''The Accusation'' ( ko, 고발) is a short story collection by Bandi.

Background

Bandi wrote it on brown paper, starting in 1989 and ending in 1995. He asked a relative of his, who was illegally leaving North Korea, to smuggle it out of North Korea, but she declined as she feared retribution from North Korean authorities if she was caught. In 2012 she was captured by authorities in China, so an activist named Do Hee-youn paid the bribes to free her so she could move to South Korea. When Do learned about the manuscript he arranged for it to be discreetly taken out of the country, which it was in 2013. A China-based ethnic Korean was the go-between contact and had a cover story as a tourist.

Content

There are seven short stories, all depicted as taking place in the 1990s, in the collection. "City of Specters" depicts the life of Gyeong-hee, who has a management position in

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populatio ...

and whose son has psychological difficulties when seeing images of

Karl Marx Karl Heinrich Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, economist, historian, sociologist, political theorist, journalist, critic of political economy, and socialist revolutionary. His best-known titles are the 1848 ...

. Thu-Huong Ha of

Quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon-oxygen tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tetrahedra, giving an overall chemical form ...

called this story a "stand-out". In "So Near, Yet So Far" a man does not have paperwork giving him permission to travel within the country. He travels illicitly so he can see his mother, who has a terminal condition. The story "Life of a Swift Steed" depicts how optimistic ex-wrestler Seol Yong-su is destroyed by his tending to an elm tree. In "Pandemonium" a woman named Mrs. Oh encounters

Kim Il Sung Kim Il-sung (; , ; born Kim Song-ju, ; 15 April 1912 – 8 July 1994) was a North Korean politician and the founder of North Korea, which he ruled from the country's establishment in 1948 until his death in 1994. He held the posts of ...

, then the North Korean leader, after leaving a train station that was closed due to the leader's arrival. ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of B ...

'' described it as "the most cutting" of the works. A narrative on how the collection was discreetly taken out of North Korea is in the endnote, authored by Kim Seong-dong.

Release

In 2014 published it in South Korea. Prior to that point Do tried and failed to find a South Korean publisher as Bandi's identity was not verified by them and Do wished to keep Bandi safe. Significant attention began after the book's publication in France in 2016. The book was published in English by

Grove Atlantic Grove Atlantic, Inc. is an American independent publisher, based in New York City. Formerly styled "Grove/Atlantic, Inc.", it was created in 1993 by the merger of Grove Press and Atlantic Monthly Press. As of 2018 Grove Atlantic calls itself "An ...

, with Deborah Smith as the translator. As this is a dissident work, it was never released in North Korea.

Reception

Barbara Zitwer, who serves as Bandi's literary agent, stated that the volume for pre-emptive book offers was "immediate and stunning" to the point where she had remained at her desk for a long period of time.

Reviews

Ha stated that overall the work "is a dramatic page-turner" though she criticized the one-dimensional nature of many characters and the overly "formal" writing in the translation.

Kirkus Reviews ''Kirkus Reviews'' (or ''Kirkus Media'') is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus (1893–1980). The magazine is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fic ...

argued that the book had importance for "journalistic and sociological" reasons and that it was "an important document of witness", but argued that it lacked "inventiveness" that is seen in South Korean literature. ''

'' described the contents as "uncompromising".

Legacy

Kim Kwang-jin described it as "North Korea’s

Solzhenitsyn Aleksandr Isayevich Solzhenitsyn. (11 December 1918 – 3 August 2008) was a Russian novelist. One of the most famous Soviet dissidents, Solzhenitsyn was an outspoken critic of communism and helped to raise global awareness of political repress ...

References

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External links

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The Accusation
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North Korean books North Korean fiction