Manhwa Review: Hotel Africa Vol. 1 by Hee Jung Park

Hee Jung Park’s Hotel Africa is a collection of stories that share a single common thread. That one connection is Elvis, a mixed race child who grew up in the middle of the Utah desert at a place called Hotel Africa, a place where anything is possible.

Volume one kicks off in a large unknown city where three young people - Ed, July, and our narrator Elvis - are filming an amateur film. These three live together, trying to make a living and realize their dreams at the same time. Hee Jung Park mixes stories of Elvis’ present with the memories of his past.

We are introduced to Elvis’ mother and learn how she met his deceased father. It's a tragic love story that leaves his mother open to the criticism of the small town she comes from, though this is only hinted at in passing. Strangers come and go through the family-run hotel. Meanwhile, in Elvis’ present, his friend July is suffering some silent heartbreak of her own.

There are 10 stories in volume one. They come across as disconnected, the future and past only linked by Elvis and his memories, but beyond that there is no tie. A sort of theme runs through the stories of the past, one of acceptance and love, though it doesn’t stretch into Elvis’s present. The idea is good, but it could have been done better. I enjoyed the stories set in the past, the odd hotel and the stark images of the desert instead of the modern and urban settings of Elvis’ grown-up life.

The first few pages are done in color on glossy paper. It’s very eye catching: the intense green of Ed’s eye or the red of July’s hair. Once you get past that, though, the black and white drawings are fair. It’s typical manhaw style: sharp beautiful faces, slightly elongated bodies but nothing that you haven’t seen before. If this series is going to grab you it’s going to be the story, not necessarily the artwork, that’s going to do it.

First published in Korea in 2005, Hotel Africa made its American debut through Tokyopop on April 2008. This drama is rated 16+ for moderate violence, language and non-sexual nondescript nudity. The second volume hits shelves in August 2008 and continues with Elvis’ memories of growing up in Hotel Africa.

Article Author: Katie Trattner

Ms. Trattner works for a non-profit agency where she is thankful for any internet time she can squeeze into her day. In her free time she reads one of the thousands of books stacked in her tiny apartment.

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