Book Summary

“A River in Darkness” is an autobiographical account by Masaji Ishikawa, detailing his life and harrowing escape from North Korea. Born in Japan to a Korean father and a Japanese mother, Ishikawa’s family moves to North Korea under the false promises of the ‘Return to North Korea’ movement, only to face unimaginable hardships. The book vividly recounts the brutal reality of life under the North Korean regime, including starvation, oppression, and the loss of personal freedom. Ishikawa’s escape back to Japan, after nearly 36 years in North Korea, is a testament to human resilience in the face of tyranny.