{"title":"Michael J. Seth","description":"Michael J. Seth is a professor of East Asian and world history at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia. He has lived and worked in South Korea and is the author of Education Fever: Society, Politics and the Pursuit of Schooling in South Korea (University of Hawaii Press, 2002) and North Korea: A History (Palgrave Macmillan, 2018). He is also the editor of the Routledge Handbook of Modern Korean History (Routledge, 2016).","products":[{"product_id":"korea-a-very-short-introduction-paperback","title":"Korea: A Very Short Introduction - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eHaving spent centuries in the shadows of its neighbours China and Japan, Korea is now the object of considerable interest for radically different reasons-- the South as an economic success story and for its vibrant popular culture; the North as the home to one of the world's most repressive regimes, at once both bizarre and menacing. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis \u003cem\u003eVery Short Introduction\u003c\/em\u003e explores the history, culture, and society of a deeply divided region. Michael Seth considers what it means to be Korean, and analyses how the various peoples of the Korean peninsula became one of the world's most homogeneous nations, before exploring how this nation evolved, in a single lifetime, into today's sharply contrasting societies. He also discusses how Korea fits into the larger narrative of both East Asian and world history, economically, politically, and socially. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eABOUT THE SERIES: \u003cbr\u003eThe \u003cem\u003eVery Short Introductions\u003c\/em\u003e series from Oxford University Press contains hundreds of titles in almost every subject area. These pocket-sized books are the perfect way to get ahead in a new subject quickly. Our expert authors combine facts, analysis, perspective, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make interesting and challenging topics highly readable.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51367742079199,"sku":"9780198830771","price":12.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/xHKWESqcX39780198830771.webp?v=1789113412"},{"product_id":"a-concise-history-of-modern-korea-from-the-late-nineteenth-century-to-the-present-paperback","title":"A Concise History of Modern Korea: From the Late Nineteenth Century to the Present - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eNow in a fully revised and updated edition including new primary sources and illustrations, this comprehensive and balanced history of modern Korea explores the social, economic, and political issues it has faced since being catapulted into the wider world at the end of the nineteenth century. Placing this formerly insular society in a global context, Michael J. Seth describes how this ancient, culturally and ethnically homogeneous society first fell victim to Japanese imperialist expansionism, and then was arbitrarily divided in half after World War II. Seth traces the postwar paths of the two Koreas--with different political and social systems and different geopolitical orientations--as they evolved into sharply contrasting societies. South Korea, after an unpromising start, became one of the few postcolonial developing states to enter the ranks of the first world, with a globally competitive economy, a democratic political system, and a cosmopolitan and dynamic culture. By contrast, North Korea became one of the world's most totalitarian and isolated societies, a nuclear power with an impoverished and famine-stricken population. Considering the radically different and historically unprecedented trajectories of the two Koreas, Seth assesses the insights they offer for understanding not only modern Korea but the broader perspective of world history. All readers looking for a balanced, knowledgeable history will be richly rewarded with this clear and concise book.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51368258142431,"sku":"9781538174593","price":61.49,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/HUAOCQWNA79781538174593.webp?v=1789125126"},{"product_id":"forever-president-a-biography-of-kim-il-sung-hardcover","title":"Forever President: A Biography of Kim Il Sung - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eThe life story of enigmatic North Korean leader Kim Il Sung, grandfather to Kim Jong Un.\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e Kim Il Sung (1912-94) ruled his country, North Korea, for longer and shaped it more profoundly than almost any other modern leader. He created a unique and seemingly bizarre and menacing political and social system, establishing a dynasty that has maintained it for two more generations. Yet he remains a curiously inaccessible, little-understood person, partly due to the closed and secretive nature of the state he founded. Historian Michael J. Seth puts together what we know of Kim's life from all available sources and places it in the context of Korean and modern world history to make both Kim and North Korea comprehensible. \u003ci\u003eForever President\u003c\/i\u003e looks at the unusual circumstances that contributed to Kim's rise to power and the early experiences that help to explain the directions he took his country. It examines his impressive early achievements and his later failures, which left North Korea the isolated, impoverished half of a divided nation. Kim, it finds, was a charismatic and resourceful leader determined to reunify and modernize his country. But he pursued these aims with ruthlessness, egotism, and extreme narrow-mindedness. Ultimately, his political inflexibility led to disaster.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51368727609567,"sku":"9781836391043","price":32.4,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/aEeIvXPJpN9781836391043.webp?v=1789132298"},{"product_id":"north-korea-a-history-paperback","title":"North Korea: A History - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNorth Korea is perhaps the most intriguing, infamous and enigmatic nation of our modern world. \u003c\/b\u003eYet how many of us know its full history, and how it came to be? How can we understand such a strange, isolated state? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e This new edition seeks to provide some answers to these questions. Starting with its origins in the colonial period, Michael J Seth masterfully traces how North Korea transformed itself from a Soviet-style socialist state to the ultra-nationalist, dynastic dictatorship of the 21st century. Born from 20th century Korea's struggles to regain autonomy and achieve modernization, this book follows the story of how a single Korea with a shared ethnic and cultural heritage, evolved into radically different societies. From the birth of the DPRK, through economic collapse, famine and failed revolution, it illuminates North Korea's journey with an engaging understanding of the political, ideological, economic and social forces at play. