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BTS: Rise of Bangtan

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A must-have for diehard ARMY members and new fans alike, this fan guide celebrates everything you love about BTS with an in-depth look at their journey (and ARMY’s role in it)—featuring tons of color photos!

This unofficial biography tells the story of BTS and their global ARMY, which helped propel them to the top of the charts all over the world. Extensively researched, Rise of Bangtan explores the lives of RM, J-Hope, Suga, Jimin, V, Jin, and Jungkook, the story behind how they all got together, and their amazing rise to fame—from their start in East Asia to their dominance across the globe. 

If you love BTS and everything K-Pop, this celebration of your favorite band is what you’ve been waiting for.

96 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 30, 2018

165 people are currently reading
2083 people want to read

About the author

Cara J. Stevens

74 books62 followers
I have wanted to be a writer since I was four years old and fell in love with reading. I wrote stories and songs and poems. I wrote plays and scribbled thoughts and ideas in notebooks. I wrote when I was supposed to be doing sports, and sometimes I wrote under the covers by flashlight when I was supposed to be asleep in bed.

I got my first big break writing stories for Sesame Street video games. Then I helped design and create video games based on books, like Bruce Coville's My Teacher is an Alien and Roxie Munro's Inside Outside World. I got my big break when Byron Preiss commissioned me to write my first novel, Dragon School. I felt like the luckiest person in the world because I got to live my dream!

That was 20 years ago! Since then, I've written many more books. I write about Paw Patrol, SpongeBob Squarepants, Mickey Mouse and Bubble Guppies for little kids. I write about Fortnite, Minecraft and Terraria video games for bigger kids. I also get to write about cool trends like Fidget Spinners, the K-Pop band BTS, how to record your family history, and a guide to playing Pokemon Go!

None of what I do would be possible without encouragement from my family and friends, the love and support of my amazing husband, guidance from all the fantastic editors, publishers and illustrators I work with, and of course letters and notes from readers like you!

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5 stars
614 (57%)
4 stars
144 (13%)
3 stars
155 (14%)
2 stars
83 (7%)
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81 (7%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews
Profile Image for Katin.
221 reviews14 followers
September 24, 2018
No, there isn't some fun quote that I can blockquote up here.

description

So this is what you get when you want to hop on the fame that is BTS when you legit know jack squat about them, and you copy and paste all the information from Wikipedia and introduction sites. This was baaad. Obviously, this isn't BTS as it is unofficial and unauthorized. And you can DEFINITELY tell that this is unofficial and unauthorized. Everything about this was so fucking damn cringey. Even though I'm not an ARMY (sorry, I've been trying for months when my sister and best friend are ARMYs but no luck), this is literally EMBARRASSING for any K-Pop fan. How dare the author slander BTS' name honestly.

Cara J. Stevens wrote books on Pokemon Go, fidget spinners, etc. Please tell me why she thought that writing about a boy group would be okay? SHE WROTE THAT JIMIN HAD CHOCOLATE ABS? Pls, no, why. She wrote each members' profile like they were Pokemon. All these "facts" or "characteristics" were so bland. It was just a really bad and uninformed book. I understand the attempt trying to make a profit through hardcore fans to write this, but it was a bad choice. It made me never want any of my ults to have this. I don't even want this for BTS. If I weren't a K-Pop fan and read this, I would NOT want to listen to this genre of music whatsoever.
Profile Image for Matteo Fumagalli.
Author 1 book10.7k followers
January 22, 2019
L'ho dovuto leggere per lavoro (giuro).
Pessimo libro musicale (a prescindere della band che racconta), raffazzonato, messo in piedi in dieci minuti, con contenuti casuali degni del peggior numero di Cioè e informazioni inesatte.
Bassissimo moneygrabber.
Profile Image for Jessica Subject.
Author 67 books403 followers
August 23, 2018
I have mixed feelings about this book. There was some good information, and things I didn't know. But, that was only about two pages worth. The rest was information I either already knew, or incorrect.

I found the member profiles to be what bothered me the most. Two of them in particular seemed very negative toward the members rather than something written for fans. I mean, how does a person write or produce 300+ songs a year if they're sleeping all the time.

I found some of the information to be lacking. The book mentions how well Love Yourself: Tear charted on the Billboard charts, but fails to mention the two music videos from that album on the M/V page.

I also found it to be somewhat biased toward certain fandom websites, while failing to mention plenty of others.

For me, this was a book for new fans, especially young fans. This is not a book for die hard fans as is described on the back cover.
Profile Image for Samanta.
83 reviews5 followers
May 21, 2021
Update: My video in english



Yes yes yes, i did read this as i got it as gift...

This book is definetly just a money grab, there is nothing that really is filled with awesome info. ARMY (BTS fandom) could write atleast 1000 times better.

Please stop writing about things you are not passionate about.

For those who aint familiar with BTS, i better suggest just watching youtube video and it will be faster with correct information. And it costs nothing.

I still can't get over the mistakes and how it was written.

