Ji-Sang Shin

9th to 12th. Teenage idol affection gets examined in depth through the humorous mixups of Ji-Sang Shin and Geo's Koren Manhwa novel Chocolat. In it Kum-ji can't get close to her favorite band DDL so she masquerades as a rival band Yo-I's fan member to get close to them. But who knew how much complication could result when one is supposed to show adoration to one band but really feels this for another? Ji-Sang Shin and Geo thoroughly bring the reader into Koren band fan culture and draw out the many emotional feelings that are a part of it. The entire novel pivots on a myriad of intense emotional moments during social interactions. Curiously, they accomplish this sweet teenage intensity by drawing the character's faces into younger caricatures whenever they feeling very intensely about something. In fact the younger faces almost look like 4 or 5 year olds for a moment. But then they revert back to their more mature teenage selves. No major resolutions happen in the novel by the end, but the reader is hooked on the characters. This novel is highly recommended to public and high school library collections. Teenagers will love reading of teen idol obsession.… (altro)