The Great Successor cover art

The Great Successor

The Secret Rise and Rule of Kim Jong Un

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The Great Successor

By: Anna Fifield
Narrated by: Olivia Mackenzie-Smith
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About this listen

The behind-the-scenes story of the rise and reign of the world's strangest and most elusive tyrant, Kim Jong Un, by the journalist with the best connections and insights into the bizarrely dangerous world of North Korea.

The Great Successor is an irreverent yet insightful quest to understand the life of Kim Jong Un, one of the world's most secretive dictators. Kim's life is swathed in myth and propaganda, from the plainly silly - he supposedly ate so much Swiss cheese that his ankles gave way - to the grimly bloody stories of the ways his enemies and rival family members have perished at his command.

One of the most knowledgeable journalists on modern Korea, Anna Fifield has exclusive access to Kim's aunt and uncle who posed as his parents while he was growing up in Switzerland, members of the entourage that accompanied Dennis Rodman on his quasi-ambassadorial visits with Kim, and the Japanese sushi chef whom Kim befriended and who was the first outsider to identify him as the inevitable successor to his father as supreme ruler. She has been able to create a captivating portrait of the oddest and most isolated political regime in the world, one that is broken yet able to summon a US president for peace talks, bankrupt yet in possession of nuclear weapons. Kim Jong Un: ridiculous but deadly, and a man of our times.

©2019 Anna Fifield (P)2019 Hodder & Stoughton Limited
Asia Political Science Politics & Government Presidents & Heads of State Nuclear Weapon South Korea Witty
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Great overview of North Korea

Fascinating insight into an unknown kingdom. Expertly researched.
I enjoyed the bits about his childhood.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Required Listening for Anyone Interested In NK

It is incredibly detailed and the anecdotes are very interesting. Fifield also provides all the context necessary to understand the background of the regime.

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating and brilliantly researched

A brilliantly detailed account of the life and times of a monstrous dictatorial dynasty. A compelling account beautifully narrated by Olivia in her lovely clear, diction perfect antipodean accent.

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Excellent, would love a follow up!

Well written and engaging. Would be so interesting to hear in the next few years from the author about the impact of the pandemic on NK, particularly with shut borders affecting the flow of goods from China and how the people see their leaders now...

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    3 out of 5 stars
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It's okay

Didn't really like the narrator. Some interesting insights about Kim Jong Un but overall it just felt like the author was judging him / telling him off more than anything. I just found the style and tone of it irritating.

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A fascinating, thorough and insightful listen.

I’ve listened to this book at a faster pace than almost any other audiobook I’ve bought. If you have any fascination with North Korea, this very well researched book is a definite recommendation.

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    4 out of 5 stars

Narrator abysmal

The narrator sounds like she is standing on a podium,narrating to hundreds of people,I much prefer it when it seems as though a book is being read to me,and me alone.

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2 people found this helpful