Composed in a neat appealing setting with a slice-of-life arc, I followed Yu Jungmin in her new venture into pottery as a hobby after abruptly quitting her job and been caved in inside her apartment without speaking to no one for months. From a work burnout to that lump of inertia, of feeling losing hope and at times self-loathing herself, seasons changed (literally from autumn to the next end of spring) and Jungmin finally decided to go out through the August sunshine. Walking along the neighborhood blocks, she unexpectedly came into a workshop lookalike cafe that was overwhelmed with the smell of clay; 소요 (SOYO) was written on the hidden sign behind the pot of ivy and this is where a new wonderful episode started for Jungmin.

I found comfort in its storytelling and loved how the author intricately crafted Jungmin’s day-to-day vignettes with her emotional perspectives following those incidents from work to her past unresolved backstory that still lurking and coincidentally resurfaced after Juran came. The characterization was admirable esp to those new friends Jungmin met during her pottery making outings; from Johee, Jihye and Gisik to Jun, Hyoseok, Yeri and even the black-and-white cat Hoya. Each with their own stories to tell and along the way I was charmed by their bond of friendship and how that weaved of pottery and life been subtly potrayed throughout the progress.

Expected love story to bloom, bit on familial, of self-discovery, forgiveness, on one’s dream and a chapter of gloomy depressing mood strike again— lovely prose with a lesson that life was meant to have both flaws and good days, to appreciate your present, move on or slowing down if needed. Bittersweet overall yet uplifting much, and I was swooning over the ending :’))

4.3/5*

(thank you TimesReads for the gifted review copy!)