Dear leader meaning
"a breezy and gossipy account of the life of the Dear Leader, who has been variously portrayed in the West" (Sunday Telegraph, 22 February )
"he interestingly draws on some psychological profiles and a few accounts of those that have met him [Kim Jong Il]" (Spectator, 28 February )
"immensely knowledgeable" (The Herald, Glasgow, 6 March )
The only Asian state on US President George W. Bush's famous "Axis of Evil", it stands threateningly outside the community of nations.
For most of the world, communism is now ancient history.
North korea dear leader biography books free
It is also the gripping story of how a member of the inner circle of this enigmatic country became its most courageous, outspoken critic. Jang Jin-sung held one of the most senior ranks in North Korea's propaganda machine, helping tighten the regime's grip over its people. Among his tasks were developing the founding myth of North Korea, posing undercover as a South Korean intellectual and writing epic poems in support of the dictator, Kim Jong-il. Young and ambitious, his patriotic work secured him a bizarre audience with Kim Jong-il himself, thus granting him special status as one of the 'Admitted'. This meant special food provisions, a travel pass and immunity from prosecution and harm.But in North Korea, it is still very much alive. Indeed, the communist personality cult that still holds the country together is arguably more fanatical than any other before it.
The unlikely object of worship for the country's 23 million people is Kim Jong-il, the pudgy and reclusive son of former dictator, Kim Il-sung. Little is known about Kim in the fraternity of international leaders, except for one rather disturbing fact: under his leadership, his country has become the first to withdraw from the international system of controls on nuclear weapons, which has put Kim Jong-il on a collision course with the United States.
What makes this especially remarkable and worrying is that this country with aspirations to become a nuclear power, has all but collapsed economically.
Its people are so impoverished and malno urished that they are, on average, several inches shorter and many pounds lighter than people of the same age living across the demilitarized border in rival South Korea.
Kim Jong-il is the one fat man in the whole country.
How long can he continue in power?
North korea dear leader biography books North Korea's senior propagandist exposes shocking truths behind the regime. A rare and extraordinary glimpse into the reality of life in North Korea, by a member of the powerful elite. Dear Leader contains astonishing new insights about North Korea which could only be revealed by someone working high up in the regime. It is also the gripping story of how a member of the inner circle of this enigmatic country became its most courageous, outspoken critic. Jang Jin-sung held one of the most senior ranks in North Korea's propaganda machine, helping tighten the regime's grip over its people.What stops his regime from collapsing politically? Will his reign end in nuclear warfare or will he go quietly? Or will he surprise us all and start true reconciliation between the two halves of the Korean peninsular? The answers, Michael Breen argues in this fascinating and colourful portrait, all lie with Kim Jong-il.
From the Back Cover
A must read for all those trying to understand what is happening in the hermit kingdom and what is now one of the most unstable places on earth. The potential for a miscalculation is breathtaking in its dangers to us all."
?Mike Moore, Former Director-General of WTO and former Prime Minister of New Zealand
"In Kim Jong Il: North Korea's Dear Leader, Michael Breen provides what much of the world has been waiting for: an in-depth look at the dark and secret Korea of Kim Jong-Il.
North korea dear leader biography books pdf Dear Leader contains astonishing new insights about North Korea which could only be revealed by someone working high up in the regime. It is also the gripping story of how a member of the inner circle of this enigmatic country became its most courageous, outspoken critic. Jang Jin-sung held one of the most senior ranks in North Korea's propaganda machine, helping tighten the regime's grip over its people. Among his tasks were developing the founding myth of North Korea, posing undercover as a South Korean intellectual and writing epic poems in support of the dictator, Kim Jong-il. Young and ambitious, his patriotic work secured him a bizarre audience with Kim Jong-il himself, thus granting him special status as one of the 'Admitted'.His insights are revelatory, sophisticated, and plainly communicated. A testament to its accuracy, I doubt the book will see the light of day inside North Korea."
?Dan Briody, Author of bestseller, The Iron Triangle: Inside the Secret World of the Carlyle Group
"Michael Breen's portrait of Kim Jong-il is a compelling psychoanalysis of the world's last Stalinist dictator.
The book explains how Kim manages to maintain an iron grip over his poverty-stricken country while holding the world's only superpower to ransom with weapons of mass destruction. In parts the book reads like a black comedy, so bizarre is the regime it describes. Breen combines his eye for farce with a keen sensitivity to the plight of North Korea's 22 million oppressed and starving people.
But he makes clear it is too simplistic to dismiss Kim as an evil madman. Breen shows how North Korea is an accident of history, trapped in a Cold War time warp from which Kim is unable to escape. A lively and accessible read."
?Andrew Ward, Korea correspondent, Financial Times
"One can be free to hate him but we must also learn more of the "Fat Bastard" for he is unlikely to disappear however we wish him to.
Michael Breen has written an extremely timely, readable and well researched book to tell us who Kim Jong-il is and how best to deal with him."
?Tomohiko Taniguchi, Editor-at-Large, Nikkei Business Publications, Inc.
About the Author
Michael Breen is a writer and communications consultant based in Seoul.
Head of state known as dear leader Trade Paperback. Since leaving the country he has become a bestselling author and widely solicited commentator on North Korea. Check out this month's discounted reads. Red-hot romances, poolside fiction, and blockbuster picks, oh my! Start reading the hottest books of the summer.He first went to South Korea as a journalist. He covered both North and South Korea for several newspapers before giving up journalism to pursue a fascination with North Korea. He became a management consultant advising companies on dealing with the communist state.
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