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Color Trilogy #1
Warna Tanah
Trilogi indah tentang cinta pertama dan kesempatan-kesempatan kedua.
Melukis kehidupan para wanita dengan hujan dan bunga.
Warna Tanah menceritakan kehidupan dan dunia dari mata dua generasi perempuan: Ehwa, gadis cilik yang tinggal bersama ibunya, janda di Namwon. Ehwa baru saja memulai perjalanannya menjadi seorang wanita. Bersama setiap musim hujan, Ehwa kecil semakin matang dalam pikiran maupun tubuh. Ehwa dan ibunya sama-sama bertumbuh dan berubah, namun ikatan yang sangat dalam di antara ibu dan anak ini membuat mereka saling mendukung dalam menghadapi dunia dan lingkungan sekitar yang tidak selalu ramah.
Kim Dong Hwa telah menghasilkan banyak novel grafis yang cemerlang. Dalam Warna Tanah, Mr. Kim mencurahkan segenap talentanya untuk menciptakan kisah yang unik dan tak terlupakan, sarat dengan referensi kultural serta gambar-gambar indah.
Melukis kehidupan para wanita dengan hujan dan bunga.
Warna Tanah menceritakan kehidupan dan dunia dari mata dua generasi perempuan: Ehwa, gadis cilik yang tinggal bersama ibunya, janda di Namwon. Ehwa baru saja memulai perjalanannya menjadi seorang wanita. Bersama setiap musim hujan, Ehwa kecil semakin matang dalam pikiran maupun tubuh. Ehwa dan ibunya sama-sama bertumbuh dan berubah, namun ikatan yang sangat dalam di antara ibu dan anak ini membuat mereka saling mendukung dalam menghadapi dunia dan lingkungan sekitar yang tidak selalu ramah.
Kim Dong Hwa telah menghasilkan banyak novel grafis yang cemerlang. Dalam Warna Tanah, Mr. Kim mencurahkan segenap talentanya untuk menciptakan kisah yang unik dan tak terlupakan, sarat dengan referensi kultural serta gambar-gambar indah.
320 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
40 people are currently reading
3427 people want to read
About the author
Kim Dong Hwa
25 books110 followersName (in native language): 김동화
Kim Dong-Hwa is a widely revered Korean comic artist. Since his debut (with My Sky, serialized in the Daily Hanguk, one of the most prestigious Korean newspapers) in 1975, he has become a mainstay of the Korean manhwa (comics) landscape. He is best known for his tender stories and uncanny ability to write from a profoundly feminine perspective.
The three books that make up The Color Trilogy – The Color of Earth, The Color of Water, and The Color of Heaven – are his first manhwa to be translated into English and published in the United States.
“Since I was very young, I’ve been interested in writing and drawing stories about girls growing up, both mentally and physically. I think that the process of a girl becoming a woman is one of the biggest mysteries and wonders of life. And when my mother was sleeping in her sickbed, I looked down her wrinkled face and suddenly realized that she must had been young and beautiful once. Then I started imagining her childhood. What would she have looked like in her 60s, 50s, 40s, and so on? Ehwa, the protagonist of The Color Trilogy, is the result of my tracing back to my mother’s youth.”
Kim Dong-Hwa is a widely revered Korean comic artist. Since his debut (with My Sky, serialized in the Daily Hanguk, one of the most prestigious Korean newspapers) in 1975, he has become a mainstay of the Korean manhwa (comics) landscape. He is best known for his tender stories and uncanny ability to write from a profoundly feminine perspective.
The three books that make up The Color Trilogy – The Color of Earth, The Color of Water, and The Color of Heaven – are his first manhwa to be translated into English and published in the United States.
“Since I was very young, I’ve been interested in writing and drawing stories about girls growing up, both mentally and physically. I think that the process of a girl becoming a woman is one of the biggest mysteries and wonders of life. And when my mother was sleeping in her sickbed, I looked down her wrinkled face and suddenly realized that she must had been young and beautiful once. Then I started imagining her childhood. What would she have looked like in her 60s, 50s, 40s, and so on? Ehwa, the protagonist of The Color Trilogy, is the result of my tracing back to my mother’s youth.”
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July 22, 2010
”Untuk apa membeli sesuatu yang pasti akan mati” – The Painted Veil
Sebagai penggemar bunga, saya tak pernah bisa memberi jawaban pasti bila ada teman yang menanyakan kegemaran saya ini. Terutama bagi teman-teman yang tahu kalau saya berlangganan bunga. Setiap lima hari sekali, satu buket besar bunga pasti akan datang ke rumah, yang kemudian saya taruh dalam vas-vas besar di beberapa sudut. Sebuah pemborosan di mata beberapa teman yang tak suka dengan bunga.
Tapi kemudian, buku Warna Tanah ini memberi ide bagaimana saya menjawabnya:
Bunga dan wanita tak ada bedanya. Wanita juga merekah. Kau bisa melihat tanda-tandanya. Melihat bagaimana tubuhnya berayun seperti ranting-ranting lentur pohon dedalu di bulan Juni.
Bunga bisa menjadi simbol bagi pribadi seorang perempuan. Ehwa, tokoh utama dari cerita ini, digambarkan sebagai sekuntum bunga hollyhock:
Ehwa sekarang berumur 13 tahun. Ia menjelma jadi sekuntum bunga, menggetarkan udara. Mulai sekarang, setiap kali basah kuyup oleh hujan, tubuhmu akan merekah bagaikan kelopak merah jambu bungahollyhock.
Sementara bagi ibu Ehwa, janda pemilik kedai minum yang selalu digoda oleh pelanggannya, bunga labu adalah bunga yang tepat untuk merepresentasikan dirinya:
Di dalam sekuntum bunga labu/ Kerinduan lebih luas daripada nirwana/ Di dalam sekuntum bunga labu/ Penantian lebih lama daripada malam/ Di puncak gerbang/ Di puncak genting/ Sebuah lentera dinyalakan/ Seorang wanita siap dengan dandanannya dan menantikan sang kekasih dengan penuh hasrat.
Bunga juga bisa mewakili kekerasan hati perempuan yang jatuh cinta namun bertepuk sebelah tangan:
Kamelia benar-benar bunga yang tahan cuaca. Mereka nyaris kelihatan seolah-olah begitu tak sabar menantikan seseorang. Namun mereka sangat lelah dengan penantian itu hingga berubah jadi merah. Itu sebabnya Kamelia juga bunga yang konyol – kamelia satu-satunya bunga yang cintanya bertepuk sebelah tangan. Tak peduli betapa indah bunga kamelia menghias dirinya, tak satu pun kupu-kupu akan mendarat di kelopaknya, bahkan sampai kuntum bunga terakhir telah merekah. Ketika kupu-kupu keluar, bunga-bunga ini sudah terlelap. Sebab hanya ketika kupu-kupu tertidur bunga-bunga ini menjadi hidup.
Puisi demi puisi mengalir dan menjalin satu cerita dalam buku ini. Tidak hanya tentang bunga, tapi juga tentang hujan:
Bukan hanya hujan yang berderai di luar. Melainkan sungguh suara langkah kaki seseorang. Pasti begitu. Jika tidak, bagaimana aku dapat menjelaskan kegelisahan yang kurasakan di dalam hatiku dari suara hujan musim semi ini?.
Semua simbol yang hadir dalam cerita ini menjelaskan diri dan perasaan perempuan secara apik. Bahkan tentang hasrat dan bagian tubuh paling pribadi mereka. Sehingga saya tak segan untuk merekomendasikan buku ini sebagai bahan pendidikan seks untuk anak-anak. Karena, simbol-simbol yang digambarkan dalam buku ini bisa menjelaskan hubungan antara laki-laki dan perempuan secara tersirat, namun jelas maknanya.
Selain bunga dan hujan, ada satu hal lagi yang membuat saya jatuh hati pada buku ini: resep lulur dari kacang merah tampaknya boleh juga buat dicoba…hehehe…(lits)
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Hadiah ultah dari Roos. Makasi yaaaaaa :) *peluk-peluk*
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Ceritanya baguuus....tapi musti baca sekali lagi buat bisa bikin repiu :P
Makasi ya, Roos. Me like-me like *niruin gaya Momo: lovestruck-lovestruck*
January 29, 2013
[Girl in a field of grasses and flowers? Ban it!]
A couple weeks ago it was Banned Books Week, a national celebration of those works that have been challenged by adults who believe in sequestering away literature that does not adequately line up with their particular ideological yardstick. It's rare that these challenges are meant as outright bans. Rather than seek to remove a work completely from the range of literature available to a society, these challengers wish to keep the targeted books from the access of young readers—children whom they do not feel are ready to engage the maturity of the work within.
This kind of thing isn't rare to our society. Our theaters restrict six-year-olds from seeing Rated-R films unaccompanied by an adult guardian. We, as a society, have chosen to prohibit junior highers from purchasing pornography. Websites that offer sexually explicit materials provide at least tacit barriers to prevent the young and the innocent from enjoying the adult fare within. That we even term such entertainments as "adult" gives evidence to the general consensus that there are things that are for children and things that are not.
Still, when it comes to literature, we (as a society) tend to hold to a set of rules. We fear the removal of books for what is says about a formerly free society. We've been nursed at the tit of Fahrenheit 451. We associate the ban of books with Nazis and totalitarians and fundamentalist religious weirdos. When we hear of libraries whose books have been challenged, our hackles raise and we express righteous indignation against the backwards moralist who would dare target a particular work—forgetting that we live peaceably day-in and day-out with the MPAA, an organization that with capricious arbitration polices the availability of the cinematic literature.
