The stories behind their books

“Excuse me Jungkook has bought a copy of Crying in H Mart!!!!!”

“The book I’d like to introduce to you is this graphic novel called Asterix Polly Wi.”

“I liked Raymond Carver’s distinctive dry style more than the content. His writing was understated yet conveyed emotion, and never felt excessive—that approach really stood out to me. Maybe it caught my eye even more because it resembled the style I wanted to write in when I was young.”

“Ah, the book is too difficult.”

“This is my first book report! I’m a man who keeps his promises.”

“Since it was a book that prominently covered stories about Italy, the birthplace of poisoning, I brought it along on my business trip to Italy and read it twice during the journey.”

“I hope many musicians studying composition don’t read this book. Let me be the only one!”

“I read a poetry collection called *Forgiveness of the Sky* on a holiday. One line I wrote down was, “Would even angels know that their wings are symmetrical?” Isn’t that so cute?”

“After reading the book, it resonated with me so deeply that it hurt both my body and my heart.”

“Scary Stories Are the Best!”

“Even the small, uneventful days without any big events must be one of countless foreshadowings in the movie of life.”

“An Ordinary Existence.”

“I used to read a lot. If I become interested in a movie, I look for the original work. The one I remember most is Pride and Prejudice. To be honest, the story was a little difficult, but I found the process of understanding it interesting.”

“When I feel powerless, I mutter a little spell .. 🪄💫”

“I read it during a time in high school when I was very lonely, and it comforted me. I’ve read it several times since, and each time I find new comfort in it.”

“I couldn't wait for the next film, so I finished reading it in the car while traveling.”

“The Little Prince”

“A Thousand Years of Love, Father.”

“For anyone nurturing a dream of making music, this book lays itself bare, offering many treasures to take away.”

“저 절창이라는 책을 사봤는데 재밌는 거 같아요!!”

“Please show lots of interest in my yoga book.”

“Personally, when I read the book, I was moved by the line, “Even if I am tainted, I will give you only white things.””

“This is a mystery novel I read recently.”

“I’ve been interested in investing lately, but I can’t afford to invest carelessly.”

“Well, first of all, the reason I started reading it is—there’s a producer. The producer who first got me to debut on a program called New Nonstop, Producer Ginisi, and I have a book club, just the two of us. I was going to introduce this book…”

“I did my reading with those.”

“There’s a book called Kind People Win that I read recently. I really found it very relatable.”

““I was greatly inspired while working on the album Legend.””

“There’s a book I’ve been reading lately. It’s a novel called *Mail from Postbox No. 110*—it’s heart-fluttering and gentle in tone.”

“I wanted to share with more people my everyday thoughts and feelings that I couldn’t fit into song lyrics.”

“After Blonote, I think this book may become the book of my life.”

“After that, I started seeking out and reading Murakami’s major works, such as *Dance Dance Dance* and *Kafka on the Shore*.”

““I think writing is a journey of refining, one by one, the countless thoughts in your mind. I hope this book motivates you on your own journey, too.””

“I received this question and gave it some thought. So I reread the book and thought about it, but it was difficult.”

“But these days, I’ve been reading a book called An Unexpected Season.”

“Whereas my previous book told, almost in diary form, various stories about life that a woman in her twenties learns while living with a cat, with Sweet Remedy I wanted to use as few words as possible and, alongside the flow of the photographs, give readers the feeling that we are traveling “together.””

“It felt new to imagine the personalities and ways of speaking of the characters in the book.”

“But I apparently read it.”

“It's interesting.”

“I’m studying Japanese on my own using Japanese books. I work hard at it whenever I have free time between schedules.”

“The lyrics and poems by poet Won Tae-yeon that touch my heart are always a gift. 『Today, Here, Us』 feels like an even more special gift.”

“Milan Kundera’s *Slowness* was good too. It was exactly what the word says: “slowness.” It felt like a book telling people who have to live in this fast-paced modern age that they should live slowly. I’m really slow myself.”

“Recently, I read José Saramago's *Blindness* and *Seeing*.”

“I’m not very interested in novels, but this book made me so curious about what would happen next that I kept reading.”

“A book? Ah, but I haven’t finished reading everything yet... I’m still in the midst of reading it... Guns, Germs, and Steel... It’s sort of like a history book~”

““I got into poetry by reading ‘Love, as if You Have Never Been Hurt (Ryu Si-hwa).’””

