Narration of Love at 17 Vol. 1 (v. 1) [Paperback]

Kyungok Kang (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 22, 2006

Seyoung is an ordinary 17-year-old schoolgirl who plays mediocre roles in her school's drama productions. Her real-life drama develops as she finds herself falling for her childhood playmate Hyunwoo, who he is drifting away from her and toward a TV star schoolmate named Hyemi. When Seyoung works up the nerve to profess her feelings to Hyunwoo, he thinks she is merely working on her acting! Seyoung lives out her youth as if the entire world is a stage, but as she basks in the bright lights of innocence she seeks someone in the audience to recognize the light within her. Written by Korea's eminent writer Kyungok Kang, Narration of Love at 17 is a classic that will take you for a ride back to reliving your first love.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 8 Up–Saeyoung, a fairly typical teen living in Korea, has a crush on her friend Hyunwoo. She is a bit of a wallflower, and while she is active in her school's drama club, she has never landed a part in a play. Her classmate Haemi, however, is the lead actress and the prettiest girl in her grade. When Haemi gets offered a role on TV, her part in the play is offered to Saeyoung–but things don't work out quite the way she planned. A standard romance, this book has many of the elements of today's shojo stories. Despite its mainstream appeal, however, it was originally published in the early 1990s, and the characters' dress and references are somewhat dated. The story and art are both lackluster, neither offering any real enticement to readers to care about these characters, and there are some minor translation flaws. Overall, this volume is somewhat bland and unremarkable.–Jennifer Feigelman, Goshen Public Library and Historical Society, NY
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Product Details

• Paperback: 163 pages
• Publisher: NETCOMICS (August 22, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1600091202
• ISBN-13: 978-1600091209
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,189,339 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Love and other lessons of life, September 10, 2008

By 

deucetokki - See all my reviews

This review is from: Narration of Love at 17 Vol. 1 (v. 1) (Paperback)

I assumed "Narration of Love at 17" would be another sappy high school melodrama about unrequited love, but while I was reading it I got unexpectedly and suddenly shoved down the road of pure delight. This series is different from its kind because it challenges the thoughts and actions of people when they are struggling with romance, loneliness, and the dark cloud of the vast and eminent future.

The whole series is really a mural of the troubles and anxieties that humanity endures throughout a lifetime. At times it seems a little sophisticated in terms of the philosophical and psycho analytic content for the "appropriate for all ages" stamp, but the situations that are addressed can relate to anyone in any part of their life. You can think of it as a guideline to the upsets and struggles of life.

A big issue that Seyoung constantly battles with is the idea that she is an "ordinary" person who isn't special enough to stand out in a crowd. With the media teaching us that celebrity-prettiness is the only way to be rightfully deserving of attention and praise, this "Narration" is important for girls (and guys) who struggle with self image and worth. A message that the author sends is that everyone has a certain quality that is unique and intimate to that person. This idea is even portrayed in how the artist portrays the extras, who don't even seem like extras to begin with because they are drawn with such character.

What I liked most was that there was not a clear cut line between who the hero and the villain were. There were moments when both our suppossed hero and villain acted out of their stereotypical role and that's good because in the reality of life, there is no such thing as an absolute hero/villain. And I think it's a lesson in life that everybody needs to learn. We are imperfect humans--made up of a little bit of both good and
evil.

The artwork alone was enough to be worth the read. It was very detailed, even down to the extras in the background, like I mentioned earlier. I especially enjoyed looking at the expressions, which could clearly portray their sentiments even with the absence of dialogue.

"Narration of Love at 17" definitely isn't a manhwa that you can read for just its ups and downs of love--you will be challenged to ponder some heavy toughts. And although it does deal with a lot of philosphical ideas, it remains unburdensome because of the steady ebb and flow of the amount of drama. Plus, the philosophical questions that are asked are age-old questions that have always returned from generation to generation. "Narration," then, is essentially a book of advice about life from the artist Kyungok Kang. So sit back and read what she has to offer for how to survive the struggles of life.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars so cute!, June 29, 2007

By 

Alison L. Mccabe "Ali S" (Queens) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Narration of Love at 17 Vol. 1 (v. 1) (Paperback)

Narration of love at 17 is about a 17 year old girl named seyoung who fell in love with her childhood friend but it is unreciprocated and he is unaware of his friends feelings towards him. this sweet tale of puppy love makes you remember back to when you were in high school and fell in love for the first time... the feeling that the end of the world might come if they won't love you back. It is very sweet and innocent and you will completely empathize with the main character Seyoung.