We should not be governed by fear. We should take every opportunity to approach the news of a "banned" book rationally. We should examine what banned means in the reported instance. We should inquire whether the issue is an outright ban (as in several cases involving "adult" comics in Canada and Australia) or if it's merely a lone challenger to a school system's library. Or maybe it's even a simple issue of shelving a book like Blankets in the children's section of a library. We need to consider the reason for the challenge. Was it for racially charged language, as in Huckleberry Finn's era-appropriate use of "nigger"? Was it for ideological differences, such as Athanasius' conflagration of books that strayed from his view of orthodoxy? Or was it for what a society deems to be obscene content, as when Lady Chatterly's Lover encountered abiding censorship across the English-speaking world? The nature of the charge, the environment in which the challenge was given, and the recommended sanction are essential in considering the legitimacy of our concern for the removal of books.
So it was with interest that I read that the second book on the ALA's list of most challenged literature last year was Kim Dong Hwa's Colors trilogy (made of of The Color of Earth, The Color of Water, and The Color of Heaven). The Korean series had been on my to-read queue for a bit over a year now, but new releases and returning to old favourites seemed to be forever pushing it back. When I saw that it had been so frequently challenged, I thought it would make a great second half of my Banned Books Week week of reviewing. And it would have been. Unfortunately,1 Building Stories happened and there was no longer any reason to hope that I'd get around to the books in anything resembling a timely manner. Still, after Building Stories finally unsunk its tenterhooks from my span of attention, I had Kim's trilogy waiting and though it's no longer timely, I don't care. I've thrown caution to the wind to bring you the PG-est book about teens discovering the sexiness of sex ever.
[I'm with you Ehwa. That girl is the crazy sauce.]
Which is, apparently the chief reason this series has been challenged over and over again. The teens being teens part, not the PG-ness of the books. It seems those who would challenge the book are happy to overlook how very little hard knowledge Kim's trilogy could impart on those who don't already know what he's talking about.
Kim cloaks his coming-of-sexual-age story in Mather-Natural metaphor. Flowers and beetles and butterflies and summer breezes and fresh rains and chestnuts. These kinds of images dominate both the visual and textual space of Kim's story. There is not a single discussion of the male-female dynamic (whether overtly sexual or merely in regard to the difference between the sexes) that doesn't wade chest high in rather florid use of natural imagery. Everything is so very poetic—and therefore, so very obscured.
You know how in Austen Powers, Elizabeth Hurley holds halved melons in front of her chest? Or obscures her breasts by pouring from a pitcher of milk? It's like that but less obvious. A chili pepper stands in for a little boy's penis.2 A lone persimmon seed plays the part of the little man in the boat. Gourd flowers represent a woman's sexy feelings in the night. There's all kinds of talk about blooming and blossoming and the rejuvenation of the spring rains. In one phantastic episode, a man skinny dips in a lushly reeded pond nestled sweetly between two softly rolling hills. In fact, while every chapter has its governing metaphor which gets played with throughout, chapters generally also have between one and five additional metaphors going on at the same time.
Kim's book is all about avoidance.
[I know some men who are like naked tiger lilies in their hearts too. But let's not dwell on it.]
The Colors trilogy is the story of Ehwa's awakening to her womanhood, specifically in its physical presence as a distinction between the male and female bodies. At the start of The Color of Earth, Ehwa is seven and first encounters penises when she sees some neighbourhood boys peeing off an embankment. This begins a series of conversations with her mother, a widowed innkeeper with a reputation for being the town tart (even though she's entirely monogamous for the space of the trilogy). Through these dialogues and over the course of the next decade, Ehwa's mother gradually unveils both the physical and emotional use for Ewha's womanhood. But never directly. Her mother speaks in deep metaphor and it's almost entirely up to a sexually precocious neighbourhood girl, Bongsoon, to introduce Ehwa to the actual physiology of her own parts and pieces.
[I'm going to pretend I have no idea what you guys are talking about.
Actually, that might be true.]
The mother/daughter relationship here is fascinating to consider as a template for child-rearing. This takes place probably3 at the end of the 19th century in Korea, so obviously there are going to be any number of cultural differences and things the contemporary Western reader will find primitive or distasteful (such as the clear patriarchy advocated in the mother's advice). The mother is clearly in a position of authority over Ehwa, but simultaneously cultivates a friendship based on trust and love. Ehwa, for her part, trusts her mother much more readily than I think many contemporary children would rely on and confide in their own parents. At the same time, she can be canny and withdrawn—especially if she has been embarrassed by her actions (such as when tricked into revealing her crushes on two local boys). I'm pretty sure that the care invested in the relationship between Ehwa and her mother was my favourite part of the books.
Not being a fan of poetry in its textual form, I came to find that visual poetry doesn't strike me so deeply either and much of the probable delight of Kim's series was lost on me. Certainly many of the images were carefully considered and, taken on their own, I found myself admiring their beauty. I simply (and I feel somewhat the Philistine for admitting this) often grew bored in their preponderance. I wanted to get back to the dialogue and all its glittering metaphorical excess.
[Poor dumb fireman.]
As to the sexuality in these books (from which most of its challenges are reported to have grown), it's pretty tame. The MPAA is pretty arbitrary in its rating system, but if this was a movie in the pre-PG13 '80s, it would almost certainly merit a PG rating. Today, it'd probably sit pretty at a PG13. This is just about the most explicit image in the book. And regardless, Kim's story of this girl (based apparently on his mom's or grandmother's own life story) is never titillating.4
Did these books merit their challenges? Probably not. I suppose if they were shelved in the children's section next to Bone and Tintin and The Life and Times of Scrooge McDuck, that would have been an awkward taxonomy. But these would be perfectly at home in Young Adults or, as my library shelves them, in Teen. It's not as if the broad approach in Kim's book will have teenage boys furiously googling "persimmon seed girls -fruit" while their parents are at Bible Study.
Note
I remembered a while back reading some of the entries in a Manga Movable Feast that concerned Kim's books. They were largely negative and felt Kim's focus on Ehwa's sexual awakening and the way it is portrayed to be generally sexist and promoting of male fantasy. I approached the books believing I'd be reading a particularly chauvinist work as well as something scandalous enough to be The Second Most Challenged Book of 2011. It felt bizarre to have such a vastly different reading experience on both counts.
While I can see someone being perturbed by Kim's single-minded focus on conversations that chart solely the tack of Ehwa's evolution from girl to woman, really, I don't think any reader should come away from the story imagining that's all Kim believes there was to Ehwa's life. More, it's just that's the story he was telling. Likewise some people might be bothered by Oishinbo's deliberate and unswerving attention to talking only about food All The Time, but that's the story Kariya and Hanasaki are telling so get off their backs already. I think to be disappointed that Kim doesn't spend more time developing the rest of Ehwa's life and interests is less to be unhappy with this particular book and more to be unhappy with the particular subgenre this book occupies. Which is fair. I just want us to be clear about what bothers us.
In any case, I recommend reading some of the criticism of this book and taking in a number of perspectives. While I believe that many of Michelle and Melinda's complaints listed in the article linked above (and in their other writings on the books) are based on probably rushed readings of the text5 5 In the hyperbolically titled "The Color of Hate" Melinda ridicules a page in which Ehwa's mother waxes metaphorical while wondering when a wandering butterfly might alight on her daughter for rest, saying that the page is about "attracting penises butterflies penises." The thing is though: the books never use butterflies as anything other than metaphors for men and the joy romantic relationships with those men might bring. There are other metaphors for the phallus, for sure, but that Melinda misreads here made me distrust her narrative. Especially when one is already unhappy with a story, it's easy to force uncharitable readings on a text. I do it and you do it—and I believe this is what happened here. , they do still have a number of interesting criticisms to contribute.
Footnotes
1) You'll understand here, I hope, that when I say "unfortunately," I'm actually just lying to you. There was nothing unfortunate about reading/experiencing/being mauled by Chris Ware's behemoth. Sorry, Dong Hwa. Sorry.
2) Okay, maybe not a whole lot less obvious.
3) I believe this is right but it may also be set in the early 20th century. There is nothing overt within the text to give away its precise setting.
4) I suppose it might prompt girls to figure out where their persimmon seed is, but C'mon, it's not like those exist anyway...
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[Review Courtesy of Good Ok Bad]
Read
November 29, 2008I imagine if Judy Bloom lived in rural Korea this would be the book she wrote. Really stunning.
March 22, 2011
It is hard for me to know exactly how to rate this trilogy. There's clearly something lost in the cross-cultural translation since so much of this trilogy circles around the cultural beliefs and ideas about sexuality that existed during a specific era in a small Korean village. Not having access to that context, I'm sure my perspective on the series may lack some broader insight. I also totally have no background knowledge on how women's sexuality is regarded in Korea currently. From the introduction to the book, it sounds like it was taken as being pretty feminist in its home country and as a Western feminist reading it here, I appreciated some of the feminist friendly components of it. For one thing the story of the trilogy does entirely revolve around the changes and growth the two main female characters, a mother and daughter, experience over the course of the story. Despite being within the romance genre in many ways, the relationship between the mother and daughter is the most central element and it is significant that at the ending of the series (cue Spoiler), the mother's longing for her lover is replaced by her longing for her daughter.
The other unusual thing about this series, is how intensely it focuses on a girl's sexual development in a way that is not intended as exploitative and objectifying. Instead it really does focus more on her thoughts and feelings and experiences in a way that seems fairly true to her perspective. Though there are male love interests in the story, we always stay inside of the mother or daughter's point of view and there was something very refreshing about seeing male love interests treated the way female love interests usually are. They motivate a lot of the action in the novel, but the fact of who they are as characters is largely irrelevant. They are love interests and not really more than that, which is something you don't see very often.
With that said, however, knowing this was written by a man and ended up being popular among adult male readers, did make me uncomfortable in some moments wondering about the subtext and how easily some of the things in the book might lend themselves to pediphilic fantasies, but that may just be the feminist bitterness/paranoia talking more than the work itself. I would also say there are A LOT of floral/plant metaphors for sex, which I'm sure is connected to the abundance of plant and floral imagery that's used in traditional Eastern love poetry. Not being Asian and familiar with that tradition, I don't really like it when women's sexuality is compared to flowers and generally handled in such an over-idealized way. Western feminism talks a lot about how when women's sexuality is compared to flowers and nature it is often done so in a Western context as a way of trying women closer to nature, as opposed to culture. It also can emphasize women as being less rational, more passive, more wild, and more pure in the sense that they have less subjectivity and desire. With that said, I am aware though that there are particularly Western forces (Judeo Christian religious beliefs for starters) which contribute to that kind of interpretation in a Western context, which don't apply here. I did find it interesting how at least the mother's sexuality outside of the bonds of matrimony was supported in the narrative, even as she encouraged her daughter not to sully herself by "ripening early."
