoming problems in Japan–South Korea relations and facilitating trilateral cooperation among these three Northeast Asian allies, recognizing the power of the public on issues of foreign policy, international relations, and the prospects for peace in Asia.

Author : Andrei Lankov
Publisher : Oxford University Press
ISBN 13 : 0199390037
Total Pages : 350 pages
Book Rating : 4.38/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!

Download or read book The Real North Korea written by Andrei Lankov and published by Oxford University Press. This book was released on 2015 with total page 350 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In The Real North Korea, Lankov substitutes cold, clear analysis for the overheated rhetoric surrounding this opaque police state. Based on vast expertise, this book reveals how average North Koreans live, how their leaders rule, and how both survive