What’s the buzz about Korean TV dramas? Library fans are wild over them. And if you’re not into them yet, you might want to give some a try. This week’s Book Buzz gives you a sampler. You can check out
What’s the buzz about Korean TV dramas? Library fans are wild over them. And if you’re not into them yet, you might want to give some a try.
This week’s Book Buzz gives you a sampler. You can check out English and foreign language adult, teen and children’s classic or contemporary movies, educational or documentary films and DVDs of TV shows at your neighborhood public library with a fee of $1 per week with your library card. If you’re a film buff or want to learn more about film try the Lihu‘e Library Film Club that meets the first and third Wednesdays of every month at 6:30 p.m. to view and discuss films. Pick up a film club schedule at Lihu‘e Library.
Better check it out!
90 Days of Love
Directed by Oh Jong Rok
Starring Kim Ha Neul and Kang Ji Hwan
DVD Set
After falling deeply in love, Ji Suk and Mi Yeon painfully go their separate ways, torn apart by cruel turns of fate. Years later, both are married and have families of their own. But when Ji Suk finds out he has terminal cancer, he can think only of Mi Yeon and the love he was forced to give up. Ji Suk’s last wish is to spend his final 90 days with Mi Yeon.
The Man of the Vineyard
Starring Yoon Eun Hye and Wu Manxi
DVD
This is a comic story about a big city girl who moves to a village to earn the money she needs to start her own business, a clothing store. One day she received an offer from a relative to leave her his vineyard when he died but only if she would agree to work the field for a year. At first Ji Hyun insists she will never ever work on a farm but she eventually ends up giving it a try. Everything is challenging, and to make things worse the cute guy she meets in the village, Taek Ki, keeps driving her crazy.
A Prince’s First Love
Directed by Lee Kwan Hee
Starring Cha Tae Hyun, Sung Yu Ri, Jin Jae Young
DVD Set
Opposites attract in this lighthearted romantic drama which takes viewers from the wintry snowscape of Hokkaido to the balmy shores of Tahiti. Gun-Hee is an arrogant hotel heir enjoying a carefree life of luxury but his world is turned upside down when he meets Yu-Bin, a penniless waitress who dreams of becoming a tour guide. Won over by Yu-Bin’s cheerful personality and passion for life, Gun-Hee begins to change his ways. Yu-Bin, however, only has eyes for Sung-Hyun, a handsome, career-driven businessman who barely knows she exists.
Smile Again
By Peter Hessler
Starring Lee Dong Gun and Kim Hee Sun
DVD
Naive Wu Danxi, the only girl on her high school baseball team has a crush on the son of the high school director. The director doesn’t like Wu Danxi so he bribes Ban Xiazhen to humiliate her. Ban Xiazhen likes Wu Danxi but succumbs to the director’s offer of money to go to college. And as a “practical joke” Ban Xiazhen gets Wu Danxi to fall in love with him, then tells her it was all a joke. But when the director doesn’t come through with the money, Ban Xiazhen doesn’t go to school but goes on to become a professional baseball player. When the two meet up again, Wu Danxi is still hurting from their past. Will the two be able to overcome past hurt and fall in love again?
Sunlight upon Me
Directed by Kim Sa Hyun
Starring Ryu Shi Won and Kim So Yeon
DVD set
Poor small-town girl Yeon Woo gets a job as a home shopping channel host in Seoul. There she falls in love with lawyer Dong Suk. What she doesn’t know is that the TV network owner is her grandfather. Will Yeon Woo and Dong Suk find sunlight amid a storm of lies and secrets?
Tell Me You Love Me
Directed by Oh Jong Rok
Starring Kim Rae Won and Yeom Jung Ah
DVD set
Byong Soo, played by Kim Rae Won, one of Korea’s hottest stars, and Young-Che have been inseparable since they were kids. After college they even joined the same film company to pursue their dreams together. Their boss, Ina is an ambitious woman who lacks for nothing except love. She is unhappy with her relationship of convenience and when she meets Byong Soo, she falls for his innocent charm and is willing to do anything to keep him.
• Carolyn Larson is head librarian at Lihu‘e Public Library. Book annotations are culled from online publishers’ descriptions and published reviews.
