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The Reluctant Communist: My Desertion, Court-Martial, and Forty-Year Imprisonment in North Korea
In January of 1965, twenty-four-year-old U.S. Army sergeant Charles Robert Jenkins abandoned his post in South Korea, walked across the DMZ, and surrendered to communist North Korean soldiers standing sentry along the world's most heavily militarized border. He believed his action would get him back to the States and a short jail sentence. Instead he found himself in another sort of prison, where for forty years he suffered under one of the most brutal and repressive regimes the world has known. This fast-paced, harrowing tale, told plainly and simply by Jenkins (with journalist Jim Frederick), takes the reader behind the North Korean curtain and reveals the inner workings of its isolated society while offering a powerful testament to the human spirit.
238 pages, Hardcover
Published March 25, 2008
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 145 reviews
July 17, 2011
Charles Robert Jenkins's The Reluctant Communist is the story of the defection to, virtual imprisonment in, and return from North Korea. As a young Sergeant in the US Army, Jenkins crossed in mid-1950s the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separated US-friendly South Korea from the Communist North Korea of Kim Il-Sung. Once "over", Jenkins found himself a trophy for the North Korean government, the rare American who decided North Korea was the better deal. For forty years, Jenkins has to live under the "guidance" (read: mandatory orders) of the cadres, semi-anonymous officials of the repressive regime. His escape is bound to his getting married with a Japanese woman who was abducted by the North Koreans, presumably to educate spies in Japanese culture. In the early 2000s, the Japanese prime-minister Koizumi pressured North Korea into admitting the abductions and in returning the abducted Japanese; his success was extended to the families of these Japanese, and thus to Jenkins.
The story told by Jenkins is interesting. We get a glimpse of the life in North Korea, including some insider information about the evolution of conditions, the worsening of public and social services (as experienced by someone behind a golden fence), the growth of corruption and endemic theft. We get to understand the extent of indoctrination (the daily or weekly chores of learning the words of The Great Leader, the periodic self-criticism), all under the supervision of house and regional leaders. We get a few glimpses of the double-speak and general insubordination permeating the society.
I am, however, unable to really appreciate this story. There are many question marks about the details described by Jenkins; among them, the explanation about crossing the DMZ, the claim of almost no cooperation with the party, the claim of a detached mind (of not being at all involved, just living through the motions); how could Jenkins build a trade in honey without the officials finding out about it? etc. There is little of what we did not know about the internals of North Korea; the story gives me the feeling that Jenkins want to avoid burning the bridges back to North Korea. Some of the text feels like vague confirmation (read:what the West wants to hear): claims of seeing political homicides, claims of seeing the workings of labor camps, an alleged (and extremely improbable) confession of homicidal crimes by a party leader, etc.
Overall, a non-informative book from a shady character. The only interesting element is North Korea.
The story told by Jenkins is interesting. We get a glimpse of the life in North Korea, including some insider information about the evolution of conditions, the worsening of public and social services (as experienced by someone behind a golden fence), the growth of corruption and endemic theft. We get to understand the extent of indoctrination (the daily or weekly chores of learning the words of The Great Leader, the periodic self-criticism), all under the supervision of house and regional leaders. We get a few glimpses of the double-speak and general insubordination permeating the society.
I am, however, unable to really appreciate this story. There are many question marks about the details described by Jenkins; among them, the explanation about crossing the DMZ, the claim of almost no cooperation with the party, the claim of a detached mind (of not being at all involved, just living through the motions); how could Jenkins build a trade in honey without the officials finding out about it? etc. There is little of what we did not know about the internals of North Korea; the story gives me the feeling that Jenkins want to avoid burning the bridges back to North Korea. Some of the text feels like vague confirmation (read:what the West wants to hear): claims of seeing political homicides, claims of seeing the workings of labor camps, an alleged (and extremely improbable) confession of homicidal crimes by a party leader, etc.
Overall, a non-informative book from a shady character. The only interesting element is North Korea.
October 7, 2015
I so enjoyed this book. I think Jim Frederick, the journalist who wrote the memoir for the soldier Charles R Jenkins, deserves a lot of the credit. It is a sixty year story of one giant mistake and lots of strange and real events. An average person, an American soldier, decided in a moment of cowardice to leave his unit and cross the border from South Korea to North Korea, remained hostage there for 40 years until he and his family were released to Japan. I am sure Jenkins is in some ways a difficult person and I have no doubt that this story could have been unflattering or difficult to read had there not been a skilled writer at the task, but the book isn’t aggrandizing or obsessed with the personality of the protagonist. It just focuses on a series of fascinating and true events in very plain first person language. It helps that Jenkins apologizes, justifies himself but doesn't fall over himself in begging forgiveness for his dessertion.