“꼭 책으로도 읽어보는 걸 추천합니다.”

“I highly recommend all of Matsumoto Taiyo’s works. For example, Ping Pong and Monster.”

“It was my first time being photographed wearing lingerie, so please pay attention.”

“At the time, I really liked the great insight I gained from the story of the Indians in writer Park Min-gyu’s book *Pavane for a Dead Princess*.”

“There was a time when writing by people whose thoughts were completely different from mine felt refreshing. But as time goes by, writing by people who think much like me—and writing that awakens in me the small feelings and reflections of everyday life that I might otherwise pass by when I'm busy—resonates with me more and more. In that sense, Kang Se-hyung's *I'm Still a Long Way from Becoming an Adult* is not just her story. It is the diary of “us,” which we failed to write down because we kept putting it off and giving in to laziness, making one excuse after another.”

“This is a book I came across when I was inexperienced and had many worries about my career, relationships, and everything else as a young person just starting out in society. It was full of stories I desperately needed at the time, and I loved it so much that I underlined almost every page as I read. Meeting this book in my twenties was truly a great stroke of luck. I sincerely recommend it to everyone who wants to live a little better. Now that I’m in my thirties, I plan to open this book again and try to feel once more the excitement I felt then.”

“There’s a book I finished in two days. It’s called The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth. It’s really good.”

“I think I read it when I was about six, starting around 11 a.m.”

““I’m proud of my mentor.””

“If your memories were slowly fading, who would you least want to forget?”

“It's another manga I like. I bought all the collected volumes. It really feels like actual people are in it.”

“I read books whenever I have a moment to gain indirect experiences.”

“In particular, an encyclopedia of food called *Jeongjoji* (鼎俎志) was a great help.”

“That book is also really good.”

“The Recovering Mind is a book revised and supplemented from columns originally serialized in a newspaper.”

““Even with my busy schedule, I try to make time to read. I love those moments when I can focus and organize my thoughts as I read.””

“Shall I recommend Pride and Prejudice?”

“I was really burdened by it. When I heard they were making a musical about Big Bang’s story, like *Shout to the World!*, I was scared at first. And since this was only my second musical, I also wondered whether it was too soon to perform our songs. There were a lot of things I felt cautious about.”

“It’s okay not to read it all at once. Keep it on your bookshelf and take it out whenever you need it or feel curious.”

““I also read a book called ‘Moss Forest.’””

“예전에 봤던 책인데 가슴에 계속 남는 책이어서 한 번 더 가져와 봤습니다.”

“I heard this book was a bestseller, so I bought it.”

“I found some time to relax on this trip.”

“I bought those three books by myself.”

“This is a book I'm reading. It's about how the story keeps going back through the generations—my mother's mother, my mother's mother's mother, and so on. So it's really interesting and has a great atmosphere. It's a healing book to read.”

“Writer! I read Human Acts in the military. Congratulations.”

“It was a book my older brother had received as a gift and that was at home. When I read it, it was so good. It’s a book I take out and read whenever I’m having a hard time.”

“Writer Yoo Hee-seon, your warm heart comes through. I’m cheering you on. #I’llReadItWell #Don’tCarelesslyTalkAboutMe book”

“I read a novel called Horrorstör.”

“Alain de Botton’s *Status Anxiety* and Lee Seok-won’s *The Ordinary Existence*. They left a deep impression on me when I read them, and have stayed in my memory for a long time.”

“I really like reading mystery novels, and there’s a book called *The Awakening of Magic* that I started but didn’t finish a while ago. It’s a quiet book, but the ending isn’t quiet; I think I might read it again.”

“I’m not really into scary movies, but I find it so much fun to feel tense while reading a book. I like thrillers and mystery novels.”

“I did buy it when I was just thinking, among the people around me, “Why is everyone so weird?””

“The book I read recently is Kim Young-ha’s <Two People>. I love Kim Young-ha’s short stories, which let me experience rich emotions even amid the hectic pace of everyday life.”

““A book Choi Ja recommended to me; it was written based on research on aging.””

“Seongju speaks English so naturally. It’s not as if he learned it; it’s more like he’s always been good at it. And the fact that he kindly shares all his secrets like this—there’s no reason not to try following his example!”

