Many studies of business growth in Asia tend to overemphasize only the state's role in producing the growth. Especially, in the case of South Korea, the big business groups called chaebol often have been generalized as something like the semi-state business supported by the government. However, it's true that this view has some serious weaknesses. Kim's book guides readers to consider the more COMPLICATED and DYNAMIC processes of the relationship between these two actors beyond oversimplification: state and chaebol, and the author shows that the chaebol's growth in Korea had not been guaranteed without risk by the state. By using various measures, some chaebol groups had to try to escape the strong state's discipline. And the state also had to try to keep itself free from chaebol's dominance. Taht is, this book reveals even the power struggle between the two major players in the Korea's fast industrialization. This book has several merits: using the interviews with the people who are or were in the main positions of decision-making in the course of industrialization; suggesting some important theoretical implication in explaining the state's and businesses' roles in East Asian economic growth and so on.

Chi-hoon could be an 8-year-old girl almost anywhere--she is playful, imaginative, has an occasional disagreement with her older sister, and loves to visit her grandparents. The charm of this book is that we see Seoul, Korea through a young girl's eyes. This book is filled with snippets of Korean history and culture. We see Chi-hoon struggle to pay attention at a piano lesson, go to market with her mother, try to win a school prize, and play yut, a traditional Korean game, with her grandparents. In a particularly amusing scene, we see Chi-hoon persuade her grandfather to buy her cold noodle soup (a Korean specialty) against her parents' wishes. How many children and parents can identify with that scenario! :) This is a fantastic book for any age. Even the youngest children will enjoy the lovely photographs, and older children and adults will enjoy re-reading the text which contains gentle references to issues such as tremendous academic pressure (Chi-hoon's cousin will remain at home for an entire year to prepare for college entrance exams), the older generation's bias toward male children, and the age hierarchy (Chi-hoon wishes that she didn't have to call her older sister Oni, a title of respect). A must read!

I think this book explains very well how the economic integration in the Europe affects on the Korean consumer electronics firms. In particular, the empirical survey is very useful for not only Korean firms but also firms in other less developed countries, which consider to make FDIs in the Europe.

James Young, one of the American military's first area specialists, has written what may well be the most interesting and definitive book on recent Korean-American diplomatic and military relations in print today. Young, a former Army Colonel, spent almost 20 years in Asia, including 14 in Korea, where he was an advisor to five American ambassadors and several Secretaries of Defense. In this appealing memoir, he writes with the expertise of an old Korea hand.

After four years of training in Korean language and culture, Young was a first hand witness and participant as American diplomats convinced South Korean President Park Chung-hee not to develop his own nuclear weapons. The lessons from this experience might well be of use today in dealing with North Korea's nuclear ambitions.

From the perspective of a military attache,Young provides new insights into the intrigue and behind-the-scenes efforts to derail President Jimmy Carter's troop withdrawal policies. His on-the-scene account of the military coup of 1979, and subsequent events, is extraordinarily authoritative and comprehensive, and provides new information for historians. He provides personal observations on the imposition of martial law and the Kwangju incident that followed, when Korean military forces ran amok during protests in the city and killed and wounded hundreds of civilians. For the first time, he details how the United States was caught flat-footed, and how policy makers at the time failed to respond, thus sowing the seeds of anti-Americanism in the years to come.

Additionally, Young's insider account of dealing with the senior leadership in North Korea in both diplomatic negotiations and business settings makes a major contribution to understanding the internal dynamics within this secretive state.

"Eye on Korea" is a great mixture of contemporary military and diplomatic history. It offers stories that are entertaining, provocative, and often humorous. Those interested in the region, the issues, and modern Korea will value this book.

"From Tradition to Consumption" deals with the process of cultural changes required by capitalist development. This book addresses many inter-related questions: How do Korean men and women respond to the new physical environments, new social roles, new daily routines, and new disciplining of the bodies? How does the state "prepare" its citizens for the new capitalist order? What is the role of mass media? And, how is the popular culture constructed according to the market needs? Dennis Hart wove in a dazzling array of perspectives including feminist theories and discourse analysis in this work. Hart maintains that what is seemingly a result of "natural" development flows from a set of policies meticulously calculated and orchestrated by the state and capitalist interests. The past is "museumized" and the modern consumerism is touted as necessary and desirable new culture. Yet, it is not an entirely harmonious and flawless process. There are contentions and maladies rising from this.
The wide range of literature and data Hart employed is also impressive-- government statistics, theses and dissertations from Korean universities, TV and magazine advertisement, and insightful personal interviews. Recently, several different ethnographic studies about Korean middle-class and consumption were published in the US, but this book stands out among them because of the theoretical depth and fluency, as well as the extensive use of Korean literature.

At once erudite and witty and compassionate, this book is a rare pleasure to read. There are many parts that compel the readers stop and think, and reflect on something familiar and ordinary, and there are some parts that are funny and deeply moving. This book could be used as a textbook for advanced undergraduate students, but it would be also approachable for non-academics who are interested in modern Korea. I recommend this book very highly.

Robert Boettcher's Gifts of Deceit insightfully and thoroughly documents the activities and findings of the Frazer Committee.

This congressional subcommittee( through it's 1978 report) on International Organizations opened a window on a world in Washington which many would prefer to see closed forever.

The report of this committee informally called the Frazer Report exhaustively documents and details Sun Myung Moon's role in working to shape American foreign policy. It further names a whole host of characters including American politicians, military leaders, Korean diplomats, former Japanese prime ministers, not to mention President Dwight D. Eisenhower who wittingly or unwittingly wound up acting as agents or surrogates for Sun Myung Moon and his "Unification Church".

In addition to reading like a first rate who dunnit Boettcher's book gives the reader a behind the scenes look at official Washington which to this day has done nothing about the principal findings of the Frazer Committee: namely that the Unification Church has engaged in systematic violations of U.S law. Banking and currency laws, securities and exchange commission laws, Immigration and naturalization laws and charities fraud laws.

Boettcher's book is the first book which reveals the global geo-political ambitions of the Moon organization. It is a must for students of foreign relations, students of destructive cults, and for students of the U. S. Constitution particularly those who take an interest in the first and the thirteenth amendments.

Karen Hurston grew up in the 'Cho' church, witnessing first hand the remarkable story of how Yongii Cho and her father built the largest church in the world. This wonderfully readable book combines the thrilling story of God's guidance in building this church, with concrete, transferable church growth ideas that can work in any church's cell groups.

Karen is one of the most gifted storytellers of her generation, and the book is not only instructional but inspirational as well.

We have used this as a standard text on small groups in our School of Urban Ministry in Minneapolis. It has been well received by our students. -Rev. Roland J. Wells, Jr., St. Paul's Ev. Lutheran Church, Downtown Minneapolis, MN.

Mr. Hawley really knows his stuff.

This book is one of the best books that is available for Korean Ethics and Business. The author explains the different categories of Korean Business, gives a history and explains the Korean Character. The author explains that Korea is one of the newest markets that is growing rapidly.The Korean products are very competitive just like the Japanese products. This book is very valuable for anyone doing business in South Korea or doing business with Koreans in their own country.

This book was very informative and useful to understand public adminsitration in South Korea as well as government affairs in North Korea. Only limited resources are available on Korean public administraiton in English. Thus this book provides well articulated insights on various issues such as administrative culture, representative bureaucracy and regionalism, women employment in government, civil service reform, organizaional change and development, morale and motivation, and government reform. It will be useful for graduate courses such as comparative administration, Asian management, and comparative politics. I strongly recommend it for graduate couseworks and advanced researches on Asian public administration.