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The Great Successor

The Secret Rise and Rule of Kim Jong Un
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( 5,653 ratings, 557 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Great Successor by Anna Fifield offers an insightful biography of Kim Jong-un, diving into his rise to power in North Korea. Through extensive research and interviews, Fifield paints a portrait of Kim as he navigates the complexities of leadership in a secretive state, revealing both the public figure and the human behind the myths.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you are intrigued by the enigmatic world of North Korea and wish to delve into the life of one of its most mysterious leaders. This biography offers an insightful exploration into the personal and political intricacies that define his rule, providing a captivating glimpse behind the curtain of a secretive regime.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

The behind-the-scenes story of the rise and reign of the world's strangest and most elusive tyrant, Kim Jong Un, by the journalist with the best connections and insights into the bizarrely dangerous world of North Korea.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

The Great Successor is an irreverent yet insightful quest to understand the life of Kim Jong Un, one of the world's most secretive dictators. Kim's life is swathed in myth and propaganda, from the plainly silly—he supposedly ate so much Swiss cheese that his ankles gave way—to the grimly bloody stories of the ways his enemies and rival family members have perished at his command.

One of the most knowledgeable journalists on modern Korea, Anna Fifield has exclusive access to Kim's aunt and uncle, who posed as his parents while he was growing up in Switzerland, members of the entourage that accompanied Dennis Rodman on his quasi-ambassadorial visits with Kim, and the Japanese sushi chef whom Kim befriended and who was the first outsider to identify him as the inevitable successor to his father as supreme ruler.

She has been able to create a captivating portrait of the oddest and most isolated political regime in the world, one that is broken yet able to summon a US president for peace talks, bankrupt yet in possession of nuclear weapons. Kim Jong Un; ridiculous but deadly, and a man of our times.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Great Successor by Anna Fifield has been praised as a thorough and insightful piece of journalism, providing a detailed and fascinating look at the enigmatic leader of North Korea. Reviewers commend Fifield's unique mastery of the subject and her ability to dispense with superficial anecdotes, instead offering a comprehensive account of both the regime and its leader. The book is described as essential reading for understanding the complexities of Kim Jong-un's rule.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781529387254

Publisher: John Murray Press

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 19 March 2020

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: John Murray Publishers Ltd

Audience: General / adult, Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 26.0mm

Width: 128.0mm

Height: 196.0mm

Weight: 240g

Pages: 336

About the Author

Anna Fifield is the Beijing bureau chief for The Washington Post, and was previous the Tokyo bureau chief focusing on Japan and the Koreas. Previously she worked for the Financial Times for 13 years. During her time there, she reported from almost 20 countries, from Iran and Libya to North Korea and Australia. During the 2013-2014 academic year, she was a Nieman journalism fellow at Harvard, studying how change happens in closed societies and she is the 2018 Shorenstein Journalism Award recipient for her outstanding reporting on Asia. Her work has appeared in Slate, and she has been a regular commentator on radio and television, including NPR.

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