The Snuff Bottle Boy

by Ijen Kim

One does not think of North Korea as having a "foreign community", but it does, and this is a story from within that world. North Korea is much in the news, but only as an almost too absurd to be read "other". This novel gives that "other" flesh, colour and life. Anyone curious to get beneath the regimented surface of Pyongyang and its people would find here a different vision, a hidden world lurking behind the seemingly identical facades lining the monumental socialist streets. This is North Korea with a lyrical, human touch, warm, sad and funny all at once.

Fate and family tradition demand that Mickey becomes an artist and trains under the eye of Mr. Jin. Mickey comes from North Korea's Chinese community, the only long-term and fully established foreign community in that country. He grows up not just with art, but with the stories of his erstwhile aristocrat great-grandmother, and dreams of his mysterious grandmother, Lily, who left for Moscow as a young woman, taking with her one of the family's two precious snuff bottle heirlooms.

Navigating an often treacherous world, Mickey finds himself caught up in journeys and events far beyond what he'd thought possible. Lies, deceit and hidden dangers abound, but so do friendship, generosity and love. Through it all runs the sustaining power of imagination and an ability to see light and promise in even the darkest corners.

308 pages, Kindle Edition

Published October 22, 2018

About the author

I am an author and artist. I am an interpreter by profession and have worked also as a journalist and a translator.
My website is https://ijenkim.wordpress.com/
You can also view my art and poetry at https://www.instagram.com/ijenkim/

Reviews

[Lerra]

Mickey, a young artist's apprentice from the ethnic Chinese community in North Korea, has a talisman - an antique snuff bottle, a family heirloom whose twin has been lost. In a country brutally cut-off from its own twin to the South, it's own history distorted and erased, the young artist intuitively picks up shards and echoes of clues to see beyond the austerity and cruelty that surround him to piece together his own past.
The young boy spends tedious hours copying old Chinese paintings that we soon realize are not done for the noblest of reasons. But just as these works are cheap imitations, as soulless as the pervasive official propaganda "art", Mickey uses his talent to transcend his mundane reality and to share this discovery with the girl he loves.
Through the power of paintings, music, ceramics, a piece of blue crystal, a song or a novel, they learn together with the reader how grim reality is given meaning by works of art.
The snuff bottle Mickey carries in his pocket, is a talisman that never leaves him for long, it is a compass that leads the young man to some chance and not so random meetings, bringing the reader along for the ride.
This well-written and well-researched novel with a great deal of sympathy and warmth introduces us to the lives of a group of contemporary young men and women in North Korea.
It is refreshing to read about a country about which we know so little, and yet feel that these Chinese teenagers from North Korea have the same dreams, aspirations and desires as teens anywhere in the West: love, freedom, truth and identity.

[Kimberley Warner · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Snuff Bottle Boy is a coming of age story that is really quite unique given its setting. Ijen Kim takes us on a journey of growing up and discovery with Mickey, finding friendship, love, loss and many other life lessons. The imagery is beautiful and vivid, and I think this way with description is truly Kim’s greatest strength. Cities and places I have never seen came alive on the page and had personalities of their own.

I will say the story is a bit slow to start and is quite “heavy” at times, but it is interesting with all its twists, turns and heartfelt moments. I recommend it to anyone looking for something a little different!

[Sally · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ijen Kim's "The Snuff Bottle Boy" takes you on a journey from North Korea to China, from China to Russia, and finally on to Vienna, Austria. Since I've lived in Vienna for many years, spent some time living in Russia back in the 1990s and have visited North Korea and China, I was very much looking forward to reading this novel to see how the author captures these places, and it did not disappoint! The book is beautifully written and I love the fact that although you want to read on to know what happens, every so often you find yourself stopping and re-reading a sentence or paragraph to really take the words in. The book is well-researched and Ijen Kim clearly has an eye for the little quirky details of life - whether in North Korea, China or Russia. I don't want to give anything away about the plot but I think this book can perhaps best be described as a kind of cross between a historical family saga and a political thriller with art - both traditional and modern - as the backdrop. The characters all have their flaws and at times you might not even like them very much, but by the end of the novel you do care about them. As a paperback (308 pages), I think "The Snuff Bottle Boy" would be a great holiday read, and I can see myself re-reading this book at some point in the future when I need entertaining during a long train journey.

