In Order to Live: A North Korean Girl's Journey to Freedom

In Order to Live by Yeonmi Park is an autobiography written by a North Korean defector. A critical look into North Korea, it is a must-read for anyone inquisitive about the ‘Hermit Kingdom'. The author, Yeonmi Park, is a North Korean activist, and her book details her life story. Encapsulating all the horrors she endured in her home country and her perilous escape, the horrors of North Korea are exposed through the eyes of Yeonmi Park.

Yeonmi's story starts in Hyesan, North Korea, where she describes her childhood and growing up with fluctuating wealth. As a child, her family sustains itself quite well, depending on her father's business of smuggling Chinese goods over the border. Throughout her youth, Yeonmi is told not to ask questions and to strictly do as she is told. “Even when you think you're alone, the birds and mice can hear you whisper,” (Park 10) her mother tells her. Very quickly, it becomes evident how brainwashed the people of North Korea are, consuming absurd propaganda and viewing the Kim dictators as god-like figures. When Kim II Sung dies, Yeonmi remarks, “It was like God himself died. ‘How can the Earth spin on its axis?'” (Park 64). To have a country in the twenty-first century in which the citizens view their leaders as god itself is perhaps what adds to the intrigue surrounding North Korea.

After her father's business is discovered and he is subsequently arrested, Yeonmi's life takes a turn. Enduring several hardships such as not seeing her mother for months and resorting to swallowing insects with her sister to survive, the façade of North Korea's socialist paradise and leaders begins to crumble before her eyes. Yeonmi starts to realize the truth about her homeland through smuggled movies such as Titanic (1997), revealing to her that North Korea is perhaps not as glorious as she once believed. Maybe this can attest to the impact that films can have, even in these unlikely places.

After years of struggling to survive, Yeonmi's family decides to leave North Korea. Out of pure desperation, her sixteen-year-old sister decides to run over the Yalu River into China ahead of the rest of the family. Yeonmi and her mother leave soon after to search for her, not suspecting the traffickers that lead them over the river of having any immoral intent. “As North Koreans, we were innocent in a way that I cannot fully explain,” (Park 64). Unfortunately, Yeonmi's life only gets worse in China, getting caught in human trafficking circles, enduring sexual exploitation, and watching her mother suffer through similar horrors. It's devastating to read the things she endured and difficult to realize that these are real events that happen to real people. At times in the book, I honestly forgot that the events described were real. Readers should take caution as this book includes rape, human trafficking, kidnapping, suicide, violence, and other serious topics.

Finally, after a long eighteen months in China, Yeonmi and her mother follow the stars desperately through the Gobi Desert into Mongolia, finally being sent to South Korea where they face a whole different set of challenges.

In her book, Yeonmi also addresses those who are quick to criticize the inconsistencies in her story. After becoming a public figure, Yeonmi has shared her story several times. However, through the years of accounting the events in her life, she has changed key details in different retellings leading many to speculate what really happened. In Order to Live was the book to set it all straight, and for that, it does well, even if still bringing up some additional questions. Some of this confusion is easily attributable to Yeonmi's memory and the language barrier. For these reasons, you shouldn't expect any astounding pacing or writing, the value really lies within the life events Yeonmi describes.

Despite the book containing difficult and demoralizing events, I believe everyone who is capable to read In Order to Live should, especially those in positions of power to do anything to help the North Koreans. Though Yeonmi's escape from her homeland occurred back in 2007, her story unfortunately still rings true with many. With North Korea getting harder to escape in recent years, and no hope of reunification or any sort of change regarding the brutal dictatorship, the most we can do is to pray for North Koreans and listen to their stories.