The book is funny and heartwarming (the parts about his marriage made me cry}, plus quite informative about North Korea, the army, diplomacy and such. Perfect for the summer. I recommend it to all of my friends.
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PS: the part about the Korean requirement of regular self-criticism (a confession of sorts) is a hoot and had me in stiches. Jenkins and his buddies would in all seriousness look for things they can do wrong, minor things, so they can record the mandatory self-criticism. Jenkins says: “We would do something we knew we weren’t supposed to, like steal some peaches, and we’d say ‘that’s one for the sum up [self-criticism] book’”. Crackup! Needing to sin so you can confess to your sins, how twisted can the logic be? I think I’ll start my own sum up book now.
It just goes to show how anything important to our lives, like introspection or self criticism, becomes such a hilarious joke when forced.
The book is funny and heartwarming (the parts about his marriage made me cry}, plus quite informative about North Korea, the army, diplomacy and such. Perfect for the summer. I recommend it to all of my friends.
---
PS: the part about the Korean requirement of regular self-criticism (a confession of sorts) is a hoot and had me in stiches. Jenkins and his buddies would in all seriousness look for things they can do wrong, minor things, so they can record the mandatory self-criticism. Jenkins says: “We would do something we knew we weren’t supposed to, like steal some peaches, and we’d say ‘that’s one for the sum up [self-criticism] book’”. Crackup! Needing to sin so you can confess to your sins, how twisted can the logic be? I think I’ll start my own sum up book now.
It just goes to show how anything important to our lives, like introspection or self criticism, becomes such a hilarious joke when forced.
May 26, 2010
There's plenty of tragedy in Jenkins' story, but the truly compelling part is how he not only survived, but carved out a kind of peaceful haven in the midst of North Korea. It's a testament to the ingenuity and resilience of the spirit. How to make a fishing net that will last forever (you will need one dead pig for this), how to break into the black market, how to build a self-heating floor from scraps or rig up your own plumbing: it's all in here, part of the way in which people adapt to repression and scarcity. Though his account of his dealings with the state are fairly toneless, his descriptions of the human element - family, neighbors, and fellow American defectors - brings the narrative alive, and gives the reader an amazing look at what daily life is like inside North Korea.
May 25, 2013
The words I chose to describe this may be surprising to you, they are to me. This is a sweet story of one bad decision and the consequences. Mr. Jenkins tells his story of living in North Korea with simple words and clear images. It is simple in part because HE is simple. He is so simple because he lived his adult life inside a country with little if any outside influence. I read this book because of reading "Escape From Camp 14" and was as surprised by the simplicity of 'Reluctant' as I was by the harshness of 'Camp 14' both are stark descriptions of life inside North Korea, both told after miraculously leaving. Both are educational in vastly different ways.
June 18, 2024
"My first thought, I remember clearly, was: “This can’t be happening.” Once I registered that it was indeed happening, my second thought was simple: “I’m toast.”
The Reluctant Communist was a great telling of an incredible real-life saga. The author drops the quote above early on.
Author Charles Robert Jenkins (18 February 1940 – 11 December 2017) was a United States Army deserter, North Korean prisoner, and voice for Japanese abductees in North Korea.
Charles Robert Jenkins:
The book's introduction was written by Jim Frederick. Fredrick describes the process of meeting and interviewing Jenkins for the material in the book. The writing in the book proper is told in a style akin to how Jenkins speaks; says Fredrick. I felt that this formatting worked here.
Fredrick says this about Jenkins:
And this of the strange Hermit Kingdom:
I will keep any plot details out of this review, to avoid giving away any spoilers, but the story told here was pretty incredible. As the book's title tells you, he would spend 40 years imprisoned in North Korea. For anyone interested, this article sums up the events of the book well.
******************
I really enjoyed The Reluctant Communist. It was a fascinating glimpse into some of the workings of the world's most secretive country.
I would recommend it to anyone interested.
5 stars.
The Reluctant Communist was a great telling of an incredible real-life saga. The author drops the quote above early on.
Author Charles Robert Jenkins (18 February 1940 – 11 December 2017) was a United States Army deserter, North Korean prisoner, and voice for Japanese abductees in North Korea.