“It really deserves it. It’s entertaining, and I imagine a lot as I read.”

“In the early hours of Friday, I finished reading A Little Life.”

“Perhaps it means that you shouldn’t worry so much about other people’s opinions and should live at ease. I think they want me to know that even if I live according to my own opinions, the world won’t change all that much.”

“Yes. I think I came to appreciate novels like that through The Unbearable Lightness of Being.”

“I like the scene where the protagonist is standing in first place among the other aliens.”

“I really enjoyed reading the book. It helped me see the world a little more deeply and broadly.”

“I've been reading Norwegian Wood lately. I've almost finished it.”

“As I got further into the latter half, I found myself thinking how astonishing it was. This is the first book that has made me feel that way. I was amazed by how it planted clues and then brought them back later.”

“While reading that book called Tools of Titans”

“There are times when I feel that way too, but it made me think I should pull myself together again and work hard at living.”

“It broadened my perspective and comforted me.”

“There are times when we can’t open up to anyone about anything, shut ourselves away, and feel empty. When our hearts are lonely like that, I think the most important—and truly necessary—thing is for someone to reach out first. The author describes that hand as “connection.” Just as I hope my music can reach someone like a hand reaching out, I hope this book will be like that hand, too. Hoping that love and peace will spread through the world instead of isolation, I recommend this book.”

“I’ll definitely finish reading Eragon!!”

“Make notes.”

“Watching that, I resolved to make an album the way I wanted.”

“Ah, yes, yes, and then the one with three holes cut in a box, with something inside it, and things like that.”

“I hope that those who long to take some time for themselves and find themselves will be sure to read this book.”

“Maybe because I read it when I was young, something about it has stuck in my memory.”

“The first Korean poetry collection I read when I was first learning Korean was *You Sometimes Think of Me, While I Sometimes Think of Something Else*.”

“A little arboretum breathing in the palm of my hand”

“Today's book”

“I recalled my solo trip, which moved between excitement and apprehension, anxiety and comfort.”

““The first book that made me cry while reading was Do Re Mi Fa Sol La Si Do.””

“This dog-food book is, of course, also a book I wrote to repay dogs for the happiness I’ve received as a dog owner. I think it’s especially a book for people who have lots of dogs, but actually, I wrote it in a fairly conventional format.”

“Financial security creates creative freedom.”

““The love and psychology between men and women in many different situations are captured like a movie.””

“It contains ways for creators to express how they communicate with the public and inspire empathy, as well as methods for finding inspiration.”

“After reading this book, I thought I wanted everyone to find their own happiness and live at their own pace. We can run, but we can also walk or crawl. Everyone has a different way of living, so this book made me realize that we should respect and be considerate of one another. It's a science fiction novel, but its warm, sensitive expressions touch your heart, so anyone should be able to read it without difficulty.”

“One thing that really stuck with me from it was the line, “It was possible because I didn’t know it might be impossible.” I tend to think positively, so I always read it believing that anything was possible.”

“I started reading so that I could live as an ordinary person. I’m reading to find out what I want to become and what I need to do from now on.”

“Lyrics are different from poetry, so it’s difficult to use words that are too unfamiliar, and one shouldn’t use expressions that are excessively obscure either. Since they need to come easily to the ear when heard, everyday words that anyone might use are the main ingredient. Lyrics that flamboyantly reveal the lyricist’s individuality and philosophy are, rather, awkward and quickly grow tiresome, making it a rather peculiar genre. Even so, some lyrics have a power that’s hard to explain: one day, you happen to hear them and burst into tears, or they only truly find their way into your heart after many years. Where does that power come from? Reading this book, I finally realize the power of ordinary words. This perspective, which pinpoints the “time lag” in discordant relationships, the aggression contained in the phrase “I don’t understand,” the subtle syllables of “radiant,” and the similar direction and differences of “anger” and “courage,” is intellectual yet kind. I think I now understand a little why the lyrics Kim Eana creates so precisely soothe the hearts of so many people. The way we use and handle words is ultimately connected to the way we live, too, and as I close the book, I find that I have come to genuinely like this sensitive and honest person.”

“Tongue Fu! is a book I've read several times.”

“I recommend it to you all too❤”

“The way it unfolds is so unique and captivating that I read the whole thing in one sitting. I had been caught up in a hectic routine amid my busy schedule, but throughout the book, its gripping storytelling gave me a very new feeling.”

