The Land of the Banished is a heart-rending tale of a man torn and warped by the hardships of the Korean War period. Born into a landless peasant family, Mahn-seok becomes embroiled in the class struggle that descends upon his village with the onset of the war. From his rise through the ranks of the People’s Army to his devastating demise, the story is recounted in Mahn-seok’s own voice through a series of flashbacks. The Land of the Banished is a work that gives new perspective to the Korean War experience and its inglorious aftermath.