Will be making a youtube video and poking everything that made me put it down or laugh alot from how bad it is.
1 review1 follower
March 14, 2019
BTS is an awesome K- Pop group! Their backstorys and struggles have made them stronger and have shows us what they are today. They are famous all over the world, because of them more people have been showing their true selves. BTS is made up of 7 members, RM,Jin,Suga,J-Hope,Jimin,V, and Jungkook. RM as the leader and Jin as the oldest is followed by age of the members. Jungkook is the groups “Golden Maknae”, and is the youngest. An awesome book that teaches us about HOW BTS has rises to fame and fortune.
Profile Image for Teenu Vijayan.
276 reviews16 followers
July 5, 2021
Have read twitter threads that is better written and informative than this 😒
Profile Image for Martyna Mituzaitė.
197 reviews8 followers
June 23, 2020
Hmm... I gave three star rating, because pictures were cute, but like... Sweetie, putting Jungkook's picture in Namjoon's page? No, thank you. The information was very random, so I really wouldn't give it to a new army, who is just getting to know the boys... Maybe to someone, who already knows them, but like again, why? There is no new information that I didn't know... Also, calling Yoongi lazy is so 2015, stuwaaap. And do you really have to mention Jimin's chocolate abs every chance you get? I... I really wouldn't recommend buying it... It's useless. Btw, the lists are so weird, especially the discography one. On my album copy it says 'You Never Walk Alone', not 'You'll Never Walk Alone', also, 'WINGS 'W"? Like... yeah, WINGS had four versions - W, I, N and G, but the album itself is called WINGS, just WINGS with no extra letters. Again, I don't know why the author decided to do this (money, ofc), but I guess I appreciate the effort? Still, don't recommend.
Profile Image for Amairo.
265 reviews48 followers
March 9, 2019
Интересно издание, което обаче ще свърши някаква работа само за начинаещи в к-поп света. Големите фенове на групата едва ли ще са много очаровани. Да, книгата е доста пълна със суперлативи и не представя нещо кой знае какво като информация. Аз като част от друг фендъм използвах книгата, за да се запозная една идея повече с историята на групата. Давам и 3 звезди, само заради българското издание, където си личи, че са се постарали то да изглежда добре.
Profile Image for Wybredna Maruda.
516 reviews860 followers
Read
November 29, 2018
Moje wrażenia z lektury: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PQoDc...


No ja się nie znam. To było moje pierwsze spotkanie z BTS, bo chciałam sprawdzić, na czym to wszystko polega. W końcu, skoro gadam o kulturze, należałoby ją poznać z każdej strony. K-popem zafascynowana nie jestem, nie wiem, na ile błędy z oryginału zostały poprawione. I na ile fani są w stanie żyć bez wiedzy o tym, co lubią jeść wszyscy członkowie zespołu. I jaki jest ich ideał dziewczyny. Pewnie byłabym zachwycona, gdyby te ciekawostki dotyczyły zespołu, który kocham. No ale tak, to po prostu miałam okazję go poznać.
1 review
January 11, 2019
This book is written for people who have first encountered BTS and K-pop in the past one or two years. It mixes up a lot of outdated and outright wrong information (e.g. often mixing up names and faces) and thus gives a very confusing summary in general. The book also includes 'analysis' of the music videos and short films which are shallow, often highlighting and inferring misleading information as if it were fact. The book is best approached as a very ill-informed gossip magazine and should not be used in reference to BTS.
Profile Image for LeAnn Okinaka.
7 reviews18 followers
December 29, 2019
I LOVE BTS! They are ethereal and just looking at them or hearing their voices make me happier. All of their songs infires me, and I can’t wait for new ones to come out! I am not an official Army, but I am still a huge fan. They have truly made me love them and love myself. This book itself has some outdated and limited facts and is definitely unofficial but it is still ok. My bias is Suga! Please comment on who yours is and your favorite songs by our bangtan boys! Strong power, thank you.
Profile Image for Patrycja.
122 reviews8 followers
April 23, 2019
Kiepściutko, bardzo kiepściutko 😔 Skąd takie wysokie oceny tej książki to nie wiem 😛
Profile Image for Riello.
301 reviews37 followers
November 4, 2018
Czysto fanowska pozycja dla osób, które lubią ciekawostki i dopiero poznają zespół BTS.

Ja, jako osoba związana z chłopakami od początku powstania zespołu wiem bardzo dużo i to było dla mnie tylko bardzo miłe przypomnienie, jednakże sądzę, że ta pozycja jest idealna na przykład na prezent dla osoby, która jest fanem od niedawna.