““I was drawn to the line on the first page of this book, ‘You’re crazy because of the person you love,’ so I bought it right away and read it.””

“This song was inspired by Anne of Green Gables, a classic masterpiece and the core of our Craze Angel universe.”

“You have to put down deep roots so you can stand more firmly as you rise.”

“As I was writing this book...”

“A considerate gene.”

““When I ask you an awkward question, you know? (Announcer Kim Ju-woo) smiles and politely turns me down.””

“The Little Prince is such a famous work, you know. I first encountered it as an animated film, and later read it as a book. I want to express the feelings I experienced through contemporary dance.”

“Through stories of biblical figures, it explains the reasons for suffering and ways to overcome it to Christians going through difficult times. It even makes you look forward to the joy that may come after trials.”

“After reading No Longer Human, I also sought out and read The Setting Sun.”

“I went to a bookstore, bought the book, and read it. It was written by an 89-year-old, and says not to put too much emphasis on whether someone is old or young.”

“Wouldn’t it be good to do something like “So What”? With something like this, it doesn’t have to be about this subject; it could be about something else too.”

“Ah, is that it?”

““I recommend ‘Laugh Like Haha’s Mom.’””

“I also read poet Kim Seung-il’s *Prometheus*. Poet Kim Seung-il’s poems were very difficult, but I was shocked in many ways.”

“Paulo Coelho once said, “Travel alone or with your wife.” To me, it sounded like, “Travel alone.””

“Whenever that happens, I reread it, and perhaps because my own experiences are added to it, I feel that what moves me changes with age.”

“Everyone, love one another~”

“Wow ㅠㅠ Make sure you read it all!!”

“It’s a book that brings so many emotions, from warmth to sadness. In particular, it made me reflect on my mother once again.”

“A friend from my hometown whom I met then gave me a book by writer Yeonjeong called *The Sun Will Rise Tomorrow, but What About Tonight?* Rather than explaining how to overcome hardship, it simply presents difficult and happy moments as short episodes. It also has lots of beautiful words and comforting phrases. I was happy because, as I read it on the rooftop, I realized for the first time that I was enjoying that moment.”

“I actually don't like science fiction that much. I hardly ever watch sci-fi movies, either. Did I get this book recommended to me on social media? Not directly, but I saw someone recommending it, got interested, and decided to read it.”

“This book—[there's so much to say about this one]—as you can see, is incredibly long and hefty... [in a nutshell,] not an easy book to take on. But! [Here comes the sales queen] The appeal of a long novel is that... once you get past the beginning, where you memorize the characters' names and get some explanation of the situation, [the twists never end &] there really are endless twists and [one shocking scene after another] so many scenes that leave you stunned.”

“Honestly, I find these doorstopper books challenging, too. I tend to read them over the course of several months. Me, too? But this book is really difficult in terms of its ideas. It makes you think a lot, but the sentences themselves aren't difficult! [Thoughts that keep spiraling / Easy to read, but full of ideas you can't simply brush aside] It's a book that's easy to read, but makes you go back and think about it afterward.”

“When I try to sell people on this book, I tell them that even in a world this advanced, after so much change, the feeling of love is still so precious and powerful. [If you don't understand how wonderful love is, I feel sorry for you] There are so many things the characters do because they love each other. Rowan thinks he could die in Citra's place because he loves her, and Citra risks danger and takes action because she loves Rowan. Watching things like that made me feel that, in every generation, [an emotion that transcends time: love] emotions have such a powerful effect on people. That's what lies at the heart of who we are.”

“That's right. I felt the same way while reading it, too—the translator, Lee Soo-hyun, seems to have done a great job. [A style that draws you in without difficult sentences] There aren't any difficult sentences, so every line really catches your eye, and each and every one is a gem. I really want more people to know about the red-covered book Scythe. [I want to finish it and talk about it with everyone] While reading Scythe, [a book that makes you reflect on respect for life and ethics], I found myself thinking a lot about how we regard life and about ethics.”

“When I was in my teens, I was deeply impressed by Bernard Werber’s book *Papillon*, and its story remained in my heart even into my twenties.”

“That's why it has become a truly unforgettable novel of my life, even to this day.”

“The first flapping of wings toward freedom”

“The last book I read was in middle school—Life at Nine?”