I enjoyed the story and the characters and I think it was definitely worth reading, but admittedly I felt myself struggling with that Western feminist lens throughout.
The other unusual thing about this series, is how intensely it focuses on a girl's sexual development in a way that is not intended as exploitative and objectifying. Instead it really does focus more on her thoughts and feelings and experiences in a way that seems fairly true to her perspective. Though there are male love interests in the story, we always stay inside of the mother or daughter's point of view and there was something very refreshing about seeing male love interests treated the way female love interests usually are. They motivate a lot of the action in the novel, but the fact of who they are as characters is largely irrelevant. They are love interests and not really more than that, which is something you don't see very often.
With that said, however, knowing this was written by a man and ended up being popular among adult male readers, did make me uncomfortable in some moments wondering about the subtext and how easily some of the things in the book might lend themselves to pediphilic fantasies, but that may just be the feminist bitterness/paranoia talking more than the work itself. I would also say there are A LOT of floral/plant metaphors for sex, which I'm sure is connected to the abundance of plant and floral imagery that's used in traditional Eastern love poetry. Not being Asian and familiar with that tradition, I don't really like it when women's sexuality is compared to flowers and generally handled in such an over-idealized way. Western feminism talks a lot about how when women's sexuality is compared to flowers and nature it is often done so in a Western context as a way of trying women closer to nature, as opposed to culture. It also can emphasize women as being less rational, more passive, more wild, and more pure in the sense that they have less subjectivity and desire. With that said, I am aware though that there are particularly Western forces (Judeo Christian religious beliefs for starters) which contribute to that kind of interpretation in a Western context, which don't apply here. I did find it interesting how at least the mother's sexuality outside of the bonds of matrimony was supported in the narrative, even as she encouraged her daughter not to sully herself by "ripening early."
I enjoyed the story and the characters and I think it was definitely worth reading, but admittedly I felt myself struggling with that Western feminist lens throughout.
December 9, 2013
Buku ini membuatku merindukan seseorang yang masih dalam mimpiku. Buku ini juga membuatku merindukan aroma tanah saat bercengkerama dengan hujan, serta wanginya bunga-bunga yang bermekaran di setiap musimnya.
KIM DONG HWA. Pertama membaca buku Graphic Novel seri Chinken Soup, langsung membuatku jatuh cinta pada karya-karya ilustrasinya. Terkenal akan kemampuannya di dunia Manhwa atau Manga di Jepang. Pak Kim, tidak saja menyajikan gambar yang cantik tapi juga kisah yang menyentuh di buku Warna Tanah ini, dan ternyata Trilogi ( dengan Warna Air dan Warna Surga), mempersembahkan proses kedewasaan baik pikiran dan tubuh seorang perempuan dari kecil hingga belasan. Dan Pak Kim, kembali membuatku makin mengagumi dan mencintainya.
Kisah unik mengenai kedalaman ikatan antara si gadis kecil Ehwa dan Ibunya seorang Janda di Namwon, membuatku terkagum-kagum. Mereka bertumbuh dan berubah seiring berjalannya musim-musim yang mereka hadapi, saling mendukung satu sama lain saat menghadapi tetangga-tetangga ataupun pelanggan kedai minum si Ibu yang tidak pernah ramah.
Aku menyukai gambar cantik Ehwa juga bunga-bunga, pohon, kupu-kupu, tanah dan hujan di buku ini. Bisa dibilang Pak Kim melukis kehidupan para perempuan disini dengan bunga berikut hujan. Kisahnya bertutur dengan kata-kata yang indah, berbunga-bunga tanpa meninggalkan kesan yang berlebihan. Ada beberapa dialog antara Ehwa dan Ibunya yang bagus atau lebih tepatnya cantik dan pintar seperti:
Wanita dan bunga hanya merekah ketika mereka mendambakan sesuatu atau seseorang. (Hal.110)
Atau Ibu Ehwa yang menanam Tanaman Labu dan selalu menyukai bunganya.
Dari jutaan bunga di dunia, tak ada yang seperti bunga labu. Bunga labu merekah hanya ketika semua orang telah tertidur. Menghias dirinya dengan warna putih yang diciptakan debu bulan, bunga labu dengan penuh hasrat menantikan kekasihnya sepanjang malam. (Hal.76)
Juga saat Ibu Ehwa mendapati anak gadisnya yang selalu gundah setiap kali melihat bunga Tiger Lily.
Tiger lily adalah satu-satunya bunga yang dengan senang hati menghadap ke arah matahari dan mekar meskipun tidak ada siapa-siapa di sekatnya untuk menyaksikan. (Hal.111). Aku juga sangat suka kata-kata Ibu Ehwa yang ini: Kalau kau tahu-tahu menyukai bunga, itu artinya ada rahasia di dalam hatimu.
Juga percakapan Kakek Dorbang dengan Ehwa mengenai Pohon Ginko di Hal.45, Pohon ginko sangat menakjupkan. Hanya dengan menatap si pohon lelaki di sana, pohon perempuan ini langsung berbuah.. Nah loh, bisa bayangkan apa yang ada di pikiran Ehwa kecil mendengar kata-kata si kakek ini khan?
Ehhhhmmm, entahlah tapi perasaan jadi berbunga-bunga setiap kali membaca buku ini, tidak bisa ditaruh semenit pun, selama perjalanan ke Depok hari minggu kemarin, pikiran selalu tertuju pada buku ini. Pokoknya buku yang bagus. Tidak sabar menunggu buku kedua dan ketiganya... Semoga tidak lama.
Dan sebagai penutup sebait puisi dariku,
Kusimpan sepiku, di gurun, di kaki gunung, dan di bayang-bayang wajahmu..
Sekian, selamat hunting dan membaca bukunya!
KIM DONG HWA. Pertama membaca buku Graphic Novel seri Chinken Soup, langsung membuatku jatuh cinta pada karya-karya ilustrasinya. Terkenal akan kemampuannya di dunia Manhwa atau Manga di Jepang. Pak Kim, tidak saja menyajikan gambar yang cantik tapi juga kisah yang menyentuh di buku Warna Tanah ini, dan ternyata Trilogi ( dengan Warna Air dan Warna Surga), mempersembahkan proses kedewasaan baik pikiran dan tubuh seorang perempuan dari kecil hingga belasan. Dan Pak Kim, kembali membuatku makin mengagumi dan mencintainya.
Kisah unik mengenai kedalaman ikatan antara si gadis kecil Ehwa dan Ibunya seorang Janda di Namwon, membuatku terkagum-kagum. Mereka bertumbuh dan berubah seiring berjalannya musim-musim yang mereka hadapi, saling mendukung satu sama lain saat menghadapi tetangga-tetangga ataupun pelanggan kedai minum si Ibu yang tidak pernah ramah.
Aku menyukai gambar cantik Ehwa juga bunga-bunga, pohon, kupu-kupu, tanah dan hujan di buku ini. Bisa dibilang Pak Kim melukis kehidupan para perempuan disini dengan bunga berikut hujan. Kisahnya bertutur dengan kata-kata yang indah, berbunga-bunga tanpa meninggalkan kesan yang berlebihan. Ada beberapa dialog antara Ehwa dan Ibunya yang bagus atau lebih tepatnya cantik dan pintar seperti:
Wanita dan bunga hanya merekah ketika mereka mendambakan sesuatu atau seseorang. (Hal.110)
Atau Ibu Ehwa yang menanam Tanaman Labu dan selalu menyukai bunganya.
Dari jutaan bunga di dunia, tak ada yang seperti bunga labu. Bunga labu merekah hanya ketika semua orang telah tertidur. Menghias dirinya dengan warna putih yang diciptakan debu bulan, bunga labu dengan penuh hasrat menantikan kekasihnya sepanjang malam. (Hal.76)
Juga saat Ibu Ehwa mendapati anak gadisnya yang selalu gundah setiap kali melihat bunga Tiger Lily.
Tiger lily adalah satu-satunya bunga yang dengan senang hati menghadap ke arah matahari dan mekar meskipun tidak ada siapa-siapa di sekatnya untuk menyaksikan. (Hal.111). Aku juga sangat suka kata-kata Ibu Ehwa yang ini: Kalau kau tahu-tahu menyukai bunga, itu artinya ada rahasia di dalam hatimu.
Juga percakapan Kakek Dorbang dengan Ehwa mengenai Pohon Ginko di Hal.45, Pohon ginko sangat menakjupkan. Hanya dengan menatap si pohon lelaki di sana, pohon perempuan ini langsung berbuah.. Nah loh, bisa bayangkan apa yang ada di pikiran Ehwa kecil mendengar kata-kata si kakek ini khan?
Ehhhhmmm, entahlah tapi perasaan jadi berbunga-bunga setiap kali membaca buku ini, tidak bisa ditaruh semenit pun, selama perjalanan ke Depok hari minggu kemarin, pikiran selalu tertuju pada buku ini. Pokoknya buku yang bagus. Tidak sabar menunggu buku kedua dan ketiganya... Semoga tidak lama.
Dan sebagai penutup sebait puisi dariku,
Kusimpan sepiku, di gurun, di kaki gunung, dan di bayang-bayang wajahmu..
Sekian, selamat hunting dan membaca bukunya!