Wydanie jest bardzo ładne i cieszy oko, zdjęcia zawarte w tej książce wywołują uśmiech na twarzy. Twarda oprawa i "śliski papier" robią robotę. W środku możemy znaleźć również pewien test :)

Serdecznie polecam wszystkim fanom.
Profile Image for María  .
316 reviews12 followers
Read
November 14, 2020
Que yo siendo baby ARMY sepa más cosas antes de leer este libro que después...xd. Menos mal que no me he gastado el dinero.
Profile Image for simik3496.
39 reviews3 followers
January 16, 2022
An amazing guide for an army-beginner. A lot of intetesting information.
Profile Image for Brynn Lal.
8 reviews
May 5, 2020
I am a crazy army love this book!
Profile Image for Connor Stack.
250 reviews10 followers
May 10, 2022
Sure, I'll add it to my list of read books, why not. Got a bit a little intro to the history and cast of BTS. I can tell them apart a little better now.
Profile Image for Alexandra Freire.
462 reviews22 followers
August 16, 2019
Un libro bastante curioso e interesante. Tenía algunos datos poco conocidos o comentados, pero a la vez, a pesar de que sé que en ediciones pasadas han habido bastantes errores ya corregidos, aun tiene bastantes fallas. Algunas a continuación:
- BTS, lo han aclarado en múltiples ocasiones, NO significa Behind the scene, no es sinónimo ni nada por el estilo...
-Definen a integrantes con características fuera de orden: ¿Suga el papá del grupo?, ¿Jimin tableta de chocolate? lo mencionaron más veces de las que puedo recordar...
-Al inicio en la formación del grupo, mencionan que un par de integrantes salieron en tal fecha, pero ni siquiera los mencionan cuando entraron, por lo que lo hace confuso
-Al describir a los integrantes, mencionan que V solo es vocalista, pero eso era un principio, ahora también forma parte de la "línea de baile", e inclusive es considerado otro "visual"
-Lo peor creo que es el quiz, demasiados estereotipos, respuestas poco reales o información que parecía no fidedigna...
-Otra vez de nuevo con Tae, aka V, él ingresó en una academia de baile en su juventud, osea, sí tenía experiencia en el baile, no como decían en el libro
-En una parte mencionan que Jimin es el más bajo de todos, pero en otro lado ponen que Suga mide 1.72m y Jimin 1.73... ¿entonces en qué quedamos?

Y bueno la calidad del papel, no era muy buena, parecía papel periódico, y no me hubiese molestado tanto, sino hubiese sido porque afectaba la calidad de las imágenes... Al final no está nada mal para ser una biografía no oficial.
Profile Image for Bookandkook.
111 reviews14 followers
March 17, 2020
Merhaba, çok keyifle okuduğum bir kitaptan bahsetmeye geldim. Cara J.Stevens'ın Rise of Bangtan kitabı Beyaz Balina Yayınları tarafından Kurşun Geçirmez İzcilerin Yükselişi adıyla dilimize çevrildi.
Kitap, Güney Koreli müzik grubu BTS'in 2013'teki çıkışından bu yana imza attığı başarıları anlatıyor.
İçeriğinde neler yok ki? Nasıl bir araya geldikleri, çıkardıkları albümler, TV showları, aldıkları ödüller, üyeler ve hayran kulübü ARMY hakkında genel bilgiler, grup hakkında merak edilen pek çok şey...
Debut dönemini okurken bir miktar duygulanmış olabilirim :')
BTS'in müziğini seven, onları tanımak isteyenler için güzel bir kaynak kitap olmuş.
İçeriğin yanında kitabı baskı yönünden de çok beğendim. Kaliteli görselleri, kuşe kağıda basılması ve tabiki poster hediyesi şahane❤ Beyaz Balina Yayınları harika bir iş çıkarmış. Bence her Armynin elinin altında bulunması lazım :)
Profile Image for Amanda Harris.
7 reviews
April 19, 2024
I was very disappointed in this book for many reasons. First there were many errors overall: in spelling and facts about BTS. I was amazed in the quiz section to find that the author said that Jin is the leader of BTS?! It feels like she didn’t do her proper research. To me it didn’t seem like this book was edited and that the first draft went to print. Things also felt all over the place and disorganized.

I also agree with what other people shared in their reviews that the author paints Suga in a negative light. Anytime he’s mentioned the book calls him “lazy,” saying he sleeps all the time. That really annoyed me how he was knocked down in this book.

Before I started this book I was almost finished reading “Beyond the Story,” (about 100 pages left,) so I am super excited to go back to reading that.
Profile Image for Angeli .
38 reviews
July 3, 2019
I might go as far as 3.5 stars for this. The book has a lot of good elements in terms of serving as a primer for BTS; the types of informative content are especially commendable. However, it is inaccurate (and even confused) in some places, the most notable being a picture of JK placed in RM's profile. In this sense, it's probably not enough as a standalone reference for "basic info" on BTS. Additionally, the photos are mostly unremarkable (apart from the fact that they are photos of BTS). Still, I'd say this is a pretty good start for what a BTS fanbook could be. Hope a revised edition could be made to step up from its current potential!
Profile Image for Shaya.
478 reviews29 followers
November 2, 2018
es un libro que no esta mla que te da bastante información de la banda desde sus inicios, ya que ese es su cometido pero solo lo veo como algo más que tener para las fans porque si eres fan fan del grupo no creo que el libro te desvele nada nuevo pero han así a estado entretenido
Profile Image for Lady Books Dreamer.
Author 16 books19 followers
May 13, 2022
Un libro muy completo y perfecto para todo ARMY que le guste el grupo. Mucha información relevante e interesante de cada uno de los miembros, el grupo en general, los eventos, los conciertos, etc. Una lectura rápida y muy entretenida.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 116 reviews

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