Bruce Cumings
Reviewed by John Bocskay
Korea's Place in the Sun is a solid introduction for anyone
who wants a comprehensive look at modern Korean history on both sides
of the DMZ. Unlike many histories of Korea, which treat the modern age
as an afterthought, Cumings gives a brief sketch of the origins of Korea,
before he delves into the modern age, devoting 400-odd pages to the
period from 1860 onward.
Thoroughly readable, the text is a solid historical work, written in
an at-times conversational tone, and drawing on a wealth of personal
experience to color the events of this century. He is a gifted and articulate
writer, a rare find among historians and other academics. While he does
occasionally lapse into academese, his text is liberally sprinkled with
personal anecdotes to color and contextualize his narrative, as when
he illustrates North Korean xenophobia by describing an encounter with
a North KoreCumings has been vilified by the Right, and adored by the
Left, and has gotten both of them thinking very, very hard. Korea's
Place in the Sun is a rare work, a lively history that engages
us deeply, even as it challenges us to the core.
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