Review: Yogong: Factory Girl

Yogong: Factory Girl by Robert F. Spencer
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I knew this book was out of date when I started reading it. In fact, I guess it was out of date when it was published, since the study was conducted from 1972-1978 and the book only came out in 1988. Still, I thought it would be interesting to look at it from a historical point of view. And I was surprised at how different Korea seemed as compared to when I first went there (in the late 90s). It was very much still a developing, factory-based country, while in the 90s it was already becoming knowledge-based and technology-oriented. 

I thought I would end up skimming or skipping a great deal of this, but I ended up reading the entire thing (typos and all, of which there are plenty, unfortunately). I'm guessing this might be the first study done on Korean women during this time. In fact it may be the only one. Either way, the Korea from this book is a far cry from the technologically advanced K-pop country of today, but it shows how it was transitioning from the Korean war to get where it is. And, more than that, it shows the plight women were going through working in the factories during this time. 

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Review: Korea: A Walk Through the Land of Miracles

Korea: A Walk Through the Land of Miracles by Simon Winchester
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Like others, I read (and loved) "The Professor and the Madman", so when I saw the same author had written a book about Korea, I had to read it. Hmmmm. 

Some interesting notes:

- There used to be fencing all along the East coast (was this still there when I was there? It definitely wasn't as popular as it is now)

- Apparently you couldn't keep maps you bought outside the country. 

- The maps also didn't specify a border between North and South Korea (is this true??)

- Koreans weren't issued passports during the 1980s (?)

- I'd like to know more about the Catholic priests and nuns in Jejudo at the time. 

- The story about Jeju's (possibly) communist uprising before the Korean war was fascinating. 

- And at some point he says he mentions a Korean poet (brother of the buddhist monk he is hanging out with), called Hwang Chi-woo. Thanks to google, I can now confirm that it is probably this person: https://wordswithoutborders.org/contributors/view/hwang-ji-woo/

- Also fascinating about the Chollipo arboretum. 

Some others have commented on how critical he seems of US military personnel in Korea. While I find his general attitude very annoying, from what I remember from the 90s in Korea, some of that military personnel really wasn't the type you'd want to hang out with. Back then we would avoid Itaewon like the plague. Still, he constantly makes use of Americans and their facilities for places to stay, transportation, letting him go to the DMZ, etc., but feels the need to trash them at every turn, and loves to mention how much more he is respected as an Englishmen than an American would be. 

While we're at it, his attitude toward Korean women is irritating to say the least. Apparently they all can't get enough of him and seem to throw themselves at him. 

The most interesting part of the book is at the very end, when he mentions someone (whose name he isn't allowed to disclose), who apparently was allowed to go back and forth from South to North Korea and back freely. I assume, at this point, this person is retired and/or has passed away, but I can't seem to find any information on who it might be. 

2.5 stars

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Review: Made in Korea: Chung Ju Yung and the Rise of Hyundai

Made in Korea: Chung Ju Yung and the Rise of Hyundai by Richard Steers
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This reads a bit more like a hagiography than an actual biography. The author seems to be very quick to praise, but tends to find fault elsewhere when issues arise. 

This actually didn't detract much from the book. Chung is an extraordinary person no matter how you look at it, and it was enlightening to read about his approach to pretty much anything (passion and persistence, as he puts it, pretty much exactly like Angela Duckworth)

Also incredible to read how he not only founded and built up Hyundai from nothing, but also built up Korea's highway system, basically made the 1988 Olympics in Seoul possible, orchestrated the first visits to North Korea, and plenty more. 

The book is a bit out of date at this point, and it would be interesting to see how the company did post Chung Ju Yung. However, all in all a good book about a very inspiring person. 

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Review: Comparative Social Quality Between Taiwan and Korea

Comparative Social Quality Between Taiwan and Korea by Alan Walker Lih-Rong Wang
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I admit, I'd probably be the first to gobble up any book of comparative studies between Taiwan and Korea, no matter what the specific subject. The topic matter has always attracted me. 

This is basically a collection of essays. I had to gloss over a lot of the data, since my chi-squared/ANOVA/SPSS days are long gone, but I found many of the conclusions interesting. I do wish there were an updated edition, however. 

Some of my notes:

Koreans seem to have a much more positive view of Capitalism than Taiwan (I wish they had an updated study for this). 

It seems like South Korea's financial expansion was quicker and greater than Taiwan's, but Taiwan's was more stable (and more equitable?), so when the 1997 crisis hit, Korea was much more affected than Taiwan. 