August 7, 2010
gelisah....
ehwa
gelisah saat kutemukan adanya perbedaan
ada sesuatu yang mereka punya
kami tidak
ada sesuatu yang kami punya
mereka tidak
gelisah saat kudengar nyanyian sumbang
yang mengandaikan ia bagaikan kumbang
TIDAK!!
ia bukan kumbang
ia adalah bunga labu
yang aromanya tertebar menarik perhatian
tapi hanya untuk yang tertuju
agar selalu merindukannya
dan selalu kembali dengan luapan cinta
gelisah
di tengah hujan kebimbangan meraja
hollyhock yang tumbuh perlahan
telah terselimuti tiger lily yang merekah di seluruh pegunungan
dan saat Camellia membawa perpisahan
aku makin gelisah
aku mulai ranum merekah
dan hujan pun kembali menyentuh dasar hati
memaksaku untuk menerbarkan bibit tiger lily yang baru
namun ternyata
ada akar yang harus kupangkas
agar bibit itu bisa mulai tumbuh segar
benarkah dia akan tumbuh segar?
atau hanya akan pergi karena akar lama tak benar2 terpangkas?
akankah hujan membawa jawaban?
gelisah...
dhee
aku melihat dua insan polos yang guratannya berada di halaman awal
aku jatuh cinta pada kegelisahan di raut wajah mereka
namun semakin carik demi carik kertas ini tersibak,
alih-alih, aku yang menjadi gelisah
entah karena ornamen-ornamen sakral perempuan yang diceritakan dengan kepolosan yang indah namun menggelikan
entah karena tiap bingkai yang tercipta dari gambar-gambar indahnya
entah karena melimpahnya puisi tentang kami,
wanita
bunga
hujan
dan kegelisahan kami
entah..
yang jelas aku gelisah
karenamu kah?
entah..
***********************************************************************
asiiiik, dikasih seorang teman yang baik hati
makasih yaaa
*blush-blush*
ehwa
gelisah saat kutemukan adanya perbedaan
ada sesuatu yang mereka punya
kami tidak
ada sesuatu yang kami punya
mereka tidak
gelisah saat kudengar nyanyian sumbang
yang mengandaikan ia bagaikan kumbang
TIDAK!!
ia bukan kumbang
ia adalah bunga labu
yang aromanya tertebar menarik perhatian
tapi hanya untuk yang tertuju
agar selalu merindukannya
dan selalu kembali dengan luapan cinta
gelisah
di tengah hujan kebimbangan meraja
hollyhock yang tumbuh perlahan
telah terselimuti tiger lily yang merekah di seluruh pegunungan
dan saat Camellia membawa perpisahan
aku makin gelisah
aku mulai ranum merekah
dan hujan pun kembali menyentuh dasar hati
memaksaku untuk menerbarkan bibit tiger lily yang baru
namun ternyata
ada akar yang harus kupangkas
agar bibit itu bisa mulai tumbuh segar
benarkah dia akan tumbuh segar?
atau hanya akan pergi karena akar lama tak benar2 terpangkas?
akankah hujan membawa jawaban?
gelisah...
dhee
aku melihat dua insan polos yang guratannya berada di halaman awal
aku jatuh cinta pada kegelisahan di raut wajah mereka
namun semakin carik demi carik kertas ini tersibak,
alih-alih, aku yang menjadi gelisah
entah karena ornamen-ornamen sakral perempuan yang diceritakan dengan kepolosan yang indah namun menggelikan
entah karena tiap bingkai yang tercipta dari gambar-gambar indahnya
entah karena melimpahnya puisi tentang kami,
wanita
bunga
hujan
dan kegelisahan kami
entah..
yang jelas aku gelisah
karenamu kah?
entah..
***********************************************************************
asiiiik, dikasih seorang teman yang baik hati
makasih yaaa
*blush-blush*
January 24, 2014
I still haven't read much manhwa. Something tells me that this isn't typical. It's a slow, reflective coming of age story, surprisingly frank in how it shows a young girl's sexual awakening. This certainly won't be for everyone. The characters are drawn in a very mannered style, the whole thing is quite slow to unfold, and it verges on navel gazing at certain points. That said, it's refreshingly honest, and the backgrounds, especially the flowers, can be breathtaking. I'm not sure if I liked it well enough to finish the trilogy, but I do have a lot of respect for what the artist was trying to accomplish here.
July 16, 2009
I found myself marveling at some of the illustration in this book while being perplexed at a considerable amount of it. I never could seem to come to terms with what Kim was doing with the combination of simple (and at times what seemed to me simplistic) drawings and the elaborate scenes of nature and the countryside that recur throughout.
What I found most unsatisfying was the storyline. Is this all there was to these two people's lives--thinking about men? I haven't done much looking around for other reviews of this book (which gets pretty high ratings overall), so I am not sure what others have thought of this man's take on these women's sexual and gender perspectives.
I also found the insertion of the recurring two crude men a cumbersome and obvious/stereotyped way of addressing traditional/macho roles. I felt that this device oversimplified gender roles because these two are such obvious targets.
In all, I was largely unmoved by these characters and their situations. I'll give the next in the series a try though. I remember sitting through part 1 of Kobayashi's The Human Condition and thinking why am I going to continue through 7 more hours of this only to be absolutely mesmerized by it as a magnificent film experience by the time it was over. So, maybe something will grab me more in the subsequent pages of this rather epic series.
What I found most unsatisfying was the storyline. Is this all there was to these two people's lives--thinking about men? I haven't done much looking around for other reviews of this book (which gets pretty high ratings overall), so I am not sure what others have thought of this man's take on these women's sexual and gender perspectives.
I also found the insertion of the recurring two crude men a cumbersome and obvious/stereotyped way of addressing traditional/macho roles. I felt that this device oversimplified gender roles because these two are such obvious targets.
In all, I was largely unmoved by these characters and their situations. I'll give the next in the series a try though. I remember sitting through part 1 of Kobayashi's The Human Condition and thinking why am I going to continue through 7 more hours of this only to be absolutely mesmerized by it as a magnificent film experience by the time it was over. So, maybe something will grab me more in the subsequent pages of this rather epic series.
March 5, 2020
'The Color of Earth' by Kim Dong Hwa is the first volume of the Colors trilogy, and is a manhwa – that is, the Korean version of the manga or the graphic novel.
'The Color of Earth' is about a young widowed woman and her young daughter Ehwa. The story describes how young Ehwa experiences the beauty of the natural world as she grows up, while navigating the transformation that happens to her body, her emotions and her mind. The story is also about how Ehwa's mother experiences loneliness and what happens when there is a possibility of discovering love again.
The book is beautiful, lyrical, poetic – if a graphic novel can be described as lyrical and poetic. The artwork is gorgeous, and as I am not an expert, I don't have the vocabulary to describe it. In some places, the artwork is simple and straightforward with clean lines. In other places, it looks like pointillism – drawing a picture just with points. In other places there are intricate line drawings. The nature scenes and the rain scenes are incredibly beautiful. The book can be read just for its artwork. The relationship between Ehwa and her mother is a central part of the book and it is beautifully depicted. It is almost like reading about the Korean Lorelai and Rory. Ehwa's mother is one of the most beautiful characters ever depicted in any graphic novel. The story also depicts traditional korean culture very intricately. I loved that aspect of the book. The book also has a beautiful, poetic introduction by the author and an essay at the end describing the book's themes, by Hwang Min-Ho.
I loved 'The Color of Earth'. It is such a beautiful start to the trilogy. I can't wait to read the second part now.
Have you read 'The Color of Earth'? What do you think about it?
'The Color of Earth' is about a young widowed woman and her young daughter Ehwa. The story describes how young Ehwa experiences the beauty of the natural world as she grows up, while navigating the transformation that happens to her body, her emotions and her mind. The story is also about how Ehwa's mother experiences loneliness and what happens when there is a possibility of discovering love again.
The book is beautiful, lyrical, poetic – if a graphic novel can be described as lyrical and poetic. The artwork is gorgeous, and as I am not an expert, I don't have the vocabulary to describe it. In some places, the artwork is simple and straightforward with clean lines. In other places, it looks like pointillism – drawing a picture just with points. In other places there are intricate line drawings. The nature scenes and the rain scenes are incredibly beautiful. The book can be read just for its artwork. The relationship between Ehwa and her mother is a central part of the book and it is beautifully depicted. It is almost like reading about the Korean Lorelai and Rory. Ehwa's mother is one of the most beautiful characters ever depicted in any graphic novel. The story also depicts traditional korean culture very intricately. I loved that aspect of the book. The book also has a beautiful, poetic introduction by the author and an essay at the end describing the book's themes, by Hwang Min-Ho.
I loved 'The Color of Earth'. It is such a beautiful start to the trilogy. I can't wait to read the second part now.
Have you read 'The Color of Earth'? What do you think about it?
March 19, 2018
The Color of Earth is for older teens and adults, a coming of age story. It's a graphic novel done in the manhwa style who is the Korean equivalent to manga.
I give this book five stars because I loved the mother-daughter relationship, the use of poetry in portions of the novel, and some of the artwork was stunning and lyrical. I would love to read the rest of the trilogy because I want to find out what happens to Ehwa and her mother.
In a nutshell The Color of Earth represents to me the beauty and coarseness of real life.
I give this book five stars because I loved the mother-daughter relationship, the use of poetry in portions of the novel, and some of the artwork was stunning and lyrical. I would love to read the rest of the trilogy because I want to find out what happens to Ehwa and her mother.
In a nutshell The Color of Earth represents to me the beauty and coarseness of real life.
July 25, 2018
Typically stories about growing up leave me either bored or annoyed and this probably because my own development was obnoxious. I hated being a kid, and I hated being a teenager even more, and for that reason I was stunned by the fact that I absolutely loved this book.
The Color of Earth isn't just a story about personal development, it's an earthy exploration of developing sexuality, attraction, and the complexity of human emotion. Every page of this book is beautifully rendered alternating between minimalist moments of Ehwa and her mother, or else the captured beauty of Korea. And throughout this graphic novel Kim Dong Hwa captures the language and rhythms of a people just living and growing and trying to manage the changes taking place in their life, and the new desires and comforts that come with it.