Charles Robert Jenkins:
The book's introduction was written by Jim Frederick. Fredrick describes the process of meeting and interviewing Jenkins for the material in the book. The writing in the book proper is told in a style akin to how Jenkins speaks; says Fredrick. I felt that this formatting worked here.
Fredrick says this about Jenkins:
"Charles Robert Jenkins is, quite simply, a figure of lasting historical importance. He has lived a life that’s unique in twentiethcentury history. No other Westerner has survived so long in the world’s least known, least visited, and least understood country on the planet and been able to return to tell the tale. And what he has to say is vitally important: Is there any country in the world harder to get a handle on than North Korea? And while there are certainly rivals when it comes to the intensity of American diplomatic bungling, has any country been a U.S. foreign relations debacle so consistently for so many years? While native North Korean defectors and escapees from its gulags have made some horrors of that nation known to the world, Jenkins is the first Westerner able to provide a long-term, detailed view of this secretive and brutal society from the perspective of an outsider who became intimately familiar with its inner workings. I do not profess to know much about North Korea, but I’m confident Charles Robert Jenkins knows more about it than just about any foreigner on the planet."
And this of the strange Hermit Kingdom:
"The curtain Robert draws back on the mundane, relentless, dehumanizing operation of the North Korean state—its wastes of money and labor on domestic spying rather than economic output, its language-debasing doublespeak, its interference in the most intimate details of its residents’ lives—helps demonstrate how insidious and debilitating, bizarre and oppressive the country is. The story of Robert’s life was more difficult to tell since it did not reach either extreme of the sensationalism spectrum. He is neither a villain nor a hero, just a man trying to cope with the guilt of a horrible mistake while eking out an existence in a country unimaginably strange and hostile. But I hope that this attention to the quotidian, this focus on the struggle of everyday life, has produced a more nuanced and valuable contribution to our understanding of North Korea."
I will keep any plot details out of this review, to avoid giving away any spoilers, but the story told here was pretty incredible. As the book's title tells you, he would spend 40 years imprisoned in North Korea. For anyone interested, this article sums up the events of the book well.
******************
I really enjoyed The Reluctant Communist. It was a fascinating glimpse into some of the workings of the world's most secretive country.
I would recommend it to anyone interested.
5 stars.
March 31, 2009
What a terrible piss-poor existence this man had. I felt like I lived it with him as I read this book. Every day was the same. Every year was the same.
I didn't want to stop reading it because I didn't want to miss something exciting, but it was just more of the same. Surviving and existing, but not really living. Pathetic.
I didn't want to stop reading it because I didn't want to miss something exciting, but it was just more of the same. Surviving and existing, but not really living. Pathetic.
April 22, 2010
Incredible. I read this in a day.
I'm so glad that Jenkins was able to get himself and his family out of North Korea safely. As for his desertion, it's clear from the story that he's sorry, and that he paid for it with 40 years of his life in the prison-state that is North Korea.
Great, great read.
I'm so glad that Jenkins was able to get himself and his family out of North Korea safely. As for his desertion, it's clear from the story that he's sorry, and that he paid for it with 40 years of his life in the prison-state that is North Korea.
Great, great read.
May 29, 2011
Interesting and easy read! I finished this book in three days. A military man leaves his post in South Korea, walks into North Korea on his own and spends 40 years there.
I am now fascinated with North Korea!
I am now fascinated with North Korea!
June 12, 2018
¿Por que te vas a unir al ejercito si no quieres ir a la guerra?
May 8, 2010
Not going to lie, I read this book because I was in awe with video the Vice did on North Korea. They followed it up with a blurb on Jenkins which lead me to this book.
If you've browsed the Internet hunting for information on North Korea, you're probably not going to get any interesting insights from this book. You'll also quickly notice that Jenkins has the vocabulary and cadence of a sixth grader (that's probably a direct reflection of both his 40 years in North Korea and just how much North Korea values education and the well being of it's people). Like most people said, I think I finished this in about two days.
The book gave some good food for thought and holds your interest, nonetheless.
Coming from a middle-class background, I was never placed in a position where one of my only options for a better life was to join the military. I was also never placed in a position where I may have been sent to war.
Although, I can't say with confidence what I would do if I was placed in the position of Jenkins (where I was homesick on the other side of the world and firmly believed that I was about to be sent to war), I can say with confidence that if I were in that situation as a sergeant leading troops on a routine nightly rotation of the DMZ, I would not abandon my troops, leave them for dead, while maneuvering myself through a minefield to cross the border to surrender myself to North Korea, while entertaining a fantasy that, once I speak to an embassy inside North Korea, I'll be sent back to America as some sort of military hero through an international hostage trade. Which is exactly what he did.
