Reviews
"Becker makes a powerful case for defining Kim once and for all--not as an ordinary, if nuclear-tipped, dictator, but as an extraordinarily skillful tyrant presiding over the worst man-made catastrophe in modern history.... A highly readable narrative that unearths Kim's history, probes his decision-making style and details the grotesque consequences of those decisions. His book is a subtle plea to the world to expand its focus beyond the--admittedly important--nuclear issue to the vast humanitarian catastrophe unfolding under Kim Jong Il's gaze."--Joshua Kurlantzick, New York Times Book Review "A very timely book.... Not for the faint-hearted. Mr. Becker takes an unblinking look at a dark regime that has made North Korea an international pariah, has elevated its rulers to the status of gods, and through torture and indoctrination reduced its subjects to virtual slaves.... The facts almost defy belief."--William Grimes, The New York Times "A good new look at North Korea."--Nicholas Kristof, The New York Observer "One of the few reporters to have firsthand experience of North Korea, veteran Asian correspondent Becker adds more nuance to a familiar story that the threat of nuclear arms, as well as the world's fifth largest standing army, are part of an attempt to force the rest of the globe to cater to a mad leader's megalomaniacal world.... Images of this grim state of affairs--which goes well beyond the Orwellian into the Kafkaesque--have been smuggled out over the past few years; how they came to be is described with rare concision by Becker.... Becker minces no words in warning that we may now have no way out of a monstrous situation."-- Publishers Weekly "Really is required reading. Becker, one of the few Western reporters to spend time in the Stalinist state, details the megalomania of Kim Jong Il--who staffed his palaces with the country's most beautiful women--and the madness of his regime, under which 2 million Koreans have reportedly died of starvation."-- New York Post "Jasper Becker is already known as one of the sharpest observers of contemporary China--and with Rogue Regime he immediately establishes himself as a premier observer, and critic, of Kim Jong Il's North Korea. Readers of this devastating book will be hard pressed to gainsay Becker's assertion that this dynastic dictatorship genuinely empowers evil--or to turn away from Becker's conclusion that only regime change is likely to bring a better life to the millions of ordinary North Koreans suffering under the Dear Leader's rule."--Nicholas Eberstadt, Henry Wendt Scholar in Political Economy, The American Enterprise Institute "By giving us an engrossing and well-documented examination of the North Korean regime, Becker proves that Kim Jong Il is in a category of tyranny all on his own and that engagement and appeasement only strengthen him. If you care at all about the slow and certain genocide of the North Korean people, he makes a powerful case for why regime change is the only answer." --Suzanne Scholte, President, Defense Forum Foundation "Jasper Becker has warned us about North Korea, as a journalist with a sharp eye and an historian with perspective. North Korea with its bizarre cult of personality, its failed economy, its crackpot ideology and its relentless pursuit of weapons of mass destruction is a major challenge in the twenty-first century. The reader will learn of the cunning control freaks who run the country. Becker's convincing book will make the task of the apologists for North Korea that much more difficult." --James Lilley, Former American Ambassador to South Korea and China " Rogue Regime is the companion work to Jasper Becker's Hungry Ghosts , his earlier, well-documented account of 30 million famine deaths in Mao's China. Once again he pulls back a heavy veil of secrecy and reveals the immense suffering of the people of North Korea." --Dean, "Jasper Becker has warned us about North Korea, as a journalist with a sharp eye and an historian with perspective. North Korea with its bizarre cult of personality, its failed economy, its crackpot ideology and its relentless pursuit of weapons of mass destruction is a major challenge in thetwenty-first century. The reader will learn of the cunning control freaks who run the country. Becker's convincing book will make the task of the apologists for North Korea that much more difficult." --James Lilley, Former American Ambassador to South Korea and China, "By giving us an engrossing and well-documented examination of the North Korean regime, Becker proves that Kim Jong Il is in a category of tyranny all on his own and that engagement and appeasement only strengthen him. If you care at all about the slow and certain genocide of the North Koreanpeople, he makes a powerful case for why regime change is the only answer."--Suzanne Scholte, President, Defense Forum Foundation, "Really is required reading. Becker, one of the few Western reporters tospend time in the Stalinist state, details the megalomania of Kim Jong Il--whostaffed his palaces with the country's most beautiful women--and the madness ofhis regime, under which 2 million Koreans have reportedly died ofstarvation."--New York Post, "A very timely book.... Not for the faint-hearted. Mr. Becker takes anunblinking look at a dark regime that has made North Korea an internationalpariah, has elevated its rulers to the status of gods, and through torture andindoctrination reduced its subjects to virtual slaves.... The facts almost defybelief."--William Grimes, The New York Times, "Jasper Becker has warned us about North Korea, as a journalist with asharp eye and an historian with perspective. North Korea with its bizarre cultof personality, its failed economy, its crackpot ideology and its relentlesspursuit of weapons of mass destruction is a major challenge in the twenty-firstcentury. The reader will learn of the cunning control freaks who run thecountry. Becker's convincing book will make the task of the apologists for NorthKorea that much more difficult." --James Lilley, Former American Ambassador toSouth Korea and China, "One of the few reporters to have firsthand experience of North Korea, veteran Asian correspondent Becker adds more nuance to a familiar story that the threat of nuclear arms, as well as the world's fifth largest standing army, are part of an attempt to force the rest of the globe to cater toa mad leader's megalomaniacal world.... Images of this grim state of affairs--which goes well beyond the Orwellian into the Kafkaesque--have been smuggled out over the past few years; how they came to be is described with rare concision by Becker.... Becker minces no words in warning that we may nowhave no way out of a monstrous situation."