[Melinda Warner · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very unique read. Ijen Kim's style is very lyrical and poetic, that you feel you are more watching it rather than reading it. It is cinematic in its images and flow. Her imagery is a real strength, and I've never read writing that is able to breath so much life, sadness and heart into places, natural landscape, buildings, communities etc. A real poet. She takes us deep into history, and does so with complete confidence, empathy and understanding - You could feel the sorrows and joys of all the people and towns - named and unamed - faces or just representations of ones - rivers, boats, streets etc. She knows how to lyrically weave them altogether in memorable and often painstakingly detailed imagery - that again, just echoes with cinematic quality.

This is a story for those who would appreciate and understand a more dreamy prose, full of introspect, artistic bitter-sweet journeys, and history. I felt like I was in Pyongyong in North Korea and I developed a sincere compassion for its characters. And while, this style is not something I personally pick up and read - I appreciate Kim's sincerity, empathy and passion.

[Andrew Benson · Rating 4 out of 5]

North Korea under its dynasty of tyrants comes to life in this well-crafted and highly poetic portrait of a budding artist and his fascinating trials and tribulations. The style is sparse, even clipped at times, in keeping with the harsh setting. A certain use of language seems to convey an almost over-stylized orientalism. The pedant in me occasionally wondered if an editor was employed and if so whether they did a good job. A minor pout perhaps. That said, the main characters are vividly depicted - and we run the whole gamut of emotions, from love and hate to violent jealousy and painful nostalgia. The hero's creative quest and global adventures certainly make this a page turner. But I am not sure where the long journey takes us. Perhaps a sequel awaits?

[Simon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Art is a central focus of this book and this comes through not just in the story, but in the way the book is written. The vivid, evocative style works like a series of paintings, or like a film. What results is a canvas on which the characters play out their story. And it is a story with some unexpected twists and turns. The snuff bottle of the title is a cherished family heirloom, a coveted object, and also the spring that sets in motion the chain of events that takes the characters on their journey. A story worth reading and a different perspective on a part of the world so often reduced to black and white tones.

[Vic Echegoyen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A slow read, to be savoured and put down now and then to mull over the descriptions. Very original, wry, endearing, moving, cruel and unsettling at times, exotic, with a deep knowledge of Chinese and Korean traditions, values and the almighty inflence of family and social expectations, and equally profound characters, and with a rhythm and a style like no other. A book to be read between the lines, too - a rare bonus in contemporary literature. Highly recommended: you might find it an acquired taste, or even dislike it - but in the end, you'll be glad that you read it.

[Alexandra Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

An enjoyable read. It’s not really about North Korea itself, it’s more about people and their passions and quests, and about art and its place and meaning in our lives.
It had enough intrigue to keep me wondering what would happen. The descriptions were vivid, really making the places come to life, and there were quite a few places too, as the action shifted countries and even continents.
The characters were sympathetic, flawed but likable, and they drew you in to their story.
In short, I would recommend it, especially to anyone interested in art, history, and Asia.

[Shelley McCarthy · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not plan to read a book about North Korea, but my sister recommended this book, so I gave it a go and I really liked it. What I liked was that although it seems to be such an “exotic” setting, you can relate to the characters and the story. It’s about growing up, finding yourself, discovering the world. It’s also about unraveling secrets and connecting past and present.
The style is clear but vivid, poetic at moments, but not pretentious. It’s a book that makes you feel like you’ve gone on a journey, but not one that is so distant after all.

