"In 2016, the writer Travis Jeppesen became the first American to study at a North Korean university. In [this book] he culls from his experiences living, traveling, and studying in North Korea to create a multifaceted portrait of the country and its idiosyncratic capital city in the Kim Jong Un era. Anchored by the experience of five trips to the country and encounters with citizens from all walks of life, Jeppesen reveals how the North Korean system actually functions and perpetuates itself in the day-to-day, beyond the propaganda-fueled ideology. He challenges the notion that Pyongyang is merely a "showcase capital" where everything is staged for the benefit of foreigners, as well as the idea that Pyongyangites are brainwashed robots, ultimately revealing a surprisingly complex society, rife with contradictions. With unique personal insight and a rigorous historical grounding, Jeppesen's immersive and poignant narrative goes beyond the lurid clichés of "dark tourism" and the "good v