--Publishers Weekly, "Rogue Regime is the companion work to Jasper Becker's Hungry Ghosts, hisearlier, well-documented account of 30 million famine deaths in Mao's China.Once again he pulls back a heavy veil of secrecy and reveals the immensesuffering of the people of North Korea."--Dean Hirsch, President, World VisionInternational, "By giving us an engrossing and well-documented examination of the NorthKorean regime, Becker proves that Kim Jong Il is in a category of tyranny all onhis own and that engagement and appeasement only strengthen him. If you care atall about the slow and certain genocide of the North Korean people, he makes apowerful case for why regime change is the only answer."--Suzanne Scholte,President, Defense Forum Foundation, "Really is required reading. Becker, one of the few Western reporters to spend time in the Stalinist state, details the megalomania of Kim Jong Il--who staffed his palaces with the country's most beautiful women--and the madness of his regime, under which 2 million Koreans have reportedly diedof starvation."--New York Post, "Becker makes a powerful case for defining Kim once and for all--not as anordinary, if nuclear-tipped, dictator, but as an extraordinarily skillful tyrantpresiding over the worst man-made catastrophe in modern history.... A highlyreadable narrative that unearths Kim's history, probes his decision-making styleand details the grotesque consequences of those decisions. His book is a subtleplea to the world to expand its focus beyond the--admittedly important--nuclearissue to the vast humanitarian catastrophe unfolding under Kim Jong Il'sgaze."--Joshua Kurlantzick, New York Times Book Review, "What, one wonders, would Orwell have made of the current government inNorth Korea? In the wake of reading Jasper Becker's excellent account of supremeleader Kim Jon II, it is easy to imagine the great English novelist declaring1984 no longer up to the task. ogue Regime outlines a barbarous and dementedreality beyond the imaginings of even the most fevered literary dystopia."--National Post, "Jasper Becker is already known as one of the sharpest observers of contemporary China--and with Rogue Regime he immediately establishes himself as a premier observer, and critic, of Kim Jong Il's North Korea. Readers of this devastating book will be hard pressed to gainsay Becker's assertionthat this dynastic dictatorship genuinely empowers evil--or to turn away from Becker's conclusion that only regime change is likely to bring a better life to the millions of ordinary North Koreans suffering under the Dear Leader's rule."--Nicholas Eberstadt, Henry Wendt Scholar in Political Economy,The American Enterprise Institute, "Jasper Becker is already known as one of the sharpest observers ofcontemporary China--and with Rogue Regime he immediately establishes himself asa premier observer, and critic, of Kim Jong Il's North Korea. Readers of thisdevastating book will be hard pressed to gainsay Becker's assertion that thisdynastic dictatorship genuinely empowers evil--or to turn away from Becker'sconclusion that only regime change is likely to bring a better life to themillions of ordinary North Koreans suffering under the Dear Leader'srule."--Nicholas Eberstadt, Henry Wendt Scholar in Political Economy, TheAmerican Enterprise Institute, "Rogue Regime is the companion work to Jasper Becker's Hungry Ghosts, his earlier, well-documented account of 30 million famine deaths in Mao's China. Once again he pulls back a heavy veil of secrecy and reveals the immense suffering of the people of North Korea."--Dean Hirsch, President,World Vision International, "Becker makes a powerful case for defining Kim once and for all--not as an ordinary, if nuclear-tipped, dictator, but as an extraordinarily skillful tyrant presiding over the worst man-made catastrophe in modern history.... A highly readable narrative that unearths Kim's history, probes hisdecision-making style and details the grotesque consequences of those decisions. His book is a subtle plea to the world to expand its focus beyond the--admittedly important--nuclear issue to the vast humanitarian catastrophe unfolding under Kim Jong Il's gaze."--Joshua Kurlantzick, The New YorkTimes Book Review, "A very timely book.... Not for the faint-hearted. Mr. Becker takes an unblinking look at a dark regime that has made North Korea an international pariah, has elevated its rulers to the status of gods, and through torture and indoctrination reduced its subjects to virtual slaves.... The factsalmost defy belief."--William Grimes, The New York Times, "Rogue Regime is the companion work to Jasper Becker's Hungry Ghosts, hisearlier, well-documented account of 30 million famine deaths in Mao's China.Once again he pulls back a heavy veil of secrecy and reveals the immensesuffering of the people of North Korea." --Dean Hirsch, President, World VisionInternational, "One of the few reporters to have firsthand experience of North Korea,veteran Asian correspondent Becker adds more nuance to a familiar story that thethreat of nuclear arms, as well as the world's fifth largest standing army, arepart of an attempt to force the rest of the globe to cater to a mad leader'smegalomaniacal world.... Images of this grim state of affairs--which goes wellbeyond the Orwellian into the Kafkaesque--have been smuggled out over the pastfew years; how they came to be is described with rare concision by Becker....Becker minces no words in warning that we may now have no way out of a monstroussituation."--Publishers Weekly, "By giving us an engrossing and well-documented examination of the NorthKorean regime, Becker proves that Kim Jong Il is in a category of tyranny all onhis own and that engagement and appeasement only strengthen him. If you care atall about the slow and certain genocide of the North Korean people, he makes apowerful case for why regime change is the only answer." --Suzanne Scholte,President, Defense Forum Foundation, "A very timly book.... Not for the faint-hearted. Mr. Becker takes anunblinking look at a dark regime that has made North Korea an internationalpariah, has elevated its rulers to the status of gods, and through torture andindoctrination reduced its subjects to virtual slaves.... The facts almost defybelief."--William Grimes, The New York Times, "What, one wonders, would Orwell have made of the current government in North Korea? In the wake of reading Jasper Becker's excellent account of supreme leader Kim Jon II, it is easy to imagine the great English novelist declaring 1984 no longer up to the task. ogue Regime outlines a barbarousand demented reality beyond the imaginings of even the most fevered literary dystopia." --National Post
