General Paik Sun Yup: From Pusan to Panmunjom Potomac Memories of War, 2007 (original English version pub 1992) Your typical book on the Korean War centres on Generals MacArthur and Ridgeway, on the landing at Incheon and maybe (if it’s a British account) the battle at the Imjin. It’s a war fought by Americans, with … [Read More]
Category: Non-fiction (page 10)
The epic stand on the Imjin
Jennifer Barclay, author of Meeting Mr Kim: Or How I Went to Korea and Learned to Love Kimchi, looks at Andrew Salmon’s exciting new book on the battle of Imjin River: To The Last Round (Aurum Press, June 2009) To the Last Round by Andrew Salmon gives the most exhaustive account to date of what … [Read More]
Max Hastings: The Korean War
Pan Macmillan, 1987 There are so many books on the Korean War, which commenced 59 years ago today, that it’s difficult to know where to start. One history which has stood the test of time is by Max Hastings. Clocking in at 35% fewer pages than David Halberstam’s recent well-received account, Max Hastings’s The Korean … [Read More]
David Halberstam’s Korean War
David Halberstam The Coldest Winter – America and the Korean War 718pp, Hyperion, 2007 The subtitle of David Halberstam’s magnum opus, The Coldest Winter – America and the Korean War, at first seems a bit unimaginative. But it is to the point. After all, without Truman’s decision to commit US ground forces, the whole Korean … [Read More]
Book Review: Reginald Thompson — Cry Korea
As British war veterans gather in Korea to mark the anniversary of the battle of the Imjin River, Jennifer Barclay reviews a recently republished eye-witness account of the early months of the war. Cry Korea is the most unusual book I’ve read about the Korean War. While interviewing British veterans of that war, I’m often … [Read More]
Book review: Michael Pettid – Korean Cuisine – an illustrated history
Michael Pettid: Korean Cuisine – an illustrated history Reaktion Books, 2008 Michael Pettid’s fascinating study is maybe not for a general reader. But for those who take more than a passing interest in Korean food and culture, this is an informative read. Importantly, the book’s title is Korean Cuisine, not Cookery. Pettid defines Cuisine as … [Read More]
Escaping North Korea book launch
At the book launch of Escaping North Korea last week, author Mike Kim explained that he wanted the book to be “inspirational”. Having seen the huge obstacles faced by North Korean escapees, he found hope in each of their stories: “If the North Koreans can overcome their mountains, I can overcome my hill”, is the … [Read More]
Korea Yearbook 2008
Korea Yearbook 2008 Eds Rüdiger Frank, James E Hoare, Patrick Köllner, Susan Pares Brill, 2009 The 2008 Korea Yearbook – Politics, Economy and Society does many of the things that a reader might expect: it contains a collection of papers which review the key developments in its chosen subject areas for the past year. At … [Read More]
Sandglass the best TV drama ever?
It’s official: Sandglass (모래시계) is the best Korean Drama since 1980. And maybe that qualifies it as the best Korean TV drama ever, but I’m sure there are knowledgeable people out there who will cite a gem from the 70s. Not only was it voted best Drama by those in the know – “20 star … [Read More]
The wave that never was? Mark James Russell’s Pop Goes Korea
Eighteen months ago, Mark Russell caused a minor stir at Naver and in the local Korean press by christening the hallyu the “Zombie Wave”. At the time, industry watchers were concerned that the momentum behind the overseas success of some of Korea’s TV dramas and movie seemed to be waning. Was the Korean wave dying? … [Read More]
Donald Kirk on the late 90s financial crisis
Donald Kirk: Korean Crisis: Unraveling of the Miracle in the IMF Era Publisher: Palgrave Macmillan (1999) The strength of this book is that is brings together in one place the reportage of one of the key foreign journalists based in Seoul during the 1990s. With access to politicians, press releases and Korean and foreign businessmen, … [Read More]
Jennifer Barclay: Meeting Mr Kim
Summersdale Publishers, 2008 Jennifer Barclay went to Seoul with her musician boyfriend eight years ago with no fixed agenda other than a desire to get away from her job. Fortunately, while in Korea she took advantage of her free time to explore parts of the country which are not necessarily on the tourist route. This … [Read More]
Book review: The Dawn of Modern Korea
Andrei Lankov – The Dawn of Modern Korea EunHaeng NaMu publishing, 2008 This entertaining book has, paradoxically, taken me a devil of a long time to finish. That’s not because it’s difficult. It’s because it’s the opposite. The book is co-branded with a series of articles that Andrei Lankov has been writing for the Korea … [Read More]
James Church: Hidden Moon
(Thomas Dunne Books, 2007) After A Corpse in the Koryo, the rip-roaring start to the Inspector O series, Hidden Moon comes as a bit of a disappointment. Maybe the freshness of the debut is a tough act to follow, but somehow the first time round Inspector O had more character. He’s still got his quirky … [Read More]
A border-crosser’s tale (a brief review of Hyejin Kim’s novel, Jia)
Hyejin Kim: Jia – a novel of North Korea Cleis Press, 2007 A novel about a talented dancer from the wrong family background who finds she needs to escape across the border to China. Those who have shown an interest in the reports from Amnesty International and Christian Solidarity Worldwide will not be surprised at … [Read More]
Book review: A (minjung) History of Korea
Korea Historical Research Association (tr Joshua van Lieu) A History of Korea Saffron Books, 2005 It’s the 1980s. In Britain, leftist ideologues such as Red Robbo, Arthur Scargill and Derek Hatton had for years been railing against the government and the establishment using turgid language pilloried in satirical magazines, TV programmes and film (1). Anyone … [Read More]