The Great Successor
The Divinely Perfect Destiny of Brilliant Comrade Kim Jong Un
by Anna Fifield
ebook
2 of 2 copies available
Since his birth in 1984, Kim Jong Un has been swaddled in myth and propaganda, from the plainly silly — he could supposedly drive a car at the age of three — to the grimly bloody stories of family members who perished at his command.
Anna Fifield reconstructs Kim's past and present with exclusive access to sources near him and brings her unique understanding to explain the dynastic mission of the Kim family in North Korea. The archaic notion of despotic family rule matches the almost medieval hardship the country has suffered under the Kims. Few people thought that a young, untested, unhealthy, Swiss-educated basketball fanatic could hold together a country that should have fallen apart years ago. But Kim Jong Un has not just survived, he has thrived, abetted by the approval of Donald Trump and diplomacy's weirdest bromance.
Skeptical yet insightful, Fifield creates a captivating portrait of the oddest and most secretive political regime in the world — one that is isolated yet internationally relevant, bankrupt yet in possession of nuclear weapons — and its ruler, the self-proclaimed Beloved and Respected Leader, Kim Jong Un.
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Creators
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Publisher
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Release date
June 11, 2019 -
Formats
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Kindle Book
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OverDrive Read
- ISBN: 9781541742505
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EPUB ebook
- ISBN: 9781541742505
- File size: 2705 KB
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Languages
- English
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Reviews
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A journalist experienced in reporting from Asia penetrates the secrecy of North Korea about as well as humanly possible. Fifield, the current Beijing bureau chief for the Washington Post and former Tokyo chief for that publication, focuses on Kim Jong Un, the third consecutive leader from the same family to subjugate the citizenry since the partition of Korea after World War II. The author has no direct access to Kim Jong Un (very few do), who was only 27 when he succeeded his father as supreme leader. Because of the outlandish and relentless North Korean government propaganda about the divine origins of the family's three generations, treating the leaders seriously can seem like an exercise in dishonesty. In addition, the cartoonish physical appearance of Kim Jong Un often gives rise to cruel satire. Refreshingly, Fifield avoids the temptation to treat him less than seriously. Despite his presiding over a police state, the malnutrition of most North Koreans, the bluster, and the "decrepit kleptocracy that was his inheritance," Fifield understands that the young despot has improved conditions for the citizenry. Partly due to the spotlight that President Donald Trump has shined on him, the North Korean dictator has received sustained attention on the global stage, a phenomenon that the author documents beyond the superficial daily headlines. Most of Fifield's sources have justified reasons to despise the North Korean family dynasty, but her strong journalism skills allow her to separate the wheat from the chaff of biased sources. At times, she brings herself into the narrative, but she does so judiciously. There is some comic relief with the entrance of such odd characters as former professional basketball player Dennis Rodman, who "loved the adulation he received" when he visited North Korea. Fifield is also good at explaining the personal obsessions that define Kim Jong Un's dual-level dictatorship, with the top level reserved for the North Korean supporters upon whom he has bestowed lavish wealth. A compelling mix of biography, cultural history, and political intrigue.
COPYRIGHT(2019) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. (Online Review)
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