The Orphan Master's Son: Barack Obamas Summer Reading Pick 2019

(Paperback)

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WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION 2013 - the dark and hilarious story of a young man's passage through the prison camps and dictatorship of North Korea. For fans of THE UNDERGROUND RAILROAD, FLEISHMAN IS IN TROUBLE and CLOUD ATLAS - WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION - NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER - NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST - 'You know you are in the hands of someone who can tell a story. Fantastic' ZADIE SMITH The award-winning and New York Times bestselling novel- a dark and witty story of the rise of a young orphan in the surreal and tyrannical regime of North Korea . Young Pak Jun Do is convinced he is special. He knows he must be the unique son of the master of the orphanage, and definitely not some kid dumped by his parents. Surely it was obvious from the way his father singled him out for regular beating He finds his calling when he is picked as a spy and kidnapper for his nation, the glorious Democratic Republic of North Korea. He knows he must find his true love, Sun Moon, the greatest opera star who ever lived, before it's too late. He knows he's not like the other prisoners in the camp. He's going to get out soon. Isn't he This hilarious, dark literary epic of a young boy's rise in North Korea from orphan to high-ranking officer won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction and was shortlisted for the National Book Award. Adam Johnson is working on a new work of fiction. 'An addictive novel of daring ingenuity' DAVID MITCHELL 'Excavates the very meaning of life' NEW YORK TIMES

Reviews

An addictive novel of daring ingenuity; a study of sacrifice and freedom in a citizen-eating dynasty; and a timely reminder that anonymous victims of oppression are also human beings who love. A brave and impressive book -- David Mitchell, author of THE THOUSAND AUTUMNS OF JACOB DE ZOET
A flamboyantly grim epic of totalitarianism this larger-than-life, two-fisted picaresque manages to be a page-turner... an ambitious book * The Sunday Times *
One of those books where you know youve found yourself in the hands of someone who can really tell a story, and is yet not nave about the artificiality of stories. The conceit is fantastic: a narration partly told through the loud speakers of the North Korean regime. -- Zadie Smith
Fast-paced and intriguing.. this complex, multi-voiced narrative will remind some readers of David Mitchells similarly inventive tale, Cloud Atlas It is magnificent * Financial Times *
What we have here are the ingredients of an across-the-board smash hit: sympathetic characters, an exotic, unknowable setting and a plot that will carry you along more convincingly than any of the fictions used by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. -- David Annand * Sunday Telegraph *

Author Bio

Adam Johnson teaches creative writing at Stanford University. His second novel THE ORPHAN MASTER'S SON won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 2013 and was a New York Times bestseller. His short story NIRVANA won the EFG/Sunday Times Best Short Story Award 2014. He lives in San Francisco with his family.