Itaewon class vol 1 by Kwang Jin

Saeroyi Park's father just landed a new job in a new city, which means Saeroyi has to start fresh at a new school. On day one, he lands himself on the wrong side of the kid who "runs" the school, who happens to be the son of his dad's boss! But, rather than apologize for doing what he thought was right, he gets expelled, and his dad loses his job. The two decide to open a chicken restaurant and seemingly land on their feet, but it's not long before tragedy find them again, and Saeroyi finds himself in prison for attempted murder. After serving his time, he has to decide the best way to get revenge on those who have wronged him, and making a successful restaurant in in the thriving Seoul neighborhood of Itaewon is how he's going to do it. But first, he needs to make a lot of money, as Itaewon is extremely expensive to operate out of.

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This first volume seems more like a prologue setting up the backstory of Saeroyi Park and how he gets to Itaewon and establishes himself as a business owner in the neighborhood. The other character on the front cover is given a few pages at the beginning of this volume and then never revisited, so while she seems like she's going to be important later, she might get her own backstory and prologue later. This is definitely an instance where the book is made more popular by the show, in this case the K-drama, and if readers are requesting this title, it's most likely because they have heard about or watched the popular show rather than are clamoring for the book. There are also several time-jumps throughout this story, which skip over some really interesting parts of Saeroyi's life, almost like the author is in a hurry to get to the part where Saeroyi gets to Itaewon.

The illustrations are fairly cartoony and can be rough at times. Background details or people are drawn with a different perspective or ratio sometimes. There is shading and shadowing, but for the most part, colors are flat across the panel. Readers definitely aren't going to be flocking to this title for the illustrations.

Sara's Rating: 7/10
Suitability Level: Grades 9-12

Publisher: IZE Press
Publication Date: April 23, 2024​
ISBN: 9798400901409​ (Paperback)

​Tags: Rating: 7/10, Suitability: High School, Manhwa, Family, Suspense, ​IZE Press​