Book review: ‘Reading North Korea’ reveals power of watching Pyongyang’s words | NK News
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September 29, 2026Sep 29, 2026

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Book review: ‘Reading North Korea’ reveals power of watching Pyongyang’s words

Isozaki Atsuhito argues that DPRK propaganda remains one of the most reliable tools for understanding the regime

In “Reading North Korea: A Korea Watcher’s In-depth Commentary,” author Isozaki Atsuhito makes a compelling case that the best clues to Pyongyang’s thinking often lie in plain sight.

Isozaki, a professor at Japan’s prestigious Keio University, has emerged in recent years as a prodigious producer of insightful works on the DPRK. In addition to editing “Dissecting North Korea,” he has co-authored the popular “Introduction to North Korea” and written his own impressively detailed “Tourism in North Korea.”

The author has accumulated a wealth of experience in the course as a university professor and an analyst for Japan’s foreign