[Daniela Atanasova · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Snuff Bottle Boy" was a page turner, I finished it in two days and could not leave it aside until I did! It offers a unique insight into the lives of the Chinese community in North Korea and brings closer this mysterious country. It is also a testimony to the power of art and imagination to carry us forward through harsh circumstances. What I most enjoyed was the style, which is poetic and visual, while telling a gripping story. This book drew me into its world and I didn't resist. I'm now looking forward to reading the author's new book and hoping for a similar experience!

[PCR · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really liked the prose. It's the kind that flows but keeps surprises. It's something some authors manage, to have you stop a couple of lines later and go... "oh!".

It's a book that also manages to touch upon a lot of common themes of... well you know, what human beings have in their heads all the time. And it does in a straighfoward, relatable manner.

Oh, and the touches of modern history (the news kind) that populate the book provide a perfect background.

[Roger Grimsditch · Rating 5 out of 5]

An extremely powerful story of a young Chinese in North Korea.
The plot is skillfully handled by the author and the story is absorbing and touching.
The reader is taken through a treacherous world of lies and deceits.
But this is done with freshness, intensity.
This is Ijen Kim's first book.
Powerful writing indeed.
I got goose pimples reading certain passages.
I am sorry that my inarticulate writing cannot do justice to Ijen Kim's journey of discovery.

[Alexandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an exceptional book by an exceptional writer. Take your time, drink tea (or coffee) and read like we used to read. The writing itself takes my breath away. They don't write like this anymore, and it's a pity.

I had to pick it up and put it down a number of times because it's not something you want to read while multi-tasking. It really is a world away from a "quick read" and worth every moment. Highly recommend!

[John Nicholson · Rating 5 out of 5]

"The Snuff Bottle Boy" is an absorbing novel that transported me to a world at once totally unfamiliar but thoroughly real. Real because of the author's gift for telling an adventurous and touching story with real flesh-and-blood characters, rooted in a saga-like North Korean family background but swept along in the breakneck rush of modern China. I found it totally gripping. John

[Janequin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Is so good! beautifully written novel. Even for Russians, who don’t necessarily want to read a book about “terrible life in a dictatorship “, this story was interesting, not depressing, and the part set in Moscow was also very interesting to read.

[Chris Johnston · Rating 4 out of 5]

A “how-will-it-end” crossed with an emerging “who-did-it” theme ... all the while providing a cultural tour of countries that English speakers (readers) seldom visit.

The plot would almost be better as a movie, but the text moves at a medium canter that holds the interest, and surprises.

[Simona]

Excellent book, intriguing plot! It is wonderfully written and I look forward to reading the author's next book!

[Johanna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A coming of age story, beautifully written, vivid and poetic. Well worth a read.

[Eleonor · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fascinating novel. A story you wouldn't expect. A refreshing reading, unique and pleasant.

[D Codarin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Snuff Bottle Boy takes you to different worlds and cultures. It is a journey through civilisations and time. It opens a window onto the unknown and brings you right there in the midst of it. Pyongyang China Russia, ethnic Chinese in North Korea, Chinese of China, more Chinese than their Korean Chinese fellows. Soviets of German origins, Russians, Asians, Kazakhs. North Koreans and South Koreans. Feeling alien and a foreigner in your own country, with your own people, in your own home. Especially if you see the world around you through the prism of a magic glass, or a magic brush and your fantasy transforms the drudgery and dullness of your daily life.
Europe offers no respite either, even Austria, a little earthly jewel, harbours stories of failed attempts at being happy.
Is there any hope for us, if we do not escape reality through art?
Is there any hope for those peoples under the yoke of dictatorship and brain-washing ideologies?
And, most importantly, is there any hope for truly loving human relationships?

Ijen Kim is endowed with a compelling rich prose which smoothly depicts the world around as if it were on canvas. A colourful painting with a distinguished grainy and detailed texture. Tangible, smellable.
Fully enjoyable.