Cuming's work is amazing! I used it for a research project on Korea and out of the 30 books on Korea Cuming's work was the most useful. Very neutral in the information and very detailed. I HIGHLY RECOMEND THIS BOOK!

I found this book very engrossing and educational. Vast majority of Korean history books do not include how foreign countries actions/lack of actions affected Korea's history. For example, the U.S. Cumings may sound anti-American, but when parts of history is revealed/told that isn't often heard it can seem rather harsh to those who aren't use to it. What I really liked about his writing was that he revealed the short-comings of every country involved, including Korea itself. Korea's turbulant history is very complex and yet most think it's pretty straight forward. This book makes you think outside the box.

I would suggest this book to those who want to learn about the other facets of Korea's history other than the standard and REALLY learn about Korea and its people.

I found this book very engrossing and educational. Vast majority of Korean history books do not include how foreign countries actions/lack of actions affected Korea's history. For example, the U.S. Cumings may sound anti-American, but when parts of history is revealed/told that isn't often heard it can seem rather harsh to those who aren't use to it. What I really liked about his writing was that he revealed the short-comings of every country involved, including Korea itself. Korea's turbulant history is very complex and yet most think it's pretty straight forward. This book makes you think outside the box.

I would suggest this book to those who want to learn about the other facets of Korea's history other than the standard and REALLY learn about Korea and its people.

Being married to a Korean lady, and having been to Korea six times since 1980, I read this book with interest. I also worked in Korea on an AID mission to assist two university science departments at Seoul National University develop into international graduate program status. Thus because of my trips, and having lived there, I read the book with more than routine interest. Because of these visits, I have read other books on Korean History also and travelled throughout SOuth Korea many times and seeing the historical monuments.

I found that this book sumamrized historical events fairly well, and found no inconsistencies with other books I had read. What was disturbing and disappointing to me was that Cumings mixes historical facts with his personal interpretations and opinions. If this was a true excercise in scholarly history, these should have been separated, labelled and properly disclosed.

My second disappointment was the Anti-American tone of the book. Yes, It is true that Kroea suffered during the Korean War, and part of that suffering was from military and US state department blunders. However, in my experience, the Koreans I have come to know are grateful to the USA for having saved them from the fate of living in a reclusive, communistic, totalitarian state and have not forgotten it. That includes a large number of younger people I have met there.

In short, this book is part history and part OP ED writing. As a work of scholarship it flunks the test of objectivity and separation and disclosure of historical fact from personal opinion/interpretation. Hence, I rate it a "2"

A previous reviewer suggested watching the foot notes. Although earlier reviews adequately explain the short-comings of this editorial commentary, I shall provide an example of a foot note that indeed needs watching. On Page 301 the author lauds Korea's advanced capabilities of State-led, Capitalist-free engineering and scientific programs---including rocket technology. He then attempts to belittle American know-how by referring to our rocket program as: "...a combined German-Chinese effort". His source for this appraisal was Iris Chang's "Thread of the Silkworm", a brilliant biography of Chen Xueshen (this is the contemporary pinyin transliteration of his name, not the out-dated Wade-Guiles method the author uses), a mathematician and Chinese national who worked his way up to a high position at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Caltech. Although Chen certainly made significant contributions to the work at the lab, he did not contribute the 50% (the "Chinese" half?) that Bruce Cummings would have us believe. Read "Thread of the Silkworm" to get an intriguing account of just exactly what Mr. Chen did contribute. Don't bother too much with "Korea's Place in the Sun".

A previous reviewer suggested watching the foot notes. Although earlier reviews adequately explain the short-comings of this editorial commentary, I shall provide an example of a foot note that indeed needs watching. On Page 301 the author lauds Korea's advanced capabilities of State-led, Capitalist-free engineering and scientific programs---including rocket technology. He then attempts to belittle American know-how by referring to our rocket program as: "...a combined German-Chinese effort". His source for this appraisal was Iris Chang's "Thread of the Silkworm", a brilliant biography of Chen Xueshen (this is the contemporary pinyin transliteration of his name, not the out-dated Wade-Guiles method the author uses), a mathematician and Chinese national who worked his way up to a high position at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory at Caltech. Although Chen certainly made significant contributions to the work at the lab, he did not contribute the 50% (the "Chinese" half?) that Bruce Cummings would have us believe. Read "Thread of the Silkworm" to get an intriguing account of just exactly what Mr. Chen did contribute. Don't bother too much with "Korea's Place in the Sun".