A thing that got me thinking, is I do question if he is remorseful about what he did. I also think, that just maybe, North Korea did indeed offer him a better life?
He said it himself, it was both the best and worst thing that happened to him. The best thing because of his wife (I don't question his love and devotion for her and his daughters), and the worst thing because, well, he's now an expatriot in North Korea.
Adding my feelings about his character, he comes across as cowardly and reckless. He made it no secret that he liked to drink (he did drink about ten beers before crossing the border) and I'm convinced that if he wasn't in North Korea he probably would have drank himself to death and wouldn't be alive today. In that respect, I think North Korea saved him. Not to mention, if it wasn't for North Korea, more-or-less, mating him with his wife (who was kidnapped in Japan for North Korea's spy program) he wouldn't have the family he has today. It was because he was married to her that he got out.
This is turning into a long one. Interesting and not very challenging read for someone who's interested in North Korea.
If you've browsed the Internet hunting for information on North Korea, you're probably not going to get any interesting insights from this book. You'll also quickly notice that Jenkins has the vocabulary and cadence of a sixth grader (that's probably a direct reflection of both his 40 years in North Korea and just how much North Korea values education and the well being of it's people). Like most people said, I think I finished this in about two days.
The book gave some good food for thought and holds your interest, nonetheless.
Coming from a middle-class background, I was never placed in a position where one of my only options for a better life was to join the military. I was also never placed in a position where I may have been sent to war.
Although, I can't say with confidence what I would do if I was placed in the position of Jenkins (where I was homesick on the other side of the world and firmly believed that I was about to be sent to war), I can say with confidence that if I were in that situation as a sergeant leading troops on a routine nightly rotation of the DMZ, I would not abandon my troops, leave them for dead, while maneuvering myself through a minefield to cross the border to surrender myself to North Korea, while entertaining a fantasy that, once I speak to an embassy inside North Korea, I'll be sent back to America as some sort of military hero through an international hostage trade. Which is exactly what he did.
A thing that got me thinking, is I do question if he is remorseful about what he did. I also think, that just maybe, North Korea did indeed offer him a better life?
He said it himself, it was both the best and worst thing that happened to him. The best thing because of his wife (I don't question his love and devotion for her and his daughters), and the worst thing because, well, he's now an expatriot in North Korea.
Adding my feelings about his character, he comes across as cowardly and reckless. He made it no secret that he liked to drink (he did drink about ten beers before crossing the border) and I'm convinced that if he wasn't in North Korea he probably would have drank himself to death and wouldn't be alive today. In that respect, I think North Korea saved him. Not to mention, if it wasn't for North Korea, more-or-less, mating him with his wife (who was kidnapped in Japan for North Korea's spy program) he wouldn't have the family he has today. It was because he was married to her that he got out.
This is turning into a long one. Interesting and not very challenging read for someone who's interested in North Korea.
March 5, 2024
The story of an American soldier who deserted to North Korea and somehow, amazingly, was able to return to the free world after 40 years. The story dragged a bit in the middle, but as soon as we met Jenkins' future wife (a Japanese woman abducted by North Korea), I was hooked.
May 7, 2012
Former U.S. Army Sergeant Charles Robert Jenkins' shocking story of dishonorable defection, perpetual hardship, and an unlikely romance unfold in this ghostwritten memoir told now decades after his "release" from North Korea. TIME magazine correspondent Jim Frederick assists in crafting a regret-filled attempt of rectifying Jenkins' 1965 defection and subsequent life across the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) into hostile territory. His life in North Korea was indeed extraordinary but is everything what it seems on the surface?
Jenkins' originally published his memoir in Japanese in 2005 and was then translated into Korean in 2006; this English language edition tells his unbelievable story from his unlikely desertion while leading a patrol, to his discovery of three other American defectors, to his adjustment to new life in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Because of his unique willingness to cross over, Jenkins and the other defectors occupied a unique position in North Korean society; not fully trusted yet strangely revered as "Cold War trophies". Some even rose to celebrity status after portraying despicable foreigners in popular propaganda films.
