Somewhere Inside: One Sister's Captivity in North Korea and the Other Sister's Fight to Bring Her Home (Center Point Platinum Nonfiction)

On March 17, 2009, Laura Ling and her colleague Euna Lee were working on a documentary about North Korean defectors who were fleeing the desperate conditions in their homeland. While filming on the Chinese–North Korean border, they were chased down by North Korean soldiers who violently apprehended them. Laura and Euna were charged with trespassing and "hostile acts," and imprisoned by Kim Jong Il's notoriously secretive Communist state. Kept totally apart, they endured months of interrogations and eventually a trial before North Korea's highest court. They were the first Americans ever to be sentenced to twelve years of hard labor in a prison camp in North Korea. When news of the arrest reached Laura's sister, journalist Lisa Ling, she immediately began a campaign to get her sister released, one that led her from the State Department to the higher echelons of the media world and eventually to the White House. Somewhere Inside reveals for the first time Laura's gripping account of what really happened on the river, her treatment at the hands of North Korean guards, and the deprivations and rounds of harrowing interrogations she endured. She speaks movingly about the emotional toll inflicted on her by her incarceration, including the measures she took to protect her sources and her fears that she might never see her family again. Lisa writes about her unrelenting efforts to secure Laura and Euna's release. Offering insights into the vast media campaign spearheaded on the women's behalf, Lisa also takes us deep into the drama involving people at the highest levels of government, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore, Senator John Kerry, and Governor Bill Richardson—intense discussions that entailed strategically balancing the agendas and good intentions of the various players. She also describes her role in the back-and-forth between North Korea's demands and the dramatic rescue by former President Bill Clinton. Though they were thousands of miles apart while Laura was in captivity, the Ling sisters' relationship became a way for the reclusive North Korean government to send messages to the United States government, which helped lead to Laura and Euna's eventual release. Told in the sisters' alternating voices, Somewhere Inside is a timely, inspiring, and page-turning tale of survival set against the canvas of international politics that goes beyond the headlines to reveal the impact on lives engulfed by forces beyond their control. But it is also a window into the unique bond these two sisters have always shared, a bond that sustained them throughout the most horrifying ordeal of their lives.

On March 17, 2009, Laura Ling and her colleague, Euna Lee were apprehended by fearsome North Korean soldiers and violently dragged through the forests along the China-North Korea border and across the Tumen River. They had been working on a television project about the human trafficking crisis that China and North Korea have been trying to cover up for years.

Shortly after, the battered and terrified women were brought before North Korea's Supreme Court and were sentenced to 12 years of hard labor in notorious gulag-style camps. They were the first Americans ever tried before the court.

Forming half of the story of SOMEWHERE INSIDE, Laura provides a gripping account of struggle at the hands of the North Korean guards, as well as her cunning in being able to befriend some of the guards. For her meals in prison, Laura was given rice mixed with rocks before being subject to rounds of harrowing interrogations. Throughout her five months of imprisonment, Laura experienced the darkest moments of her life as she began to come to terms with the possibility that she might never see her family again.

After hearing of Laura's capture, Laura's sister, world-renowned journalist Lisa Ling, immediately thrust herself into private and public efforts to help secure Laura and Euna's release. She was unrelenting in her mission. Lisa recounts insider conversations with people in the highest levels of government, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore, Senator John Kerry, and Governor Bill Richardson, among others. She also shares insights into the balancing of agendas and egos with which she had to juggle.

From opposite ends of the world, Laura and Lisa Ling became an unprecedented channel of communication between North Korea, one of the most oppressive regimes on the planet, and its archenemy, the United States. SOMEWHERE INSIDE is a story of survival, sisterhood and the ignition of a new relationship between two nations that have been at war for more than half a century.

“A page-turning account of not only international geopolitics, sisterhood, and familial triumph, but also a portrait of humanity at its best.” —Deepak ChopraOn March 17, 2009, while filming a documentary on the Chinese-North Korean border, Laura Ling and her colleague Euna Lee were violently apprehended by North Korean soldiers, charged with trespassing and “hostile acts,” and imprisoned by Kim Jong Il's notoriously secretive Communist state. Kept totally apart, they endured months of interrogations and a trial before North Korea's highest court that led to a sentence of twelve years of hard labor in a North Korean prison camp.When news of the arrest reached Laura's sister, journalist Lisa Ling, she immediately began a campaign to get Laura released. Her efforts led her from the State Department to the higher echelons of the media world and eventually to the White House. Lisa takes us deep into the drama between people in the highest levels of government, including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, former Vice President Al Gore, and eventually former President Bill Clinton, who arrived in North Korea in mid-August for a suspenseful rescue.Somewhere Inside is a timely, inspiring, and page-turning tale of survival set against the canvas of international politics. Writing with their strong, poignant voices, both sisters go beyond the headlines to reveal the unique bond that has sustained them throughout the most horrifying ordeal of their lives.“A riveting story of captivity and the enduring faith, determination, and love of two sisters.” —Booklist (starred review)“A gripping tale of family bonds and love, national pride, and precarious politics.” —Times Record News (Wichita Falls, Texas) Somewhere Inside is the electrifying, never-before-told story of Laura Ling’s capture by the North Koreans in March 2009, and the efforts of her sister, journalist Lisa Ling, to secure Laura’s release by former President Bill Clinton. This riveting true account of the first ever trial of an American citizen in North Korea’s highest court carries readers deep inside the world’s most secretive nation while it poignantly explores the powerful, inspiring bonds of sisterly love. The never-before-told story of Laura Ling's capture by the North Koreans and the role her sister played in bringing about her rescue by President Bill Clinton. A piercing look inside the world's most secretive nation as well as a moving tale of sisterhood and love. Presents an account that alternates between Laura Ling's experiences as a captive within the prison system of the North Korea, one of the world's most reclusive nations, and journalist Lisa Ling's efforts to have her sister released Somewhere inside North Korea Scrambling for answers Going to Pyongyang The visit The confession The phone call The window is closing Glimmers of hope The envoy The rescue.