I didn't know anything about Korean culture, until recently — December of 2019, to be exact. It was after reading Nothing to Envy: ordinary lives in North Korea, by Barbara Demick, that I fell in love. Ironically, I got to know about the Korean history and geography through North Korea's defectors stories. Of course, I knew the k-pop scene, but I wasn't that interested.

First off, Demick's narrative is unique. I hadn't read that type of storytelling before, so I was amazed by it. She sews together the stories of different characters, crossing throughout the Korean Peninsula's history, geography and politics. When I finished the book, I was fully aware of how Korean people endured so many unfortunate situations.

I felt a huge amount of respect and admiration growing inside me. In fact, at the time of my reading, Brazil was — and is still going — through political and economic crises. Perhaps, that was my main motivation to start reading about North Korea and following the latest news from there.

It always amazes me how the human being is able to thrive, even in the hardest conditions.