Although Jenkins mostly lived in rather spartan conditions, he's quick to point out that others in the North Korean countryside were not as fortunate during times of famine. His apparent ineffective brainwashing sessions were constant and government-assigned minders persistently dictated his day-to-day life. His residence changed often as did his assigned jobs; sometimes making fish nets other times teaching English. However regimented his life was, he still found himself in a situation to fall in love with a Japanese abductee. What happens when Jenkins leaves North Korea I'll leave for the reader to discover.
His narration is seductively easy to follow and makes appropriate detours when explanations are necessary to clarify context. The reader is cautiously drawn in to empathize with Jenkins and his plight. His story is told simply with few obvious embellishments. However, I'm still not fully convinced that the whole story is being fully disclosed. Jenkins' relationship with the other Americans is of particular interest, partly because some of the accounts conflict with what fellow defector Joe Dresnok recalls in the 2006 documentary Crossing the Line.
What concludes is a peculiar tale of almost Hollywood caliber. Reportedly, American film producer Brett Ratner has secured the rights to make a film adaption of Jenkins' story. One can only hope it's better than Tower Heist. That's not asking for much.
Jenkins' originally published his memoir in Japanese in 2005 and was then translated into Korean in 2006; this English language edition tells his unbelievable story from his unlikely desertion while leading a patrol, to his discovery of three other American defectors, to his adjustment to new life in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK). Because of his unique willingness to cross over, Jenkins and the other defectors occupied a unique position in North Korean society; not fully trusted yet strangely revered as "Cold War trophies". Some even rose to celebrity status after portraying despicable foreigners in popular propaganda films.
Although Jenkins mostly lived in rather spartan conditions, he's quick to point out that others in the North Korean countryside were not as fortunate during times of famine. His apparent ineffective brainwashing sessions were constant and government-assigned minders persistently dictated his day-to-day life. His residence changed often as did his assigned jobs; sometimes making fish nets other times teaching English. However regimented his life was, he still found himself in a situation to fall in love with a Japanese abductee. What happens when Jenkins leaves North Korea I'll leave for the reader to discover.
His narration is seductively easy to follow and makes appropriate detours when explanations are necessary to clarify context. The reader is cautiously drawn in to empathize with Jenkins and his plight. His story is told simply with few obvious embellishments. However, I'm still not fully convinced that the whole story is being fully disclosed. Jenkins' relationship with the other Americans is of particular interest, partly because some of the accounts conflict with what fellow defector Joe Dresnok recalls in the 2006 documentary Crossing the Line.
What concludes is a peculiar tale of almost Hollywood caliber. Reportedly, American film producer Brett Ratner has secured the rights to make a film adaption of Jenkins' story. One can only hope it's better than Tower Heist. That's not asking for much.
December 31, 2012
Being on a North Korea kick at the moment, this book seemed like essential reading. And indeed it is. Kafka could hardly have written a more . . . Kafkaesque story than the true (probably mostly) story of Charles Robert Jenkins who one cold night in early 1965 walked across the DMZ into North Korea, deserting his unit for, he thought, repatriation back to the United States via the Soviet puppet masters of North Korea. His motive? He was lonely, scared, and drunk. The problem: there were no Soviet puppet masters of North Korea, only Kim Il Sung. What followed was a truly bizarre and sad 40 years, punctuated with a few decent moments. Jenkins, for example, did marry a woman whom he loved and who loved him, and they had two daughters. His wife was a Japanese national kidnapped in her hometown by North Korean agents and lived her own Kafkaesque nightmare. In 2002 Kim Jong Il decided to come half clean on the kidnappings of Japanese citizens and released the ones who were still alive (or to be more precise, the ones N. Korea acknowledged). This included his wife, and eventually their two daughters and finally Jenkins himself, after nearly 40 years behind the Really Weird Curtain. He was court martialed (lawman always comes calling) and he served a month in the brig and today he lives with his family in Japan. This is his story and it is a fascinating one.
Some interesting revelations:
- Jenkins was compelled to translate movies for, he assumes, subtitling. He was given *audio* snippets of movies and a tape recorder with slow and fast functions and required to translate entire movies this way. Often he had no idea what he was translating, but he does know that he translated Kramer vs Kramer and Mary Poppins.
- He acknowledges that over the years he (and several other Americans whom he lived with) and his family definitely had a higher living standard than the average North Korean. Yet this standard was still appallingly low. Jenkins goes into specific detail. Think: rats in the toilet.