Ehwa is a young woman discovering her body and whether it's learning about the differences of human genitals, the discovery of her menstruation, observing the budding of her own attractions to the young men she encounters, or else trying to understand her mother's attractions to a traveling salesman this book was a beautiful meditation about puberty and coming of age. And any book which manages to take this time and make it into something so beautiful is just incredible.
The Color of Earth isn't just a story about personal development, it's an earthy exploration of developing sexuality, attraction, and the complexity of human emotion. Every page of this book is beautifully rendered alternating between minimalist moments of Ehwa and her mother, or else the captured beauty of Korea. And throughout this graphic novel Kim Dong Hwa captures the language and rhythms of a people just living and growing and trying to manage the changes taking place in their life, and the new desires and comforts that come with it.
Ehwa is a young woman discovering her body and whether it's learning about the differences of human genitals, the discovery of her menstruation, observing the budding of her own attractions to the young men she encounters, or else trying to understand her mother's attractions to a traveling salesman this book was a beautiful meditation about puberty and coming of age. And any book which manages to take this time and make it into something so beautiful is just incredible.
February 12, 2018
There is something about Mothers and daughters and the friendship they get to share. To show that delicately and the differences they have in personality and yet the closeness they share, so beautifully with an almost lyrical tone must be the work of a master artist and storyteller.
Each panel is like a painting - extremely beautiful, detailed and expressive. And it feels like you could hang each page on a wall because it is a thing of beauty. Tearing your eyes away from each page will be an ordeal, trust me!
Warm, light, happy and contented is what this book made me feel. Books like this reaffirm my belief that graphic novel as a medium does more to storytelling than plain words, by showing the reader something beautiful they needn't and couldn't imagine.
The subject itself is so feminist set in a traditional backdrop reminding us all about the countless women who would've spent their lives waiting like Ehwa's mother... Cannot wait to get to part 2!
Each panel is like a painting - extremely beautiful, detailed and expressive. And it feels like you could hang each page on a wall because it is a thing of beauty. Tearing your eyes away from each page will be an ordeal, trust me!
Warm, light, happy and contented is what this book made me feel. Books like this reaffirm my belief that graphic novel as a medium does more to storytelling than plain words, by showing the reader something beautiful they needn't and couldn't imagine.
The subject itself is so feminist set in a traditional backdrop reminding us all about the countless women who would've spent their lives waiting like Ehwa's mother... Cannot wait to get to part 2!
July 14, 2023
جميلة جدا .. شاعرية ..تمتاز بوصف للطبيعه و الجمال ..و هذا ما هو معتاد لدي الروايات اليابانيه .. السمه المميزة لها انها تقدر تفاصيل الطبيعة .. و شعر الهايكو افضل مثال علي ذلك .
الرسومات بهذا الكتاب كانت جميله للغاية .. تجعلك تذوب داخل ثناياه.. كانك تعيش في عالم منفصل حقا
تفاصيل علاقة الام بأبنتها كانت مميزه حقا .. وددت لو املك هذا الرابط الحميمي مع ابنتي يوما ما
ايضا تطور مشاعر ايهوا من طفلة صغيره الي مراهقه كانت ممتعه .
انصح بها من يحبون اللغة الشعرية ..و التفاصيل.. الهدوء .. و الزهور .. من يحبون تفاصيل الريف الياباني
الرسومات بهذا الكتاب كانت جميله للغاية .. تجعلك تذوب داخل ثناياه.. كانك تعيش في عالم منفصل حقا
تفاصيل علاقة الام بأبنتها كانت مميزه حقا .. وددت لو املك هذا الرابط الحميمي مع ابنتي يوما ما
ايضا تطور مشاعر ايهوا من طفلة صغيره الي مراهقه كانت ممتعه .
انصح بها من يحبون اللغة الشعرية ..و التفاصيل.. الهدوء .. و الزهور .. من يحبون تفاصيل الريف الياباني
April 16, 2019
সুড়সুড়ি মারকা গ্রাফিক নভেল। মানে মেইন থিম হলো একটা মেয়ের জীবনের বিভিন্ন ধাপে যৌনতা বিষয় নিয়ে কৌতূহল, অপজ্ঞান আর জ্ঞান আহরণ। আর কিছুই না। আর্ট ওয়ার্ক সুন্দর, এটা নিয়ে অভিযোগ নেই কিন্তু কাহিনী এতো স্লো আর একঘেয়েমি হলে কতক্ষণ আর ছবি দেখে মনের খিদে মেটে?
January 25, 2013
This is an odd little book. It is a collection of episodes in the life of Ehwa, a little girl growing up in Korea of a few generations ago--so far, so good. But it is basically just all the incidents where Ehwa learns something about sex, starting with her first realization at age 7 (really? she's 7 and apparently the women sometime bathe together in the creek, and she never figured this out?) that boys' and girls' bodies are different. Okay, it's not just sex ed; many of the stories are about Ehwa's blossoming understanding of romance. Perhaps it's better to say that the book is entirely about Ehwa learning about relations of all kinds between men and women.
There is quite a bit to like about this manhwa (the Korean equivalent of manga): Ehwa and her mother (a widow who runs her own business, deals with the heckling of her crude male customers with grace, and enters into a fulfilling relationship when she decides it's the right time and the right person) are portrayed sympathetically and have a lovely relationship; despite sex being the main theme of the book, there is none of the heavy sexualization that can be so off-putting in comics that are aimed mainly at a male audience.
However, there was a lot that I didn't like as well. All the secondary characters are extremely flat and, with the exception of Ehwa and her mother's romantic interests, pretty despicable. I would have appreciated the sensitive depiction of the two women at the center of this story quite a bit more if the other women--and the men--had been treated with the same care. As it is, the book is like an account of two real, interesting people living in a land populated by extremely annoying clowns. The other thing that put me off this book was the language. Most of the chapters culminate in Ehwa's mother dispensing some great truth about women and men to Ehwa, or, in later chapters, in Ehwa discovering such a truth for herself. These explanations are extremely flowery--quite literally. Not only is the language used very florid, but everything is explained with flower metaphors. Ehwa's soul is a hollyhock, then a tiger lily; her mother is a gourd flower; then the young monk Ehwa meets is a tiger lily and Ehwa is represented by some other flower that I can't remember. Instead of working to connect images to the ideas in the book and to tie the stories together with an agricultural/horticultural theme, the flowers upon flowers just ended up being repetitive and confusing.
This book has an interesting idea behind it, but the terrible secondary characters and the overly poetic language ruined it for me; with the exception of some lovely little scenes between Ehwa and her mother, I didn't enjoy it very much.
There is quite a bit to like about this manhwa (the Korean equivalent of manga): Ehwa and her mother (a widow who runs her own business, deals with the heckling of her crude male customers with grace, and enters into a fulfilling relationship when she decides it's the right time and the right person) are portrayed sympathetically and have a lovely relationship; despite sex being the main theme of the book, there is none of the heavy sexualization that can be so off-putting in comics that are aimed mainly at a male audience.
However, there was a lot that I didn't like as well. All the secondary characters are extremely flat and, with the exception of Ehwa and her mother's romantic interests, pretty despicable. I would have appreciated the sensitive depiction of the two women at the center of this story quite a bit more if the other women--and the men--had been treated with the same care. As it is, the book is like an account of two real, interesting people living in a land populated by extremely annoying clowns. The other thing that put me off this book was the language. Most of the chapters culminate in Ehwa's mother dispensing some great truth about women and men to Ehwa, or, in later chapters, in Ehwa discovering such a truth for herself. These explanations are extremely flowery--quite literally. Not only is the language used very florid, but everything is explained with flower metaphors. Ehwa's soul is a hollyhock, then a tiger lily; her mother is a gourd flower; then the young monk Ehwa meets is a tiger lily and Ehwa is represented by some other flower that I can't remember. Instead of working to connect images to the ideas in the book and to tie the stories together with an agricultural/horticultural theme, the flowers upon flowers just ended up being repetitive and confusing.
This book has an interesting idea behind it, but the terrible secondary characters and the overly poetic language ruined it for me; with the exception of some lovely little scenes between Ehwa and her mother, I didn't enjoy it very much.
August 16, 2010
Aku suka membaca novel grafis. Namun aku cenderung membacanya lebih lama dibanding membaca novel biasa, karena menikmati guratan-guratan gambarnya.
Novel ini indah, mengguratkan karakter-karakter di dalamnya dengan lembut, tak banyak arsiran atau goresan, lebih berupa garis-garis yang sekali jadi. Aku tak terampil menggambar, namun aku menikmati gambar dan lukisan, walau bukan dengan mata seorang kritikus seni.
Kim Dong Hwa awalnya kusangka adalah seorang perempuan, karena pendekatan feminisnya dalam menulis novel ini. Setelah membacanya hingga tuntas, aku baru tahu jika dia adalah seorang lelaki, yang ternyata begitu menyelami sisi-sisi emosional seorang perempuan dan isyarat-isyarat fisik dari seorang perempuan, ditinjau dari sudut pandang lelaki.
Sosok lelaki ditampilkannya secara berimbang dalam novel seri pertama ini. Ada lelaki yang suka mengumbar kata-kata kurang sopan saat melihat perempuan yang memukau secara fisik, ada lelaki yang mampu menaklukkan perempuan dari keindahan tutur kata dan pemikirannya, ada lelaki muda yang baru mengenal wanita hingga mulai terbuai dalam perasaan yang seharusnya tidak dia pelihara sebagai biksu muda, dan ada lelaki terpelajar yang memukau banyak perempuan muda.
Sosok perempuan dewasa ada dalam ibu Ehwa yang walaupun seorang janda ditinggal pergi oleh suaminya, mampu membesarkan Ehwa dengan cara yang baik, asuhan yang benar, kelembutan bersikap, dan cinta yang ternyata masih ada -- dipendam dan ditumbuhkannya pada seorang yang tak disangka.
