Customer Reviews

Escape from Camp 14: One man's remarkable odyssey from North Korea to freedom in the West

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"Escape From Camp 14:One Man's Remarkable Oyssey from North Korea To Freedom In The West" is a harrowing real life
story about the "life" of Shin Dong-Hyuak,born in a North Korean prison camp and to say life,there is inhuman is a gross understatment.

The author,Blaine Harden is very honest,this isn't escape,then life is wonderful type of book,Harden is honest that Shin had struggled with freedom since escaping to the West but when one reads about a life of beatings,murders,rape and "snitching" to survive or to gain extra food,to prevent starvation,life where people are treated like human beings,must be like an alien world to Shin.

I found myself feeling ashamed that North Korea,is really only talked about in the West,when they do a nuclear test or some other type of saber waving,the really depressing thing is human rights are still being abused there,at this moment in time.

The one thing I hope more than anything is that Shin's story helps increase the pressure,on North Korea,to radically improve their human rights,or,at the very least,to give them even more bad press coverage in the world.

I've read most of the recent books about North Korea; both those by scholars and those by escapees. This one, written by a journalist, Blaine Harden, is excellent. It brings to life the terrible reality of life in one of North Korea's many Gulags that exist today. And, what is even more shocking, it reveals the life of a young man actually born inside the Gulag who lived the first twenty-six years within a prison. His story makes compelling reading if only because it is a modern-day horror story the world seems unwilling to hear. After sixty years of this totally repressive regime North Korea is now home to several generations of starving, psychologically maladjusted and physically weakened people. Is it any wonder that neither South Korea nor China wants the regime to collapse? The few that have escaped to South Korea and who remain there or move on to another country, such as the United States are totally unprepared to live in our contemporary world and find the adjustment process extremely difficult. Surely this tale of a young man who has endured what few of us can even begin to imagine will urge our politicians that much more must be done to deal with this tragic country. The damage done to the North Koreans is almost worse than anywhere else on earth simply because the situation is so unknown by the outside world. Why do so few care about North Korea? Why is there no urgency in our petitions to politicians and NGOs over the on-going situation in North Korea? I can only hope that more and more people will read this book and be moved to do something to address this terrible situation.

I was very keen to read this book, as the story is unique - the tale of a man born inside a North Korean labour camp, as opposed to being sent there, who then successfully escaped. However, I was disappointed. The author stresses how he interviewed the subject for many, many hours - and yet the story is so thin, padded out with context taken from other books on the subject. I have thought that maybe I've read too many books on North Korea, and perhaps had a skewed view as everything seemed familiar. So, after finishing this book I revisited Hyok Kang's 'This is Paradise!' and once again, found it a profoundly disturbing read. I just feel Escape from Camp 14 was not very well done and having purchased the hardback, the large font helps fill what is not a particularly long read. It's still interesting, and it's a very tragic story - but so average in execution. If you're still going to buy this book, please read other books for comparison - This is Paradise, The Aquariums of Pyongjang, and most importantly, Nothing to Envy. These books give far greater insight and context on life in North Korea in my opinion.

Some of the details in this book are horrific. The incredible evil of the North Korean regime is almost mesmerising. Yet despite this it is very inspiring. The sometimes feeble response from South Korea and other countries toward North Korea is admirably detailed.

The story it tells is incredible but the writer, who is a respected journalist seems to have checked it out quite thoroughly.
It is quite short and I would probably have liked t to have gone into more detail. It is told quite simply but I think that it works as the story of his escape is so powerful that it doesn't need any fussy writing.

It doesn't have a simplistic feel good Hollywood ending and actually details just how hard Shin's adjustment has been and how he has had to overcome many problems. He doesn't always come across as a simplistic heroic figure and yet despite this there is a huge amount to admire about him.

When I started this book I was completely naive to the realities of life in North Korea. This book is a great escape story but most of all a well researched and verified account of the horrors of being a political prisoner in North Korea. I naively though the world had no concentration camps and that mass imprisonment of children for the perceived sins of their parents was only the stuff of Hitler. It is a compelling and disturbing read that leaves you feeling both guilty and lucky to have been born in a free country. I read this book in three sittings and it splits into 3 clear sections, life in camp14, the escape and adjusting to the world.
Each section is excellently written, it is not sensationalist or gory, just matter of fact, leaving to the readers imagination the extent of the horror. Despite the ordeals the subject suffers, it is a good story that keeps you turning the pages and I did enjoy the journey. I finished the book feeling both saddened and angry that such things happen with our knowledge and we are powerless to intervene.

I'm not lying when I say this is the first book I've purchased and finished in the last 6-7 years. As I am not really much of a reader, I find it extremely hard to get in to books, but there was just something about this that made me finish it in 4 days.

Whenever I'm feeling down or need some motivation; I can look back at Shin's journey and seek support from it. Would love to meet him and shake his hand.

Absolutely incredible.

This is a really enjoyable book. It is very clearly written and feels like a well researched account. The author does not draw any conclusions about North Korea and Shin that evidence does not back up and the story of Shin is absolutely amazing. The story is especially sad as it deals with the problems Shin faces after he has escaped; the experience of his younger life was taken with him when he left North Korea and is still effecting how he lives is life post escape.

The one thing I would have liked in the book is a bit more detail on North Korea (from the little that is available) as this would have helped put the story in the context of North Korea as a whole but having said that it does not effect the enjoyment of the book adversely.

