The Orphan Master's Son

'You know you are in the hands of someone who can tell a story. Fantastic' ZADIE SMITH 'A stunning feat of imagination' STEPHEN KING 'Excavates the very meaning of life' New York Times WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST 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 humorous 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. __________ 'An addictive novel of daring ingenuity' DAVID MITCHELL

'You know you are in the hands of someone who can tell a story. Fantastic' ZADIE SMITH 'A stunning feat of imagination' STEPHEN KING 'Excavates the very meaning of life' New York Times WINNER OF THE PULITZER PRIZE FOR FICTION NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER NATIONAL BOOK AWARD FINALIST 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 humorous 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. __________ 'An addictive novel of daring ingenuity' DAVID MITCHELL

The Pulitzer Prize-winning, New York Times bestselling novel of North Korea: an epic journey into the heart of the world's most mysterious dictatorship. "Imagine Charles Dickens paying a visit to Pyongyang, and you see the canvas on which Adam] Johnson is painting here." --The Washington Post Pak Jun Do is the haunted son of a lost mother--a singer "stolen" to Pyongyang--and an influential father who runs a work camp for orphans. Superiors in the North Korean state soon recognize the boy's loyalty and keen instincts. Considering himself "a humble citizen of the greatest nation in the world," Jun Do rises in the ranks. He becomes a professional kidnapper who must navigate the shifting rules, arbitrary violence, and baffling demands of his overlords in order to stay alive. Driven to the absolute limit of what any human being could endure, he boldly takes on the treacherous role of rival to Kim Jong Il in an attempt to save the woman he loves, Sun Moon, a legendary actress "so pure, she didn't know what starving people looked like." Part breathless thriller, part story of innocence lost, part story of romantic love, The Orphan Master's Son is also a riveting portrait of a world heretofore hidden from view: a North Korea rife with hunger, corruption, and casual cruelty but also camaraderie, stolen moments of beauty, and love. FINALIST FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK CRITICS CIRCLE AWARD - WINNER OF THE DAYTON LITERARY PEACE PRIZE Named ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR by more than a dozen publications, including The Washington Post - Entertainment Weekly - The Wall Street Journal - Los Angeles Times - San Francisco Chronicle Praise for The Orphan Master ' s Son "An exquisitely crafted novel that carries the reader on an adventuresome journey into the depths of totalitarian North Korea and into the most intimate spaces of the human heart." --Pulitzer Prize citation "Mr. Johnson has written a daring and remarkable novel, a novel that not only opens a frightening window on the mysterious kingdom of North Korea, but one that also excavates the very meaning of love and sacrifice." --Michiko Kakutani, The New York Times "Rich with a sense of discovery . . . The Orphan Master's Son has an early lead on novel of the year]." --The Daily Beast "This is a novel worth getting excited about." -- The Washington Post " A] ripping piece of fiction that is also an astute commentary on the nature of freedom, sacrifice, and glory." -- Elle