Ehwa tumbuh dalam lingkungan desa yang tenang, dengan seorang Ibu penyayang dan teman-teman bermain yang usil dan mulai bertambah nakal menjelang remaja. Namun Ehwa tetap memiliki kepolosan dan ketulusan, hingga akhirnya bunga-bunga di hatinya mulai bermekaran saat ia mengenal 2 pria muda dalam masa remajanya.
Perempuan atau wanita itu seperti bunga..
Aku teringat saat masih beranjak remaja, aku mencari-cari bunga apa yang akan menjadi bunga favoritku ? Aku rasa banyak perempuan muda yang memikirkan ini saat masa kanak-kanaknya. Ibuku menyukai lily putih. Banyak perempuan menyukai mawar, namun entah mengapa aku tidak terlalu menggemari mawar. Akhirnya aku memilih bunga sederhana sebagai bunga favorit... Alasannya karena bunga itu sederhana..he..he..
Aku sangat menikmati novel grafis ini. Bagaimana Ehwa bertumbuh musim demi musim menjadi lebih dewasa...dengan berbagai isu seputar kewanitaan di sekitarnya..dengan pergumulannya sendiri mencari makna cinta dan belajar mengenali lingkungannya..
Tak sabar menunggu seri selanjutnya, "Warna Air" :)
Novel ini indah, mengguratkan karakter-karakter di dalamnya dengan lembut, tak banyak arsiran atau goresan, lebih berupa garis-garis yang sekali jadi. Aku tak terampil menggambar, namun aku menikmati gambar dan lukisan, walau bukan dengan mata seorang kritikus seni.
Kim Dong Hwa awalnya kusangka adalah seorang perempuan, karena pendekatan feminisnya dalam menulis novel ini. Setelah membacanya hingga tuntas, aku baru tahu jika dia adalah seorang lelaki, yang ternyata begitu menyelami sisi-sisi emosional seorang perempuan dan isyarat-isyarat fisik dari seorang perempuan, ditinjau dari sudut pandang lelaki.
Sosok lelaki ditampilkannya secara berimbang dalam novel seri pertama ini. Ada lelaki yang suka mengumbar kata-kata kurang sopan saat melihat perempuan yang memukau secara fisik, ada lelaki yang mampu menaklukkan perempuan dari keindahan tutur kata dan pemikirannya, ada lelaki muda yang baru mengenal wanita hingga mulai terbuai dalam perasaan yang seharusnya tidak dia pelihara sebagai biksu muda, dan ada lelaki terpelajar yang memukau banyak perempuan muda.
Sosok perempuan dewasa ada dalam ibu Ehwa yang walaupun seorang janda ditinggal pergi oleh suaminya, mampu membesarkan Ehwa dengan cara yang baik, asuhan yang benar, kelembutan bersikap, dan cinta yang ternyata masih ada -- dipendam dan ditumbuhkannya pada seorang yang tak disangka.
Ehwa tumbuh dalam lingkungan desa yang tenang, dengan seorang Ibu penyayang dan teman-teman bermain yang usil dan mulai bertambah nakal menjelang remaja. Namun Ehwa tetap memiliki kepolosan dan ketulusan, hingga akhirnya bunga-bunga di hatinya mulai bermekaran saat ia mengenal 2 pria muda dalam masa remajanya.
Perempuan atau wanita itu seperti bunga..
Aku teringat saat masih beranjak remaja, aku mencari-cari bunga apa yang akan menjadi bunga favoritku ? Aku rasa banyak perempuan muda yang memikirkan ini saat masa kanak-kanaknya. Ibuku menyukai lily putih. Banyak perempuan menyukai mawar, namun entah mengapa aku tidak terlalu menggemari mawar. Akhirnya aku memilih bunga sederhana sebagai bunga favorit... Alasannya karena bunga itu sederhana..he..he..
Aku sangat menikmati novel grafis ini. Bagaimana Ehwa bertumbuh musim demi musim menjadi lebih dewasa...dengan berbagai isu seputar kewanitaan di sekitarnya..dengan pergumulannya sendiri mencari makna cinta dan belajar mengenali lingkungannya..
Tak sabar menunggu seri selanjutnya, "Warna Air" :)
July 12, 2014
Well, I don't need to wonder why this landed on the frequently challenged books list anymore. Any book that deals with puberty and sexual development is well-nigh doomed to find a place in Banned Books Week.
What I find so ironic about this book is that I question how broad an audience it would have found in this country in the first place if it weren't for the outcry. I certainly wouldn't have picked it up. (Oh, book banners. The stuff you get me to read.) While a lot of the illustrations are truly beautiful, I didn't really connect with the story. It could be a cultural thing, or it could just be that I no longer find young people learning about all the puberty stuff all that compelling. Or even really all that interesting. It was an awkward thing to live through - I don't need to read about other people's awkward too.
At any rate. Because of the book banners' outcry I'm sure this will have a place on the shelf much longer than it might have. Congrats, guys! Way to find a book new readers!
What I find so ironic about this book is that I question how broad an audience it would have found in this country in the first place if it weren't for the outcry. I certainly wouldn't have picked it up. (Oh, book banners. The stuff you get me to read.) While a lot of the illustrations are truly beautiful, I didn't really connect with the story. It could be a cultural thing, or it could just be that I no longer find young people learning about all the puberty stuff all that compelling. Or even really all that interesting. It was an awkward thing to live through - I don't need to read about other people's awkward too.
At any rate. Because of the book banners' outcry I'm sure this will have a place on the shelf much longer than it might have. Congrats, guys! Way to find a book new readers!
December 5, 2018
A beautiful Korean manhwa, Korean version of a Japanese manga, about a young girl growing up into a young woman and thus deepening the bound she shares with her young widowed mother. This story was very well done, and I look forward to reading the other two in the trilogy.
September 27, 2010
#2010-81#
“Jadi bukan karena kita cacat, melainkan karena kita perempuan? Lalu kenapa Dongchul dan Moonsho punya burung sementara anak-anak perempuan tidak punya?”(h.35)
Orangtua, sesulit apa pun, harus bisa menjelaskan tentang seksualitas pada anaknya. Pertanyaan-pertanyaan Ehwa di buku ini cukup menggelitik, membayangkan beberapa tahun lagi mungkin anak perempuanku akan bertanya hal-hal serupa. Kalau sekarang hanya bisa menjelaskan pertanyaan tentang bedanya laki-laki dan perempuan, hanya sebatas pengetahuan tak berdasar yang mudah di cerna oleh seorang anak balita.
(Bin) Kenapa aku pakai anting?
(Bun) Karena kamu kan peremuan, sayang..
(Bin) Bunda koq nggak pakai anting?
(Bun) Anting bunda di lemari, kan dipakainya nanti habis mandi..
Perubahan tubuh perempuan, dari masa kanak-kanak hingga masa akil balik, juga perubahan rasa hati, hingga mengenal jatuh cinta. Perubahan yang tak disadari, namun terjadi juga. Hubungan yang erat antara ibu dan anak perempuannya sehingga semua bisa diceritakan dengan jujur tanpa harus tertutup-tutupi oleh tabu.
Pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang muncul dalam buku ini pasti muncul dalam kehidupan sehari-hari kita. Atau mungkin kita pernah menanyakannya sewaktu kecil? Kalau terlalu ditutup-tutupi, dianggap saru, malah bisa-bisa anak tidak berani tanya, dan mengetahuinya dari sumber yang salah. Apalagi masalah jatuh cinta. Hal yang tak tahu kapan terjadi dan bisa membuat dada berdebar dan pipi bersemu merah.
“Tapi apa yang mungkin disembunyikan seorang gadis selain hal itu? Kau mungkin tak tahu apa yang harus kau lakukan karena khawatir seseorang akan memperhatikan bunga harum yang merekah di dalam hidupmu.”(h.131)
Beruntunglah ibu Ehwa yang janda ini anaknya perempuan. Sehingga ia bisa membagi semua pengalamannya sebagai perempuan kepada anaknya. Sulitnya menjadi orang tua seorang diri, yang harus rela dihina lewat kata-kata oleh lelaki, yang menganggap itu sebagai lelucon belaka. Sehingga ketika Ehwa mengalami hal yang sama, ia bisa mengajarkan bagaimana menghadapinya. Sebagai ibu, ia amat sayang dan menjadikan anaknya sebagai tempat mencurahkan segala perasaannya.
“Meskipun seorang putra akan tinggal bersamaku sampai aku meninggal dunia, aku takkan pernah dapat mengatakan padanya segala sesuatu yang kukatakan padamu. Aku takkan pernah bisa mengungkapkan kerapuhanku pada seorang putra.” (h.228)
Tak semua laki-laki menyebalkan seperti tetangga-tetangga Ehwa. Digambarkan si pengembara yang sopan, juga biksu cilik yang juga mengalami akil balik, sehingga menjelaskan juga perbedaan akil balik pada laki-laki dan perempuan. Biksu cilik yang mempertentangkan jatuh cintanya pada Ehwa atau pengabdiannya pada kuil.
Jadi, ada apa dengan hujan dan bunga?
“Tunggu dan lihat saja. Baik dalam hujan maupun salju, aku akan menjadi bunga yang indah dan wangi.” Ehwa. (h.184)
Goresan gambar pena yang indah..
Karena itu di belakangnya ada tulisan novel grafis dewasa. yah, kalau anak-anak membaca, butuh pendampingan orang dewasa, karena memang ada beberapa adegan dewasa. Melalui gambar, sosok Ehwa dan ibunya, yang dilukiskan dengan indah menjadi hidup. Detail-detail pohon, maupun berbagai tanaman yang menjadi latar cerita ini digambar dengan rapi dan teliti. Membuat jatuh cinta dan ingin membaca lanjutannya...