“The 8 Rules of Love, by Jay Shetty.”

“The Little Prince!”

““Don’t be attached. If you don’t cling to anything in the world, there’s nothing to be a problem; but the moment you become attached, that mindset gives rise to suffering and makes things hard.” Seeing those words gave me a lot of strength.”

“Then, when the members made their remarks, I was really moved. “Ah… this is crazy, like a movie. Right, this is what I had been missing.””

“This book is so good ❤️❤️”

“I thought about what would be interesting and worth watching all the way through. It’s about a girl who’s a born idol but is actually hiding a huge secret, and makes it into the underground scene…”

““The part I like best is when the man, who had kept his heart closed off, opens up to the woman and says, ‘Stay with me tonight, Clara.’ Even in the film based on the novel, that scene is the best.””

““My time is musical notes; I’m making notes day by day. I find myself thinking, ‘I hope that on the day the piece is complete, I’ll be able to sing it with a smile.’” Is that the kind of meaning that comes to mind?”

“I think I found a lot of comfort.”

“It was a book called The Art of Success through Self-Control.”

“It’s called ‘Übermensch’—advice you need for living? That’s the sort of thing it is. I haven’t finished reading it yet either. It has content similar to the ‘values’ I mentioned earlier. I haven’t even read quite half, but it was such a good book that I’d like to recommend it! And it’s not thick. You know how the book Cosmos is, like, this big, hahaha. I think it’s good to carry around and read. I think it was in the car...”

“I like Kafka’s The Metamorphosis.”

“In particular, the poetry collection *Love as if You Have Never Been Hurt* left a deep impression on me.”

“I immediately bought and read the translated original novel.”

“Of course, you need to have practiced enough, and you also need to be fully prepared in terms of how you look onstage. But what matters most is believing in yourself and enjoying the stage.”

“I immediately bought this author’s Brunch Award-winning book, “An Uncloying Essay Collection.””

“Father, I thank you for letting me know, even if only vaguely, the joy of a life focused on you.”

“In books, you can see all the thoughts the protagonist has before taking action, and that’s so interesting.”

“I looked it up, and apparently one of them is water residue.”

“What I would recommend to you is The Catcher in the Rye.”

““At the time, the bestseller was The Courage to Be Disliked. I came out with a lot of courage to be disliked.””

““Rebonds” is a particularly special project to me. I’m very proud and excited to be part of this project supporting UNICEF. This initiative shows how important it is to protect and support those in need, especially children. Every child deserves equal opportunities in life, and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that the most vulnerable receive essential support.”

“It is a quick-results diet book for getting bikini-ready for summer.”

“If there were no music in our lives, it seems the whole world would look black and white. Even after 23 years as a musician, classical music had always felt unfamiliar to me, but I was able to feel close to it through this book. The lively chronicles of the great classical music masters of the world, so vivid they felt like watching a drama, were truly captivating. If you’re looking for the easiest and most enjoyable book about classical music, I recommend this one without hesitation. Discover the birth of world-famous masterpieces in an enjoyable, accessible way.”

“This book carefully explains how both cats and their guardians can be happy, accompanied by cute and fun illustrations. When you run into a problem that affection alone cannot solve, I’m sure you’ll be able to find an answer in this book, just as you might ask Teacher Nyaongshin for advice.”

“I’d read a book called *The Secret* before, too, and it was similar to the law of attraction described in it...”

““There are a few rules I dislike. (…) First, rhymes are usually grouped in sets of an even number, and one criterion is that the two words shouldn’t both be nouns. I also tend to dislike rhymes like ‘did something, would do something, did something? would do something?’ On the other hand, the rhymes I consider best follow all these criteria, while still making the content clear in your mind just from reading the rhymes. For example, there might be 16 bars of lyrics, but even reading only the rhymes should bring the content to mind. (…) (In the hook of ‘Jakdu,’) ‘Jakdu’ and ‘ssakduk’ rhyme, but one is a noun and the other is an onomatopoeic word. The rhyme works, their parts of speech are different, and the meaning makes sense. That’s what I think makes a good rhyme. _p.354””

“The scenes where Tsuchida, a bookstore clerk, delivers monologues about impressions he has formed while watching customers, family members, and others are striking.”

“"The Little Prince feels different every time I read it—now, five years from now, or ten years from now."”