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis edition has been updated to examine recent developments in Korean history, up until 2025, and has analysed over sixty new publications from leading academics. It also incorporates the experiences of prominent North Korean women and analyses the everyday life of ordinary North Koreans, as well as the country's leaders. Seth also uses his expertise to analyse and put more emphasis on Inter-Korean relations \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFollowing the evolution of this uncommon nation, \u003ci\u003eNorth Korea: A History\u003c\/i\u003e uses the past to answer questions about the present, and above all shows North Korea as a society with a hard-working, long-suffering population who have made great sacrifices in the hopes for a better future. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e North Korea: A History\u003c\/i\u003e is also available in audiobook format from audiobook retailers.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51368730329311,"sku":"9781350475434","price":29.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/NnHSDwsq8V9781350475434.webp?v=1789132304"},{"product_id":"north-korea-a-history-hardcover","title":"North Korea: A History - Hardcover","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eNorth Korea is perhaps the most intriguing, infamous and enigmatic nation of our modern world. \u003c\/b\u003eYet how many of us know its full history, and how it came to be? How can we understand such a strange, isolated state? \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e This new edition seeks to provide some answers to these questions. Starting with its origins in the colonial period, Michael J Seth masterfully traces how North Korea transformed itself from a Soviet-style socialist state to the ultra-nationalist, dynastic dictatorship of the 21st century. Born from 20th century Korea's struggles to regain autonomy and achieve modernization, this book follows the story of how a single Korea with a shared ethnic and cultural heritage, evolved into radically different societies. From the birth of the DPRK, through economic collapse, famine and failed revolution, it illuminates North Korea's journey with an engaging understanding of the political, ideological, economic and social forces at play. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThis edition has been updated to examine recent developments in Korean history, up until 2025, and has analysed over sixty new publications from leading academics. It also incorporates the experiences of prominent North Korean women and analyses the everyday life of ordinary North Koreans, as well as the country's leaders. Seth also uses his expertise to analyse and put more emphasis on Inter-Korean relations \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFollowing the evolution of this uncommon nation, \u003ci\u003eNorth Korea: A History\u003c\/i\u003e uses the past to answer questions about the present, and above all shows North Korea as a society with a hard-working, long-suffering population who have made great sacrifices in the hopes for a better future. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003e North Korea: A History\u003c\/i\u003e is also available in audiobook format from audiobook retailers.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51368768471263,"sku":"9781350475441","price":113.4,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/VFPfJvav619781350475441.webp?v=1789132383"},{"product_id":"korea-at-war-conflicts-that-shaped-the-world-paperback","title":"Korea at War: Conflicts That Shaped the World - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAn engaging history covering a century of conflict on the Korean Peninsula\u003c\/b\u003e \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eKorea at War\u003c\/i\u003e recounts how two separate nations emerged on the Korean peninsula as the result of devastating conflicts involving provocative personalities and superpower intrigues. The topics covered in this fascinating book include: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe brutal years of Japanese colonial rule which began with Japan's annexation of Korea and ended with its defeat in World War II--and which still dominate Japanese-Korean relations today\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe division of the country into a totalitarian North and a prosperous, democratic South\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eNorth Korea's invasion of the South, motivated by Stalin, which led to the bloody Korean War--a conflict that is still not settled to this day\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe irascible General Douglas MacArthur, who was relieved of his command by President Truman when he disobeyed a direct order and attempted to expand the war into China\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003eThe rise of the Kim regime in North Korea and the continuing threat of nuclear war today\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHistorian Michael J. Seth explores these and other themes including the complete story of North Korea--a nation and a people who for three generations have lived under the world's most repressive regime. He also discusses how South Korea has made the incredible leap from one of the world's poorest nations to one its richest and most dynamic. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ci\u003eKorea at War\u003c\/i\u003e is the story of two nations with a shared past that could hardly be more different today. With over 50 color photographs and maps, this book is a must-read for anyone wanting to understand contemporary Asian politics and current affairs.","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51368936341727,"sku":"9780804859639","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/wTKwsKFUfs9780804859639.webp?v=1789135902"},{"product_id":"concise-history-of-korea-from-antiquity-to-the-present-paperback","title":"Concise History of Korea: From Antiquity to the Present - Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003eThis comprehensive book surveys Korean history from Neolithic times to the present. Michael J. Seth explores the origins and development of Korean society, politics, and still little-known cultural heritage from their inception to the two Korean states of today. Throughout, he adds a rare dimension by placing Korean history into broader global perspective. All readers looking for a balanced, knowledgeable history will be richly rewarded with this clear and concise book.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51369681191135,"sku":"9781538174531","price":98.75,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0813\/8958\/4607\/files\/Oz4uxe5YQM9781538174531.webp?v=1789144248"}],"url":"https:\/\/blackandbarhe.com\/collections\/michael-j-seth.oembed","provider":"Black \u0026 Barhe Bookstore","version":"1.0","type":"link"}