It can be said that the difficulty of recreating one’s homeland cuisine in a foreign land symbolically represents the challenges of living abroad as a foreigner.
This book vividly portrays, from the perspective of a daughter born and raised in America, her relationship with her mother who emigrated from Korea to the United States, as well as the conflicts and love that arise between them, through memories of food.
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Adrian Tomine is a fourth-generation Japanese American graphic novelist and illustrator. I really love his style—both his illustrations and the way he tells stories.
He focuses on everyday moments and the subtle nuances that arise within human relationships, and his work has been praised for its skillful portrayal of characters who feel out of place or alienated from those around them.
I think the same can be said about his illustrations as well. The balance between intricate detail and simple linework, along with his subdued color palette, gives his art a quality reminiscent of photographs that you can keep looking at endlessly.
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This book explores themes such as family bonds, discovering new aspects of oneself in a new environment, and the difficulty of making friends in adulthood, all through the relationship between its two protagonists.
Although I am not Irish like the protagonists, there were many moments in which I could relate to their fluctuating emotions.
Realizing that everyone goes through this kind of inner conflict gave me a great sense of comfort.
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Race or nationality does not determine a person’s character, but I do believe that cultural differences and differences in ways of thinking certainly exist from country to country.
When interacting with people from diverse backgrounds, I believe that having a general understanding of their culture can help us to understand them (even if they do not personally follow the customs of their country).
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For me, eyeliner is one of the makeup tools I use most often—and one of my favorites. What’s interesting is that it’s not only something I feel today; it has been regarded in a similar way across many different cultures, dating back to ancient Egypt.
This book delves deeply into the rich history and significance of eyeliner through interviews with a wide range of people, from nomads in Chad to Japanese geisha, Indian dancers, and drag queens in New York.
It becomes clear that, regardless of the era or background in which people live, they have always been fascinated by a single line of eyeliner.
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I believe that the emotions surrounding our relationships with pets—and the pain of parting from them—are something everyone can relate to, regardless of time or borders.
To everyone who loves animals.
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Set in 1980s Dublin, the story follows a protagonist who tries to escape a tense home environment and a strict school life through forming a band.
The protagonist’s pure creative drive, along with an ’80s pop-inspired soundtrack, gives us the push we need to step into a new world.
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This work vividly portrays the love and resentment young people feel toward their hometowns and families.
Anyone who has ever questioned the environment they were born and raised in, and struggled before ultimately deciding to leave it behind, will surely find this story deeply relatable.
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This is the story of Kiki, a 13-year-old girl born as a witch, who leaves her hometown to train and sets out to find work and companionship in a new city.
Like Kiki, I also moved to a new town with my cat, so I can’t help but see myself in her (even though I’m not a witch).
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