“In a few passages, it does feel like things are simply being forced to fit, but overall it seems plausible, so I was able to enjoy reading it. It was so enjoyable that I savored it.”

“The sentences in between, connecting one story to another, are also so, so beautiful, so I’m really enjoying reading it.”

““Thrillers are the best airplane reads and this one is an all-time fave when I need a little escape from reality. I am personally addicted to stories about people who will go wild lengths to get what they want.””

“This is a silent human drama. It’s such a joy to see a friend you care about succeed. It brings back all those ambitions we had back then: we especially loved the weird and wanted to be even weirder, in some way. Thanks to this book, I feel as though a passion that will never rot, like Kim’s fruit, and the spirited Moonchi I was back then have come back to me. Thank you so much! And there’s nothing about me in it, huh?”

“Until now, making music was the only way I knew how to talk about myself. I’m not someone who likes to go on at length to people about myself, so I had only put my voice into music. Now that I’ve had the opportunity to talk about myself through a book, in writing and photographs, I decided that since I was doing it, I might as well be honest.”

““Since the book came out, I’ve been getting a lot of requests to write, so these days I’ve been focusing on writing. Writing song lyrics feels fresh and enjoyable. The appeal of creative writing is that you can take your time with it.””

“I was surprised by the content, which seemed to look into the joys and sorrows I experienced while promoting as a member of H.O.T.”

“Because I never even imagined that I would publish a book, I feel more fulfilled than I did when releasing an album.”

“These days, I’ve been copying passages by hand from a book called *The Buddha’s Words, Reinterpreted*. Regardless of religion, I chose this book because I personally found a lot to learn from the sentences in it.”

““I read it when I was young, too, but it seems to mean something different each time I read it. As I get older, and at each stage of my life, my interpretation changes. There are lots of plays on words in the book, and it’s a world of make-believe, isn’t it? They stimulate my imagination, and it’s fun to picture a Wonderland in my mind. And above all, I think the book’s strength is that it doesn’t force a lesson on you.””

“Poet Park Jun’s distinctive witty style was moving and touching.”

“선물하고 싶은 책은이 책을 좀 추천을 해 주고 싶습니다”

“Finding this book was a great stroke of luck. It helped me understand fans a little better and made me want to become a better version of myself. I too want to hold on to the precious feeling of admiring someone.”

“I ended up making an effort to get away from the media world a bit.”

““Don’t compare yourself to anyone else; compare yourself only to who you were yesterday. When someone else is speaking, think of them as someone who may tell you something you need to know. Speak clearly and precisely. Keep company only with people who expect the best of you. Choose the meaningful path, not the easy one. Through these and all twelve rules, I hope you can end a meaningless life and wisely ‘navigate’ the sea of life.””

“There’s a book by author Kim Eana called *Ordinary Words*.”

“Actually, I haven't even read the book The Sorrows of Young Werther yet, so I think I'll start with joy!”

“After reading this book, I learned that it was a blessing just to have witnessed something invisible.”

“This is a book I really recommend to people wondering how they can do their work well.”

“I came across the author’s book Why Are We Like This? at a bookstore. Through that book, I discovered the author, learned about love, and received a lot of comfort.”

“I’d like to recommend it.”

“I wrote the book thinking that I hoped it might give someone strength.”

“I didn’t study music theory separately, and there’s a book called Popular Music Theory. It’s a thick book that teaches you things like the basics of arranging and how chord progressions work. That’s how I learned.”

““I enjoyed reading the novel Coffee Prince, 1st Shop.””

“Rather, I think it’s a book that makes me look back on myself, so it has a lot of meaning.”

““Reading is the foundation of music creation.””

“I’ve been very interested in composing lately, and the book contains a lot of things that people like me, who want to compose popular music, would want to know for themselves. People tend to think composing is difficult, but it explains very clearly and simply what composing is and how to do it. One of our songs is included in the book, too, so I thought, “That’s how this song was made,” and it brought back a lot of memories of recording and singing it at the time. It also helped me with composing.”

“I went to Canada to study abroad when I was 12. I compiled the diary I wrote at the time and published it as a book.”

““They say that there are five languages of love: ‘words of affirmation,’ ‘quality time,’ ‘gifts,’ ‘acts of service,’ and ‘physical touch.’””