- His sadness and loneliness at having to live with his "big mistake." He thought he would for sure die in North Koreah. Interestingly, he says that when people ask him if he would do it all over again he cannot deny that he would, for the simple reason that it only because he walked into North Korea that he lived his life with the love of his life and their children, and he could not agree to doing a life over again without them.
Some interesting revelations:
- Jenkins was compelled to translate movies for, he assumes, subtitling. He was given *audio* snippets of movies and a tape recorder with slow and fast functions and required to translate entire movies this way. Often he had no idea what he was translating, but he does know that he translated Kramer vs Kramer and Mary Poppins.
- He acknowledges that over the years he (and several other Americans whom he lived with) and his family definitely had a higher living standard than the average North Korean. Yet this standard was still appallingly low. Jenkins goes into specific detail. Think: rats in the toilet.
- His sadness and loneliness at having to live with his "big mistake." He thought he would for sure die in North Koreah. Interestingly, he says that when people ask him if he would do it all over again he cannot deny that he would, for the simple reason that it only because he walked into North Korea that he lived his life with the love of his life and their children, and he could not agree to doing a life over again without them.
April 28, 2014
I really liked this book. It gives a rare and modern insight into life in North Korea. Mr. Jenkins was depressed and unhappy in his military assignment for the U.S. in South Korea, near the DMZ (de-militarized zone). In his naivete and lack of judgment, he made a decision to go AWOL and figured he could slip into North Korea and get back to the US. Instead he was a prisoner for nearly 40 years, in a similar way to how all North Korean citizens are prisoners. He was one of the very lucky few who ever get to leave, which came about by some very provident circumstances. I am very happy for him and his family.
I am sad for people who live what most of us would consider a terrible life. It's astounding that one or a few very selfish people can cause a nation of 25 million to live in poverty, ignorance, and bondage. I am thankful for my personal assurance through my faith that it will be "made up" to these innocents after this life is over. Kim Jong will have to answer to God.
I am sad for people who live what most of us would consider a terrible life. It's astounding that one or a few very selfish people can cause a nation of 25 million to live in poverty, ignorance, and bondage. I am thankful for my personal assurance through my faith that it will be "made up" to these innocents after this life is over. Kim Jong will have to answer to God.
October 3, 2008
This is rather a sad little book about a sad little man who, through ignorance, made one powerful mistake that he has paid dearly for for pretty much the rest of his life. Of course, it is self-serving as well.
May 16, 2012
Not the best book about North Korea, but worth a read. It focuses mainly on the few American deserters in North Korea, their families and their interaction with the system of the DPRK.
April 10, 2015
Glad to be an American!
January 5, 2020
I don’t think it is really my place to say what Charles Robert Jenkins future should have looked like. Even after reading the book I don’t have a solid feeling about his crime, whether I sympathise or not. Fascinating book and most certainly made me grateful for the life I lead. We all make mistakes is the main message given.
September 7, 2021
An interesting read into a story about a US soldiers time imprisoned in North Korea.
July 1, 2024
Interesting story told by an uninteresting and unlikeable man.
August 11, 2008
Charles Robert Jenkins, a young GI serving in South Korea just as the Vietnam War was about to explode, and tired and frightened of his assignment, decided to cross the DMZ into North Korea. He thought he would be sent by North Korea back to the United States, where the Army would deal with him more leniently than it would in South Korea. This book is the story of the consequences of what turned out to be a world class mistake, and how sometimes a single wrong decision can completly change a person's life.
Jenkins was held by the North Koreans as a sort of cold war propaganda trophy, forced to teach English to potential North Korean spies and to act in North Korean propaganda films. There for forty years, he lived where he was told to live, did the work he was told to do, lived with those he was told to live with, had to participate in endless self criticism sessions and memorize the sayings and teachings of the North Korean leaders. He had a first hand look at one of the world's most repressive and secretive regimes, and his book is one of the few first person accounts of life in North Korea. That alone makes it noteworthy.
Ultimately, and incredibly, he married a Japanese citizen who had been kidnapped by the North Koreans and taken to North Korea. He fathered two children with her, and finally went to live with her in Japan after the Japanese government was able to obtain her release.
Jenkins details North Korea's crazy system of government, where indoctrination is a way of life and the poverty is so severe he lived in unheated houses, and ate mostly rice and cabbage soup. Jenkins' story is utterly incredible, and his book makes a fascinating read. It is told in simple sentences which no doubt reflect Jenkins' character. He seems to be a man of few words. Perhaps the most incredible thing about his book is that, considering how long he was held in North Korea, how mysterious that country is, and that few people have ever had the vantage point inside North Korea that Jenkins had, it is as short as it is. But perhaps the mark of a really good book is that it seems too short.