“Jadi bukan karena kita cacat, melainkan karena kita perempuan? Lalu kenapa Dongchul dan Moonsho punya burung sementara anak-anak perempuan tidak punya?”(h.35)
Orangtua, sesulit apa pun, harus bisa menjelaskan tentang seksualitas pada anaknya. Pertanyaan-pertanyaan Ehwa di buku ini cukup menggelitik, membayangkan beberapa tahun lagi mungkin anak perempuanku akan bertanya hal-hal serupa. Kalau sekarang hanya bisa menjelaskan pertanyaan tentang bedanya laki-laki dan perempuan, hanya sebatas pengetahuan tak berdasar yang mudah di cerna oleh seorang anak balita.
(Bin) Kenapa aku pakai anting?
(Bun) Karena kamu kan peremuan, sayang..
(Bin) Bunda koq nggak pakai anting?
(Bun) Anting bunda di lemari, kan dipakainya nanti habis mandi..
Perubahan tubuh perempuan, dari masa kanak-kanak hingga masa akil balik, juga perubahan rasa hati, hingga mengenal jatuh cinta. Perubahan yang tak disadari, namun terjadi juga. Hubungan yang erat antara ibu dan anak perempuannya sehingga semua bisa diceritakan dengan jujur tanpa harus tertutup-tutupi oleh tabu.
Pertanyaan-pertanyaan yang muncul dalam buku ini pasti muncul dalam kehidupan sehari-hari kita. Atau mungkin kita pernah menanyakannya sewaktu kecil? Kalau terlalu ditutup-tutupi, dianggap saru, malah bisa-bisa anak tidak berani tanya, dan mengetahuinya dari sumber yang salah. Apalagi masalah jatuh cinta. Hal yang tak tahu kapan terjadi dan bisa membuat dada berdebar dan pipi bersemu merah.
“Tapi apa yang mungkin disembunyikan seorang gadis selain hal itu? Kau mungkin tak tahu apa yang harus kau lakukan karena khawatir seseorang akan memperhatikan bunga harum yang merekah di dalam hidupmu.”(h.131)
Beruntunglah ibu Ehwa yang janda ini anaknya perempuan. Sehingga ia bisa membagi semua pengalamannya sebagai perempuan kepada anaknya. Sulitnya menjadi orang tua seorang diri, yang harus rela dihina lewat kata-kata oleh lelaki, yang menganggap itu sebagai lelucon belaka. Sehingga ketika Ehwa mengalami hal yang sama, ia bisa mengajarkan bagaimana menghadapinya. Sebagai ibu, ia amat sayang dan menjadikan anaknya sebagai tempat mencurahkan segala perasaannya.
“Meskipun seorang putra akan tinggal bersamaku sampai aku meninggal dunia, aku takkan pernah dapat mengatakan padanya segala sesuatu yang kukatakan padamu. Aku takkan pernah bisa mengungkapkan kerapuhanku pada seorang putra.” (h.228)
Tak semua laki-laki menyebalkan seperti tetangga-tetangga Ehwa. Digambarkan si pengembara yang sopan, juga biksu cilik yang juga mengalami akil balik, sehingga menjelaskan juga perbedaan akil balik pada laki-laki dan perempuan. Biksu cilik yang mempertentangkan jatuh cintanya pada Ehwa atau pengabdiannya pada kuil.
Jadi, ada apa dengan hujan dan bunga?
“Tunggu dan lihat saja. Baik dalam hujan maupun salju, aku akan menjadi bunga yang indah dan wangi.” Ehwa. (h.184)
Goresan gambar pena yang indah..
Karena itu di belakangnya ada tulisan novel grafis dewasa. yah, kalau anak-anak membaca, butuh pendampingan orang dewasa, karena memang ada beberapa adegan dewasa. Melalui gambar, sosok Ehwa dan ibunya, yang dilukiskan dengan indah menjadi hidup. Detail-detail pohon, maupun berbagai tanaman yang menjadi latar cerita ini digambar dengan rapi dan teliti. Membuat jatuh cinta dan ingin membaca lanjutannya...
November 8, 2014
A pinnacle part of growing up is the discovery of sexuality. What is it? What does it mean? What is sex? What is love? And how does everyone coexist with all this sexual tension?! It's difficult to remember what it was like when childhood curiosity first leads a person to begin asking questions.
In The Color of Earth we take an intimate look at the beginning of a young girl's journey into adulthood. Ehwa lives in Korea in a rural village with her widowed mother. Under the back drop of their relationship we see them both discovering and re-discovering love.
Writing and illustrating such a delicate subject is understandably difficult, but Kim Dong Hwa was down right masterful at getting his ideas across. Through the use of nature and beautiful artistry he shows womanhood is a way that captures it with all the proper seriousness and levity it deserves. When I tried to come up with something that would sum up what this embodies, I keep wanting to use the phrase "blush of youth".
The story itself is not dramatic, it's much like a extended narrative version of "the talk". I found myself really enjoying the way everything comes together and creates such an interesting story, with wonderful characters.
As for what kept this from being a five star book for me, I had a bit of a love/hate relationship with the use of metaphor in the story. On one hand it was really great element that shaped the characters and the story in a big way, but it was at times heavy handed and a little too overpowering. Then there was just some disappointment in terms of the printing. As I said earlier the art is amazing and there are just wonderful scenes in the book. However, it felt like some of the life had been sucked out of the art because of the printing process. I don't know what Kim Dong Hwa's preferences are, but some of the scenery work, the flowers, the fields, the towering trees would have just been mind blowing in colour. It wouldn't even have had to been full colour, just something!
(Also, it's COLOUR dammit!)
The Color of Earth is such a stand out that I am incredibly glad that I get to read more!
In The Color of Earth we take an intimate look at the beginning of a young girl's journey into adulthood. Ehwa lives in Korea in a rural village with her widowed mother. Under the back drop of their relationship we see them both discovering and re-discovering love.
Writing and illustrating such a delicate subject is understandably difficult, but Kim Dong Hwa was down right masterful at getting his ideas across. Through the use of nature and beautiful artistry he shows womanhood is a way that captures it with all the proper seriousness and levity it deserves. When I tried to come up with something that would sum up what this embodies, I keep wanting to use the phrase "blush of youth".
The story itself is not dramatic, it's much like a extended narrative version of "the talk". I found myself really enjoying the way everything comes together and creates such an interesting story, with wonderful characters.
As for what kept this from being a five star book for me, I had a bit of a love/hate relationship with the use of metaphor in the story. On one hand it was really great element that shaped the characters and the story in a big way, but it was at times heavy handed and a little too overpowering. Then there was just some disappointment in terms of the printing. As I said earlier the art is amazing and there are just wonderful scenes in the book. However, it felt like some of the life had been sucked out of the art because of the printing process. I don't know what Kim Dong Hwa's preferences are, but some of the scenery work, the flowers, the fields, the towering trees would have just been mind blowing in colour. It wouldn't even have had to been full colour, just something!
(Also, it's COLOUR dammit!)
The Color of Earth is such a stand out that I am incredibly glad that I get to read more!
March 9, 2010
http://tinyurl.com/y9pxrk3
As I've said before, I don't often review the graphic novels or comic strips that I read. This one, however, was for book club, so I feel a bit obliged.
Having a bit of knowledge on the history of manga graphic novels, or at the least a vague understanding of where they started and how they've spread, this particular selection was, um, different. I know there are all types: samurai-based, tween love, erotic, heck there's even one based on the life of Buddha (and it's fantastic). I know Japan is the motherland, but that the style has branched into other Asian countries and definitely to our country.
What you expect in the first few pages-- another tween love tale, but told traditionally-- becomes surprisingly explicit. The drawings themselves are not, but the dialogue frankly discusses the sexual awareness of a young Korean girl living with her mother in a tiny town long ago. This part feels very real. This also, however, showcases a connection between mother and daughter that does not feel real.
The agenda of the book is the future of this girl: slated for marriage, hopefully to a nice man, bound to live with her in-laws for the rest of her life. Honestly? I can't relate. And the falling-head-over-heels-for-any-guy-who-looks-at-her, which might feel right for a young girl, doesn't sit right in conjunction with the mother who blatantly encourages this behavior. Wouldn't a considered opinion work better for everyone? Even in that day and age, I would have thought this would be of considerable importance.
The art itself is stellar, especially the sweeping countryside panels. Unfortunately, the story stuck in my throat.
As I've said before, I don't often review the graphic novels or comic strips that I read. This one, however, was for book club, so I feel a bit obliged.
Having a bit of knowledge on the history of manga graphic novels, or at the least a vague understanding of where they started and how they've spread, this particular selection was, um, different. I know there are all types: samurai-based, tween love, erotic, heck there's even one based on the life of Buddha (and it's fantastic). I know Japan is the motherland, but that the style has branched into other Asian countries and definitely to our country.
What you expect in the first few pages-- another tween love tale, but told traditionally-- becomes surprisingly explicit. The drawings themselves are not, but the dialogue frankly discusses the sexual awareness of a young Korean girl living with her mother in a tiny town long ago. This part feels very real. This also, however, showcases a connection between mother and daughter that does not feel real.
The agenda of the book is the future of this girl: slated for marriage, hopefully to a nice man, bound to live with her in-laws for the rest of her life. Honestly? I can't relate. And the falling-head-over-heels-for-any-guy-who-looks-at-her, which might feel right for a young girl, doesn't sit right in conjunction with the mother who blatantly encourages this behavior. Wouldn't a considered opinion work better for everyone? Even in that day and age, I would have thought this would be of considerable importance.
The art itself is stellar, especially the sweeping countryside panels. Unfortunately, the story stuck in my throat.
September 3, 2010
Saat membaca mahnwa ini, terbayang di imaji gue adalah scenery dari K-Drama karya Yoon Suk-Ho yang terkenal dengan drama musim-nya; Endless Love, Winter Sonata, Summer Scent. Yaitu Spring Waltz Bener-bener penggambaran alam dan keindahan musim seminya sama dengan yang ditampilkan dalam drama tersebut.