"When asked for their subjective responses to the word 'capitalism' the terms most frequently chosen in Korea were 'affluence' and 'economic growth' whereas in Taiwan, they were 'economic inequalities' and 'competition'" (p. 11, Graph w/ data: p. 76)

"In general, Korean workers, whether male or female, typical or atypical, are less satisfied with their work than their Taiwanese counterparts." (p. 57)

"High income can lead to better health. High income also results in distrust. Finally, distrust brings better health." (p. 60)

"For interpersonal trust, Taiwan again received a higher score than Korea" (p. 61)

"Growth has been stable in Taiwan but not in Korea; Korea has a centralized industrialization strategy focusing on big business and Taiwan a diffused industrialization strategy focusing on small and medium enterprises." (p. 75)

"The South Korean case can be characterized as recent and rapid financial expansion. This may have caused severe work insecurity over the recent decade, in turn leading to the currently downward class-identification trend..." (p. 106/107)

"The Taiwanese case shows earlier but stable financialization." (p. 107)

"Thus is seems that the economic crisis had considerably more negative impacts on the situation of people living in Korea than Taiwan". (p. 157)

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Review: Samsung Rising: The Inside Story of the South Korean Giant That Set Out to Beat Apple and Conquer Tech

Samsung Rising: The Inside Story of the South Korean Giant That Set Out to Beat Apple and Conquer Tech by Geoffrey Cain
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A fascinating look into a fascinating company and its history, from its founding under BC Lee, to the legal scandals and travails of his grandson, Jay Y. 

There were quite a few points that amazed it. I think Samsung's international forays were the most interesting, highlighting the clash of cultures. It's crazy how the founder of Android wanted to sell to Samsung, and they laughed him out of the office (later purchased by Google, which apparently said it was their "best purchase ever")

Then Waze approached them for a sale, but again they didn't take it seriously, so Google bought that too, and it's now our Google Maps. 

Then Whatsapp! Although apparently Whatsapp decided early on it wouldn't sell to Samsung (Facebook bought them). 

Still, crazy to see some lay-ups it let go. At the same time, however, it had some immense wins (Ellen DeGeneres's selfie)

I confess it seems to cut off abruptly at the end, since Jay Y was on trial the second time, and we were awaiting an outcome as of the printing of the book. Seems like a supplement could have been added, given that he was convicted (and then later pardoned because he could help the US government apparently. Sort of like Lucky Luciano). 

Still, a great look into an interesting company, with some very interesting characters (many of whom, btw, seem to be on Linkedin!)

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Review: The Square

The Square by In-hun Choi
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Apparently this is considered a classic in Korean literature, and I am sure I don't appreciate it fully for the time and place in which it was written (I know that it was written shortly after books like it were even allowed to be printed). There is probably also quite a bit of symbolism that is over my head.

It covers a man moving from South Korea to North Korea and back South (and then to a "Neutral country"), starting before the war and ending after it, although there is pretty much nothing about the war itself.

The juxtaposition between the two countries was probably one of the first that was ever made in literature.

I did, however, find the protagonist pretty annoying at times. I guess it was due to principle, but he seemed rather spoiled, naive and too idealistic at times. I'm not sure if this was on purpose or not.

The ending was really beautiful in its own way.

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Review: South Korea's Minjung Movement: The Culture and Politics of Dissidence

South Korea's Minjung Movement: The Culture and Politics of Dissidence by Kenneth M. Wells
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

A collection of essays by various authors regarding Minjung. Overall a bit too academic for me, but definitely interesting and informative.

My favorite chapters:
Confucian Tradition and Nationalist Ideology in Korea, by Chung Chai-sik
Minjung Movements and the Minjung: Organizers and Farmers in a 1980s Farmers' Movement, by Nancy Abelmann
The Iconic Power of Modernity: Reading a Cheju Shaman's Life History and Initiation Dream, by Kim Seong Nae
Contemporary Korean Literature: From Victimization to Minjung Nationalism, by Choi Hyun-moo

There is also a speech by Paik Nak-chung

Interesting to read how the Confucianists were against Democracy, since they said it was incompatible with Confucianism.
Also very interesting to read about Nonghwal

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Review: Lonesome You

Lonesome You by Park Wansuh
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Most of the stories deal with in-laws, parents in-law, relatives in the United States, and the like. Some of the stories were excellent. Withered flower, Psychedelic butterfly, An unbearable secret (the first three) were my favorites.

The Stories:
Withered Flower
Psychedelic Butterfly
An Unbearable Secret
Long Boring Movie
Lonesome You
That Girl's House
Thorn Inside Petals
A Ball-Playing Woman
J-1 Visa
An Anecdote: The Bane of My Existence

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