Park Chung-Hee: From Poverty to Power
Review of Chong-Sik Lee, Park Chung-Hee: From Poverty to Power  (Lee’s) book makes a unique and momentous contribution to broadening our factual knowledge not only about Park and his government but also the colonial and post-liberal historical periods in which he lived. In addition, the analysis provides a notable contribution to the expansion of our theoretical knowledge about how early socialization and adult learning shapes and reshapes our mindsets. In summary, Chong-Sik Lee’s book is the most captivating, enlightening, and stimulating study of the South Korean political leader. In addition to coherent and thoughtful reinterpretations of the most controversial of Park Chung-Hee’s activities, it offers a variety of alternative perspectives and challenging questions about Korean history and culture…. Intended for a general audience, it is clearly and engagingly written so that people from all walks of life can read it and comprehend what happened in Korea before Park Chung-Hee led a military coup in 1961 and why it occurred. Korea Review (Seoul), INDEPENDENCE (2) November 2012  Doh Chull Shin is Jack W. Peltason Scholar in Residence at the Center for the Study of Democracy in the University of California, Irvine