Plus saat membaca kisah hidup Ehnwa dan Ibunya dengan backsound dari ost Spring waltz sendiri, One Love
One Love
Higher than the sky above you
Clearer than blue
Brighter than the rays of sunshine
Warmer than what you feel
More than all the wonders you see
It’s the most wonderful thing
Brighter than the living colors of flowers you see
Sweeter than the touch of water
Flowing from the mountain spring
More than all the wonders you see
It’s the most wonderful thing
One love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
All we need is love
Real love
Marvel at the sight of green fields
Amazingly seen
Watch the colors of the rainbow
It’s a miracle you see
More than all the wonders can be
But there’s more than that
One Love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
Greater than what you can feel
More than what you ever dreamed
This is better than your everything
One love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
All we need is love
One love
Musim semi, bersemi di hati :)
Plus saat membaca kisah hidup Ehnwa dan Ibunya dengan backsound dari ost Spring waltz sendiri, One Love
One Love
Higher than the sky above you
Clearer than blue
Brighter than the rays of sunshine
Warmer than what you feel
More than all the wonders you see
It’s the most wonderful thing
Brighter than the living colors of flowers you see
Sweeter than the touch of water
Flowing from the mountain spring
More than all the wonders you see
It’s the most wonderful thing
One love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
All we need is love
Real love
Marvel at the sight of green fields
Amazingly seen
Watch the colors of the rainbow
It’s a miracle you see
More than all the wonders can be
But there’s more than that
One Love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
Greater than what you can feel
More than what you ever dreamed
This is better than your everything
One love…
I love you so
Love is the beautiful one
All we need is love
One love
Musim semi, bersemi di hati :)
Read
June 11, 2015Completely unsure how to rate this one because of millions of conflicting feelings. I loved (and honestly was discomfited by) how frank and open the sexual discussions were. Human sexuality is shown as normal rather than shameful behavior, which was refreshing.
However, I wasn't sure I liked the emphasis on beauty and femininity and fragility that all the floral/botanical metaphors conferred. I don't like it when people, men especially, say they want to protect women by putting them on a high pedestal of hyper-femininity and innocence (something that happens in India in discussions of women as "goddesses" to be revered). I also dislike when women are treated as strange creatures men will never understand.
But at the same time, this is a historical piece and must be seen through that lens. I wasn't sure how much of the discomfort/annoyance I felt about the book were from my own modern American biases and ignorance about Korean culture and history in general. It's hard for me to gauge how important a feminist work this is without a frame of reference.
Definitely an interesting and thought-provoking read for sure!
However, I wasn't sure I liked the emphasis on beauty and femininity and fragility that all the floral/botanical metaphors conferred. I don't like it when people, men especially, say they want to protect women by putting them on a high pedestal of hyper-femininity and innocence (something that happens in India in discussions of women as "goddesses" to be revered). I also dislike when women are treated as strange creatures men will never understand.
But at the same time, this is a historical piece and must be seen through that lens. I wasn't sure how much of the discomfort/annoyance I felt about the book were from my own modern American biases and ignorance about Korean culture and history in general. It's hard for me to gauge how important a feminist work this is without a frame of reference.
Definitely an interesting and thought-provoking read for sure!
August 9, 2010
Kekasihku tiba, tapi bukan menyambutnya,
Aku hanya bisa menggigit ujung celemekku dengan ekspresi hampa--
Betapa kikuknya diriku.
Hatiku merindukannya, sebesar dan senyalang bulan yang purnama
Namun aku malah menyipitkan mata, tatapanku
setajam dan setipis bulan sabit.
Namun bukan aku melulu yang bertingkah begini.
Ibuku dan ibu dari ibuku sama konyol dan canggungnya saat masih gadis...
Tapi cinta yang datang dari hatiku meluap-luap,
Seterang dan semerah besi panas dalam tungku pandai besi.
Puisi cinta yang indah bukan?
Saat pertama membacanya aku sudah langsung tertegun. Dan tenggelam dalam barisan kalimat itu.
Tapi puisi itu hanya pengantar, isi buku grafis ini justru lebih penuh lagi dengan kalimat-kalimat indah. Bukan, bukan mengenai cinta saja. Yang tersaji di sini adalah mengenai kehidupan dua orang perempuan dari beda generasi.
Dua perempuan, Ehwa kecil dan ibunya, yang memiliki cinta dengan caranya sendiri-sendiri.
Tak bisa banyak berkata-kata-kata, hanya satu: terpukau. aw aw aw :P
Aku hanya bisa menggigit ujung celemekku dengan ekspresi hampa--
Betapa kikuknya diriku.
Hatiku merindukannya, sebesar dan senyalang bulan yang purnama
Namun aku malah menyipitkan mata, tatapanku
setajam dan setipis bulan sabit.
Namun bukan aku melulu yang bertingkah begini.
Ibuku dan ibu dari ibuku sama konyol dan canggungnya saat masih gadis...
Tapi cinta yang datang dari hatiku meluap-luap,
Seterang dan semerah besi panas dalam tungku pandai besi.
Puisi cinta yang indah bukan?
Saat pertama membacanya aku sudah langsung tertegun. Dan tenggelam dalam barisan kalimat itu.
Tapi puisi itu hanya pengantar, isi buku grafis ini justru lebih penuh lagi dengan kalimat-kalimat indah. Bukan, bukan mengenai cinta saja. Yang tersaji di sini adalah mengenai kehidupan dua orang perempuan dari beda generasi.
Dua perempuan, Ehwa kecil dan ibunya, yang memiliki cinta dengan caranya sendiri-sendiri.
Tak bisa banyak berkata-kata-kata, hanya satu: terpukau. aw aw aw :P
February 2, 2013
Recently I decided to start reading different genres of books so I saw this graphic novel at my local library and decided to try it. I've only read a few graphic novels so I wouldn't call myself an expert on manga or anything.
It was decent. I am glad it wasn't trying to be funny, because that tends to annoy me in manga/graphic novels, and The Color of Earth actually had a story and read like any other literary work. It is an interesting display of culture, love, and sexual awakening.
Some parts were a bit, how do I say this, odd? It is about "coming into your body sexually" so there were scenes about the main character examining her genitals. This begins when she is around nine years of age, so don't get any creepy ideas...
The main point of the book isn't the sexual nature of humanity, it is more about relationships. A quick read, and very interesting.
It was decent. I am glad it wasn't trying to be funny, because that tends to annoy me in manga/graphic novels, and The Color of Earth actually had a story and read like any other literary work. It is an interesting display of culture, love, and sexual awakening.
Some parts were a bit, how do I say this, odd? It is about "coming into your body sexually" so there were scenes about the main character examining her genitals. This begins when she is around nine years of age, so don't get any creepy ideas...
The main point of the book isn't the sexual nature of humanity, it is more about relationships. A quick read, and very interesting.
September 4, 2010
Bukan manga sebenarnya, tapi manhwa. Sebelumnya saya belum pernah membaca Chicken Soup karangan Kim Dong Hwa, tapi melihat cover bukunya, gambarnya dan tampilan buku ini membuat saya sungguh ingin membacanya. Mungkin karena warnanya pastel dan ilustrasinya indah.
Rasanya seperti membaca fairy tale dari halaman pertama, walau semakin ke belakang, semakin terasa seperti membaca buku puisi dengan gambar. Dan ternyata ceritanya lebih panjang dari yang saya kira.
Kisahnya mengenai Ehwa dan ibunya, seorang janda pemilik kedai minum. Keduanya memiliki hubungan erat dan sering saling berbagi mengenai hal-hal yang saat itu masih dianggap tabu. Ceritanya tidak samar, justru terang-terangan dan cenderung feminis, walau penulisnya seorang pria.
Ehwa kecil belajar tentang seksualitas, belajar arti jatuh cinta, belajar mengenai kedewasaan.
Buku ini kuat sekaligus lembut :) saya suka sekali.
Rasanya seperti membaca fairy tale dari halaman pertama, walau semakin ke belakang, semakin terasa seperti membaca buku puisi dengan gambar. Dan ternyata ceritanya lebih panjang dari yang saya kira.
Kisahnya mengenai Ehwa dan ibunya, seorang janda pemilik kedai minum. Keduanya memiliki hubungan erat dan sering saling berbagi mengenai hal-hal yang saat itu masih dianggap tabu. Ceritanya tidak samar, justru terang-terangan dan cenderung feminis, walau penulisnya seorang pria.
Ehwa kecil belajar tentang seksualitas, belajar arti jatuh cinta, belajar mengenai kedewasaan.
Buku ini kuat sekaligus lembut :) saya suka sekali.
August 18, 2009
Judy Blume meets graphic novel. I don't read many graphic novels, but I read this one because it had been so well-reviewed. The art is lovely and open, and Kim Dong Hwa has made a lovely coming-of-age story here. I liked the writing, but maybe I'm more prudish than I thought - some of the scenes that show the girl or the boy experiencing normal milestones in puberty (first wet dream, first menstruation) threw me for a loop. It's not that the scenes were obscenely or inappropriately drawn - it was just seeing them!
June 16, 2017
This is a historically set piece, which is the saving grace for my enjoyment of The Color of Earth. I'm too cynical to otherwise appreciate a work about puberty as the blossoming of a woman's personal flower, in addition to perpetuating the idea that women are strange, mysterious creatures whose whims are unfathomable to menfolk.
In spite of that message the language is lyrical, a beautiful complement to the art style; both complex and simplistic, shifting tones with ease.
In spite of that message the language is lyrical, a beautiful complement to the art style; both complex and simplistic, shifting tones with ease.
August 6, 2010
Well, kisahnya cukup indah. Pergulatan hidup seorang janda dengan gadis ciliknya menemukan cinta. Tapi saya nggak begitu simpati dengan si janda yang lha kok mudah banget "menyerahkan" dirinya sama si pengembara. Bukannya saya sok ustazah (:p), tapi mbok ya kasi contoh yang baik buat anak gadisnya gitu, dan cerita penantian cinta si janda terhadap pengembara dibuat lebih elegan. Tapi saya baru ngeh, pantesan kategorinya "untuk dewasa" *sigh*. Saya kan belum puber....
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