Published by the Gwangju International Center since 2001
In this non-fiction book, Erik Larson sets out two distinct stories that appear to have no connection to each other. And it is also the case that the large cast of characters in each story never meet each other, nor do they ever have any desire or reason to meet. Yet, while one protagonist is crucial to the downfall of the other, the second protagonist is significant in the success of the former.
In the popular narrative of South Korea, people generally, and somewhat correctly, believe that this country that has become such an incredible economic and cultural powerhouse was built on sheer hard work. What is so easily overlooked is the human cost and the sacrifice, often by those who were willing to pay the ultimate price for their beliefs, that fundamentally shifted the landscape and laid the true foundation upon which democracy could take hold.
In the beginning chapters, the writing may make the book seem simplistic. But the author, Kazuo Ishiguro, is a Nobel Prize recipient, and from reading two of his other novels, I learned that there is a lot more happening than might first appear.
Mark Zuckerberg is one of the best-known people on the planet and one of the most despised. How could someone who is “a staunch believer in free expression,” an individual trying to connect people, create so much controversy?
“She tells an interesting story about the beginning of Korean television dramas.”
“As Tony thinks about, recollects, and analyzes the passage of time, his mind whirls around the concepts of regret, even remorse, wondering if one can receive forgiveness.”
“Perhaps if we all listen and focus more, we can avoid the pitfalls of not knowing how to talk to one another.”
“Throughout the book, Michael goes back years in time and pulls stories seemingly out of thin air and pops them into the present.”
