Description The two great keywords that define humanity — "emotion" and "love"! A special and heartwarming coming-of-age story about a unique boy who cannot feel emotions. Seon Yunjae was born with alexithymia — the inability to express or feel emotions — due to an unusually small amygdala, also known as the "almond." Raised safely under the love and protection of his mother and grandmother, Yunjae's life takes a tragic turn on his 16th birthday, Christmas Eve, when he loses both of them in a devastating accident. Left alone and branded a monster by a prejudiced world, Yunjae meets another "monster," Gon, and his fate begins to change. Gon, who endured a tragic childhood and grew crooked and twisted as a result, actually possesses a kinder and more fragile heart than anyone else. The two boys, who see each other without prejudice, build a rare and special friendship that others cannot understand. But even this bond is intertwined with the beginning of another tragedy — will the two of them ever be able to fully step into the world? "Almond" portrays the friendship, growth, love, and humanity experienced by a boy without emotions, revealing just how burdensome yet precious the tool of communication we call "emotion" truly is. Yunjae's journey — growing through the love of his mother and grandmother, and his connections with characters like Dr. Shim, Gon, and Dora — will melt readers' frozen hearts and leave a lasting warmth of empathy long after the book is closed. Through Yunjae's flat, emotionless narration, readers come to feel the full spectrum of emotions that Yunjae himself cannot. Amid a narrative that overwhelms with the weight and subtlety of emotion, and the pain and wonder of growing up, readers come to fully understand and empathize with Yunjae and Gon — two boys who, in reality, might simply be seen as troubled and best avoided. Through Yunjae's story — growing up viewing the world with a purity and lack of prejudice that only someone without emotions could have — readers will experience a bittersweet spectrum of feeling and be deeply moved. The Return of an All-Time Steady Seller with Over 1 Million Copies Sold, Beloved by Teens, Parents, and Adults Alike! "Almond" first debuted as the winner of the 2017 Changbi Prize for Youth Literature. Though categorized as a young adult novel, it appealed strongly to adult readers, teachers, and parents alike, and gradually built its reputation after being selected as a notable book in various cities the year it was published. Since then, it has become required reading for teens and has firmly established itself as a steady seller, celebrated as a book that even teens who don't typically read can finish in one sitting. After "Almond" became the first Asian novel to win the No. 1 spot at the Japan Bookstore Award, author Sohn Won-pyung went on to reclaim the top spot in 2022 with "The Thirties Rebellion," and in 2023 took second place and the Kobo Award with "Prism," cementing her status as one of Korea's most celebrated authors in the Japanese publishing world. "Almond" has been translated and exported to over 30 countries across North America, South America, Europe, and the Middle East. It was selected as one of Amazon's Best Books in the U.S. and received glowing reviews from international media, including The Wall Street Journal. Five years after its initial release, in 2022, it surpassed 1 million copies sold in print in Korea alone, becoming a million-seller and sending ripples through a struggling reading market. This success is a testament to how the novel's captivating characters, universal theme of emotion, and concise, compelling writing style have resonated deeply with readers around the world. At a time when empathy matters more than ever, yet true connection often feels absent, "Almond" breathes warmth and life into the frozen hearts of modern readers. Design Direction Since its first publication in 2017, "Almond" has remained a steady seller, continuously read well beyond its initial bestseller status. In designing the new cover, the top priority was to differentiate every element — from the cover to the interior design — from previous editions. As the book appeals to both teen and adult readers, it has been released in two completely different cover versions: a teen edition and an adult edition. Above all, for readers long familiar with Yunjae's face shown head-on...