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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts
informative
reflective
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt
Moderate: Homophobia, Religious bigotry
Very powerful. I didn’t realize how much this was going to be a personal memoir versus commentary on kpop as a genre, but Kwon’s story was compelling, although the writing was a bit repetitive at times.
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
fast-paced
I’ll Love You Forever: Notes from a K-Pop Fan by Giaae Kwon
This is not my normal book but I have enormous faith in books recommended by @ktlee.writes and I was not disappointed. My only exposure to K-Pop was attending a music award show and seeing young women lose their mind when BTS performed. They had amazing choreography and undeniable charisma so it was easy to understand the reaction.
Kwon uses K-Pop brilliantly - not only tell the story of her life, marked by body shaming, disconnection, mental health struggles and periods of suicidal ideation - but also to provide insightful commentary on Korean history and culture, as well as our misogynistic and oppressive societal beauty standards prevalent in both Korea and North America.
Charmingly written, the book shows how Kwon found solace in music and K-Pop, which offered her a sense of connection amid deep isolation. Despite addressing heavy and painful topics, the memoir feels hopeful and with Kwon’s pride in her country and heritage shining through.
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I really love what she did with this book. It navigates through so many aspects of Korean identity through KPop. Was really into this from the outset, and I’m not a big KPop person (other than HOT because I’m old.)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts
*ARC was provided by Henry Holt through Goodreads.
I'm only a casual fan of K-Pop, so I feel like there were specific aspects of the book that would be enjoyed much more if you are someone who's already knowledgeable about the industry/fandom. That said, I did enjoy this and thought the writing was strongest when Kwon was speaking about her experience with mental illness, and comparing it to the mental health issues that K-Pop artists face (also focusing on prominent industry figures who committed suicide). I found her personal history (ex. talking about growing up in a homophobic culture) more interesting than the parts that were straight biographies of musicians, and I wish that this had been more of a traditional memoir in that sense.
I'm only a casual fan of K-Pop, so I feel like there were specific aspects of the book that would be enjoyed much more if you are someone who's already knowledgeable about the industry/fandom. That said, I did enjoy this and thought the writing was strongest when Kwon was speaking about her experience with mental illness, and comparing it to the mental health issues that K-Pop artists face (also focusing on prominent industry figures who committed suicide). I found her personal history (ex. talking about growing up in a homophobic culture) more interesting than the parts that were straight biographies of musicians, and I wish that this had been more of a traditional memoir in that sense.
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
An interesting look into the world of kpop through the lens of the Korean American author. As someone who has had two kpop phases in my life, I definitely found so much of this book relatable. The author is admittedly a lifelong kpop fan and you can totally tell. There are just some things that she writes that are just soooo "kpop fan" and it's nice to be seen in that way. Once a kpop fan, always a kpop fan; you can never truly rid yourself of the mannerisms of being a kpop fan.
The prose is very conversational, which isn't necessarily bad, just is what it is. I liked how the author connected her own life/Korean culture with these kpop bands/singers.
I think someone that might not have understanding of Korean culture and/or kpop might have a bit of trouble with this one. Having grown up in a Korean community and spent years of my adolescence in kpop fandom, I totally got the author despite not being Korean myself. However, I imagine this book would be a little more difficult to understand for someone who doesn't have any connections to Korean culture. But, I dunno... that's not my life, so it's a hard thing to judge. I think for a non-kpop fan to enjoy this, they would at least have to know a little bit about kpop and Korean culture.
The prose is very conversational, which isn't necessarily bad, just is what it is. I liked how the author connected her own life/Korean culture with these kpop bands/singers.
I think someone that might not have understanding of Korean culture and/or kpop might have a bit of trouble with this one. Having grown up in a Korean community and spent years of my adolescence in kpop fandom, I totally got the author despite not being Korean myself. However, I imagine this book would be a little more difficult to understand for someone who doesn't have any connections to Korean culture. But, I dunno... that's not my life, so it's a hard thing to judge. I think for a non-kpop fan to enjoy this, they would at least have to know a little bit about kpop and Korean culture.
Very exciting and fun to see a lot of my own experiences reflected on the page, and to get a chance to relive a lot of these big moments in kpop again. I did find it repetitive in some parts, and my guess is that the chapters were different essays the author wrote at different times and for different audiences, and then they were gathered for this book without editing to avoid this repetition.
I'm not sure how interesting this would be for someone who knows little about kpop or Korean culture, but as a former kpop fangirl I really enjoyed it!
I'm not sure how interesting this would be for someone who knows little about kpop or Korean culture, but as a former kpop fangirl I really enjoyed it!
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced