NO SPACE FOR LOVE - a novel
NO SPACE FOR LOVE is an inspirational novel based on the harrowing true stories of Ha-na and Seng, teenagers suffering from starvation and oppression in North Korea, who at different times and separately, escape, live, and journey through China and later meet in the United States.
In 2002 under extreme starvation and oppression and without hope, 15-year-old HA-NA SOON escapes Kim Jong-il’s brutal regime, leaving her home in North Korea for a better life with her father after losing her brother and mother. After Ha-na is sold into marriage to a brutal Chinese man, she becomes the family slave where she is sexually assaulted nightly, worked and beaten daily by her mother-in-law, and expected to produce the coveted son. She and a new friend escape the farm with Ha-na’s precious baby daughter only to be forced into the sex business and experience a cruel life in China. Ha-na is forced to make gut-wrenching decisions in her quest for a better life for herself and her child.
Meanwhile, under this same oppression, hungry and without telling his family, 17-year-old SENG-IL PARK swims across the Tumen River into China where he learns how unforgiving and dangerous China can be. While attempting to work and stay safe in the Chinese shadows, Seng-il is caught and repatriated back to N.K. where he is tortured, starved, and nearly dies before once again escaping back to China. Seng-il learns that while life is better in China, he is still not “free” and cannot participate or “fit in” to the Chinese culture. He longs for what he thinks real “freedom” is but where can he go and how can he get there? Seng-il is ingenious in how he selects where to go and how to escape China.
Learn about the internal struggles, betrayals, and heartbreaking choices these teens were forced to make as well as the deep friendships and kindnesses they each enjoyed as they navigated the harsh realities of life in the most oppressive societies to life in the open society of the United States. You will be intrigued by Ha-na and Seng-il’s stories which capture the desperation of many immigrants coming to the U.S. today.