Jenkins was held by the North Koreans as a sort of cold war propaganda trophy, forced to teach English to potential North Korean spies and to act in North Korean propaganda films. There for forty years, he lived where he was told to live, did the work he was told to do, lived with those he was told to live with, had to participate in endless self criticism sessions and memorize the sayings and teachings of the North Korean leaders. He had a first hand look at one of the world's most repressive and secretive regimes, and his book is one of the few first person accounts of life in North Korea. That alone makes it noteworthy.
Ultimately, and incredibly, he married a Japanese citizen who had been kidnapped by the North Koreans and taken to North Korea. He fathered two children with her, and finally went to live with her in Japan after the Japanese government was able to obtain her release.
Jenkins details North Korea's crazy system of government, where indoctrination is a way of life and the poverty is so severe he lived in unheated houses, and ate mostly rice and cabbage soup. Jenkins' story is utterly incredible, and his book makes a fascinating read. It is told in simple sentences which no doubt reflect Jenkins' character. He seems to be a man of few words. Perhaps the most incredible thing about his book is that, considering how long he was held in North Korea, how mysterious that country is, and that few people have ever had the vantage point inside North Korea that Jenkins had, it is as short as it is. But perhaps the mark of a really good book is that it seems too short.
August 23, 2013
not a terrible piece of writing, and of course, assisted by the fact that a professional journalist co-wrote-- who knows, possibly almost completely wrote the memoir. Jenkins' work does have its areas of quite possible self-serving, but of course one of the most twisted things is that all in all, considering life's in's and outs, it's not absolutely clear that Jenkins did worse off defecting than he would have living in the US. think-- he was a 40 year old marrying a 21 year old Japanese wife; in America, with a high school education and then dealing with the changes American went through as well as the possibility he would have been sent to Vietnam, possibly Jenkins goes to his grave knowing in his heart, he didn't shoot the moon; he didn't pull pocket aces out of thin air, but all things considered, he didn't draw an unmatched 3 and a 7 nor was he last man holding the bag.
this isn't a must read; and there are other books on north korea with better academic research and more perspectives, but the writing isn't bad, and story is pretty unique. has value on a number of different levels--if purely the philosophical is discussed above. is Jenkins a hero? is Jenkins a villain? I leave these political questions to better minds, and only note that the book is a fairly quick read. 4/5, not absolute, but not quite the 3/5.
this isn't a must read; and there are other books on north korea with better academic research and more perspectives, but the writing isn't bad, and story is pretty unique. has value on a number of different levels--if purely the philosophical is discussed above. is Jenkins a hero? is Jenkins a villain? I leave these political questions to better minds, and only note that the book is a fairly quick read. 4/5, not absolute, but not quite the 3/5.
March 24, 2018
I have read a lot of books about people who have escaped North Korea. Though I have read no other books about Americans over there, I have read books about Japanese Koreans being coerced into going over and finding themselves unable to leave. This story is unlike any of those.
I have a hard time empathizing with Jenkins, as compared to every other account I've read from that country, he was living in the lap of luxury. Sure, compared to most western countries it was bad, but it was far from being treated as a POW and much better than North Korea treats most of its citizens. I know he suffered, and I understand that he made a mistake (crossing the DMZ) when he was still almost a kid and had to pay for that decision for much longer than most people pay for their younger selves impulsiveness, however, knowing how most people are treated over there, he really was lucky.
Despite all of this, it is probably one of the best written books I've read about escaping North Korea. Many are written as translations of first hand accounts, this was written by a journalist, so it makes the first hand account less dry than some of the others. It is a very interesting perspective, and I encourage others to read some of the other North Korean accounts first, before delving into this one.
I have a hard time empathizing with Jenkins, as compared to every other account I've read from that country, he was living in the lap of luxury. Sure, compared to most western countries it was bad, but it was far from being treated as a POW and much better than North Korea treats most of its citizens. I know he suffered, and I understand that he made a mistake (crossing the DMZ) when he was still almost a kid and had to pay for that decision for much longer than most people pay for their younger selves impulsiveness, however, knowing how most people are treated over there, he really was lucky.
Despite all of this, it is probably one of the best written books I've read about escaping North Korea. Many are written as translations of first hand accounts, this was written by a journalist, so it makes the first hand account less dry than some of the others. It is a very interesting perspective, and I encourage others to read some of the other North Korean accounts first, before delving into this one.
