Since the end of the Second World War, primarily through the actions of foreign powers, the Korean Peninsula has been divided, with North and South Korea engaged in a competition for the heart and soul of the Korean nation and international legitimacy. President Bill Clinton described the peninsula as one of the most feared areas on earth, and some experts referred to it as one of the last vestiges of the Cold War.

Now, in the first decade of the twenty-first century and many years after the end of the Cold War, President Clinton's observation remains accurate. In fact, the Korean peninsula can be said to be more dangerous than it was in 1993.

How did this happen when Korea, for most of its 2,000-year history, was one of the most homogenous countries in the world. States, with their people sharing a common language and ethnic? Perry compares the ways in which the two Koreas developed their own political and economic systems over the past 50 years, as well as the competition between them.

Examines North Korea's nuclear weapons program, analyzes the challenge of peace and stability, and concludes with expectations of possible results in this troubled area.

I want that book.