Book Salon
Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea
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This month we're reading Pyongyang: A Journey in North Korea by Guy DeLisle. Our faculty host is Adam Johnson.
Listen to an interview with our Book Salon host.
"If you think graphic novels are only about wizards and superheroes, then prepare yourself for this true account of the author's time in North Korea. Drawn with dark charcoals and laced with humor, DeLisle paints a subtle yet powerful portrait of how small human moments flourish despite the harsh constraints of a tyrannical regime."
About this quarter's book selection
With George Orwell’s 1984, Gitanes cigarettes, and Hennessy brandy in tow, Quebecois animator Guy DeLisle arrived at the totalitarian capital in 2001 for a two-month stint overseeing the production of a children’s cartoon as liaison between Protecrea, a French animation company, and SEK Studio, a Korean education company. The former had been outsourcing its shows to the latter. His observations on the seemingly mundane are captured in this engaging black-and-white graphic novel, which gives a very personal account of a heavily censored country and culture that remain closed off to many outsiders. With wit and humor to match Marjane Satrapi’s Persepolis, another work in the same genre, this novel is a must-read.
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