July 15, 2014
Relying on his 24 year old judgement, Army Sergeant Charles Jenkins goes AWOL by walking across the DMZ into Northern Korea and surrendering. He believed that would get him back to the US and short time in the brig, while avoiding a tour of Vietnam. Instead he was trapped in North Korea for 40 years.
This book is very interesting and I recommend it to all, especially those who never give a thought to North Korea. We have it pretty good in the US and we need to protect our Constitution and restore the balance of power which has been tipping toward the executive branch for years.
The US Army should tell this story to all personnel. While reading this book (yes, I actually read this book--no audiobook available) Sgt. Bergdahl was released from the Taliban in Afghanistan. I can't imagine being held by the Taliban was a picnic either, but I am surprised that the White House and friends consider him a "hero". I will be following his story.
This book is very interesting and I recommend it to all, especially those who never give a thought to North Korea. We have it pretty good in the US and we need to protect our Constitution and restore the balance of power which has been tipping toward the executive branch for years.
The US Army should tell this story to all personnel. While reading this book (yes, I actually read this book--no audiobook available) Sgt. Bergdahl was released from the Taliban in Afghanistan. I can't imagine being held by the Taliban was a picnic either, but I am surprised that the White House and friends consider him a "hero". I will be following his story.
May 1, 2008
I've been following the Jenkins case for some time, having lived in Japan for 3 years and been frequently exposed to Japanese searches for citizens missing and said to have been abducted by North Korea. I also remember being told in high school that a number of Americans had defected to North Korea in the wake of the Korean conflict. Thus, it was on the one hand deeply satisfying to finally learn of the answer to these mysteries, but on the other hand it was completely astonishing to learn that so much that had seemed to be paranoid rumors, was actually true.
Jenkins strikes me as a fundamentally decent human being who got in over his head in 1965, and made one stupid mistake for which he paid a million times over. Selfishly, though, I'm glad that he was there to write this fascinating, astonishing account of North Korea.
Jenkins strikes me as a fundamentally decent human being who got in over his head in 1965, and made one stupid mistake for which he paid a million times over. Selfishly, though, I'm glad that he was there to write this fascinating, astonishing account of North Korea.
May 20, 2008
I didn't think I would have much sympathy for this guy. After all, he deserted from the US Army and ran away to North Korean in the 60's to avoid Vietnam (smooth move!). He resurfaced a few years ago when North Korea admitted to having kidnapped a bunch of Japanese civilians to use as spy instructors (including the woman who became his wife). But Jenkins is so apoloigetic for his desertion and so upfront about his mistakes that it's hard not to feel sorry for him.
His account of four decades as a virtual prisoner in North Korea is absolutely fascinating. The author likens Jenkins to a teenager who gets killed while doing something stupid. He paid for his stupidity over and over during his years in North Korea.
Weird, wild stuff.
His account of four decades as a virtual prisoner in North Korea is absolutely fascinating. The author likens Jenkins to a teenager who gets killed while doing something stupid. He paid for his stupidity over and over during his years in North Korea.
Weird, wild stuff.
January 17, 2010
Fascinating read. While I was in disagreement with many of Mr. Jenkins decisions and thought processes he has offered a glimpse into a void. It made me grateful for the extensive knowledge network that lets us take in a larger view of reality. To learn of a entire countries faux reality it made me wary of the "facts" I might ignorantly want to rely on as stable and true.
While the example of propaganda in North Korea is extreme, you can't help but wonder to what extent other countries, including the US, are made into what someone else desires.
While the example of propaganda in North Korea is extreme, you can't help but wonder to what extent other countries, including the US, are made into what someone else desires.
February 17, 2022
The impact of one decision had far reaching consequences that Charles Jenkins never could have imagined. He thought he was avoiding one specific military action but instead had to live with his decision. It was a reminder to me of the impact of the things we do both intentionally and unintentionally.
I also wasn't aware of the history of North Korea kidnapping people from surrounding countries to turn them into basically spies.
I also wasn't aware of the history of North Korea kidnapping people from surrounding countries to turn them into basically spies.
May 19, 2009
Easy and quick read. Just a glimpse into North Korean life. (What a useless and petty society.) You can't help but think how incredibly DUMB this guy was to get himself into this situation, but then also how resourceful he was stringing together a life with less than a roll of duck tape. Being poor and from the semi-rural South probably HELPED in that regard.
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