This book is about the extraordinary life of Shin Dong-hyuk, who was born and raised inside a camp for political prisoners in the mountains of North Korea. He was serving a life sentence because of the sins of his parents. He did not know what his mother had done to deserve such a sentence, but his father had committed the unforgivable crime of having two brothers who had defected to South Korea. He was brought up a slave in a world where rape, the brutalization and killing of prisoners including children is the norm. He knew nothing about love, friendship or family bonds and his desire to escape was fueled by two short lived friendships with two political prisoners. One he met when he was thirteen the other at the time of his escape. The story also covers his time in China, South Korea and America. This is more than an escape story, it is the tale of the brutalization of a child and his battle to come to terms with his past and his attempt to adapt to the western way of life.
Although the number of North Koreans defecting is growing and our media is reporting more and more about the human rights abuses in the country, Shin Dong-hyuk is thought to be the first person to escape from one of these camps. It is estimated there are two hundred thousand people living as slaves in camps like this in North Korea in unimaginable conditions and this is the only book to my knowledge that covers these camps. On one level this is a book about the worst aspects of human nature, but it is also a book about an emotionally scarred man who is trying to rise above the dehumanization of his childhood to become a caring human being and help others who have been traumatized in North Korea. In that sense, it is a book about the triumph of the spirit.

This review is based upon an advance proof copy. It came with a letter from the publisher stating that it was "written before the [North Korean] succession crisis & has not been updated. The book published on 29th March will have been updated by the author."

The letter also says that "this is possibly the most extraordinary story of one mans' life you will ever read." It certainly represents a staggering achievement - Shin Dong-hyuk was bred in a North Korean prison camp & yet knowing no other world, was miraculously able to escape to Seoul & tell the tale. I say he was 'bred' because his parents were brought together in an authorised coupling by prison guards, as a reward for hard work & loyalty. This rare practice (only open to model inmates in their mid-20's or older) meant they could initially spend 5 nights together & then another 5 nights spread throughout the year. The alternatives were strictly forbidden - camp rules state that "should sexual physical contact occur without prior approval, the perpetrators will be shot immediately". Thus Shin was raised in the camp - his only crime was simply to be born to the wrong parents, as Kim Il-Sung had decreed that if one parent went bad, the next two generations must be 'purified' as well.

This is just one example of the astonishing levels of oppression which the prisoners of Camp 14 endure. While many earlier books on North Korea (such as Barbara Demick's highly recommended Nothing to Envy) paint a chilling portrait of life for ordinary citizens in this police state, Shin's story is even worse. Once he escaped to a nearby town, "it shocked him to see North Koreans going about their daily lives without having to take orders from guards. When they had the temerity to ... wear brightly coloured clothes or haggle over prices in an open-air market, he expected armed men to step in, knock heads, and stop the nonsense." The details of how he was able to get out of the country also indicates the chilling extent of the poverty & deprivation that have blighted North Korea & (luckily for Shin) undermined its regime.

While author Blaine Harden includes other sources to back up many of Shin's claims, most of them are of course unverifiable. Getting any information about this secretive state is a challenge - particularly when it flatly denies the existence of the labour camps, despite them apparently being visible on Google Earth. However, having been brought up surrounded by deceit, Shin claims he is now determined to be as honest as possible. Only he knows the real truth of that but there are certainly numerous occasions where he paints himself in a much less than favourable light. Shin is certainly no hero - just somebody who survived in a place where even mothers don't trust their own children, and vice versa, each seeing the other as merely an object in the way of their survival. It must also be borne in mind that Shin was not taught a moral code of conduct during his formative years - merely that the 'original sins' of his parents must be atoned for with hard work & that the slightest breach of the rules must be reported to the guards immediately. But then it wasn't until he was in his 20's that somebody so much as "explained the concept of money. He told Shin about the existence of television & computers & mobile phones. He explained that the world was round."

Sat at my laptop, glancing over at my dusty rice cooker - apparently the ultimate status symbol amongst the elite of Pyongyang - it would be impossible to conceive that people could endure such levels of repression for their whole lives, were it not for this remarkable book. It's an incredible story, which comes across as exceptionally honest - it's far too brutal to be anything else. The author & his subject work well together in giving a sense of how such a harsh environment affects the people who live in it. I'm glad that Shin is in a better place now but it's hard to push from my mind the thousands who are still there - after all, he's the only known escapee. We take so very much for granted...

Similar in style & content to Nothing to Envy, Escape From Camp 14 is even more harrowing.

There aren't very many news stories or articles about North Korea, which is considered to be one of the most isolated and restricted countries in the world. It is the first time that I have ever read the memoir of the former North Korean refugee.

Shin was born in the labour camp 14. It is so sad to read that an extremely innocent child was forced to live in the brutal and inhospitable environment where he didn't hear the word of `love' or `sympathy', and he was never celebrated his birthday until he managed to escape to South Korea. Having been brought up in the prisoners' camp, he rarely saw his parents and brother. He was given the education, but he was only given the rudimentary level of education which enabled him to follow the instructions of work. Raising questions or disobeying the teacher did not only get him into trouble but would be liable to be given very harsh punishment or if unlucky, he would be shot immediately. He was forced to do hard labour in the very appealing conditions from the young age and saw a number of fellow pupils or workers died.

The memoir produced by Blaine Harden is very honest and constructive, and it gives the evidence of the brutal school and work environments Shin experienced, how he would have thought of his mother and brother being executed when he was 13, and the way his life and thought would have changed after meeting of less strenuous teacher and Park who told him the life of outside the labour camp and outside of North Korea. Having done scrupulous and through research, he reveals the detailed account of history and politics and discovers the very notorious actions of transferring collections of disaster funds to the North Korea Community Party, which have been happening since 1980s.

I have to say Shin's story is extremely harrowing, hard-going, gripping, and remarkable, and I was very glad and relieved to learn that he survived to the end and read through his life. I do hope that this memoir will help to increase awareness of North Korean's human right's issues to the world.