The Great Leader and the Fighter Pilot

The True Story of the Tyrant Who Created North Korea and the Young Lieutenant Who Stole His Way to Freedom

By: Blaine Harden

Narrated by: Mark Bramhall

From the bestselling author of Escape from Camp 14, the murderous rise of North Korea’s founding dictator and the fighter pilot who faked him out

In The Great Leader and the Fighter Pilot, New York Times bestselling author Blaine Harden tells the riveting story of how Kim Il Sung grabbed power and plunged his country into war against the United States while the youngest fighter pilot in his air force was playing a high-risk game of deception—and escape.

As Kim ascended from Soviet puppet to godlike ruler, No Kum Sok noisily pretended to love his Great Leader. That is, until he swiped a Soviet MiG-15 and delivered it to the Americans, not knowing they were offering a $100,000 bounty for the warplane (the equivalent of nearly one million
dollars today). The theft—just weeks after the Korean War ended in July 1953—electrified the world and incited Kim’s bloody vengeance.

During the Korean War the United States brutally carpet bombed the North, killing hundreds of thousands of civilians and giving the Kim dynasty, as Harden reveals, the fact-based narrative it would use to this day to sell paranoia and hatred of Americans.

Drawing on documents from Chinese and Russian archives about the role of Mao and Stalin in Kim’s shadowy rise, as well as from neverbefore- released U.S. intelligence and interrogation files, Harden gives us a heart-pounding escape adventure and an entirely new way to understand the world’s longest-lasting totalitarian state.

loved!!!

This book was absolutely extraordinary. worth the read and the audio that went with it made it even better !!!

Great story

Didn't expect to hear so much about Kim il sung as well as the Korean War in general. I recommend this audiobook. The performance was really clear and comprehendible.

Wonderful written book

The tie between the fighter pilot and the North Korean leader was on point. I wanted to understand how this country came to be. This book did not disappoint.

Didn't expect such a gripping story

love love love it. I had listened to and thoroughly enjoyed Escape from Camp 14, another of the authors books, but I still didn't expect this to be so good. My standard for a good audio book is if it keeps me driving around town just to listen. This one hit that mark. I found myself running numerous errands that I either made up, or had been putting off for some time, just to keep listening. Worth a listen not only for the historical perspective about the founder of the DPRK, but also the very personal story about a man who had had enough and decided to take his chances with his enemy.

Must read!! Amazing insight into N. Korea

What a story! I'm 34, born and raised in California, so needless to say I do not know a lot about the history of North Korea. Learned a lot from this book. Kenneth is an amazing man, thanks for sharing your story.