K-Book Trends -

Search word : "Book club", Search result : 50

[TREND / ONE-LINER QUOTES]

One-Liner Quotes Records of Literature and Life Book club specialist’s pick 2025.10.02 Kim Min-Young is a freelance writer whose profession revolves around “book-reading clubs.” After working as a TV writer and publishing journalist, she became a freelance writer at the learning community “Soongrye Munhakdang (숭례문학당).” She studied at Korea University’s College of Media & Communication. Her books include I Go to the Book Club Again Today (Book by Book) and Overcome the Fear of Writing the First Sentence (Chungrim). She has also co-authored Is It Only Me That Finds Writing a Review Difficult? (xbooks), The Power of Reading By Asking Questions (Book by Book), and There Are Picture Books That Give Strength (Seomdre Publishing). The book, Happy Reading, is a kind of book journal worth opening if you want to revisit the “memory” of Korean literature. It is an interesting record that s...

VOL.87 / 2025.10

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Models for Supporting Connections between Local Bookstores and Libraries

Knowledge Models for Supporting Connectionsbetween Local Bookstores and Libraries 2025.10.02 The publishing market is said to be facing increasing difficulties day by day. The most fundamental problem is the decline in the reading rate - in other words, the shrinking number of readers. However, rather than lamenting the decrease in readers, now is the time to make efforts to sustain and expand the readership. Then, what are the things that move most closely with readers for the promotion of reading? Libraries and local bookstores. According to the Value-Added Tax Act Article 8 of the Publishing Industry Promotion Act, a local bookstore refers to a bookstore that registers as a retail business for books and is operated by a small or medium-sized enterprise in accordance with Article 2 of the Framework Act on Small and Medium Enterprises. In this article, however, the term “local bookstore” encompasses independent bookstores, curated bookstores, and concept...

VOL.87 / 2025.10

[TREND / TOPIC]

The Reality and Prospects of K-Mystery Literature

Topic The Reality and Prospects of K-Mystery Literature 2025.08.04 The global popularity of Korean content has spread beyond popular music (K-POP), dramas, and movies to include literature. However, Korean mystery literature is a relatively minor and lesser-known area. Yet, with the increasing attention and translations of Korean crime and mystery novels abroad, there have been comments that Korean mystery literature could be the “next Scandi Noir.” 1) In fact, Korean mysteries have been gaining prominence on the international stage, with Yun Ko-Eun’s The Disaster Tourist (Minumsa Publishing) winning the Dagger Award for Translation by the Crime Writers’ Association (CWA) in the UK in 2021. This article aims to shed light on the current state and potential of Korean mystery literature in a global context. I will look at the characteristics of works that incorporate Korean sentiment and social background, as well as notable authors. ...

VOL.85 / 2025.08

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

The Korean Children’s Book Association Marks its 45th Anniversary

Knowledge The Korean Children’s Book Association Marks its 45th Anniversary Reading, sharing, and promoting books 2025.08.04 The Korean Children’s Book Association (KCBA) is an organization founded in 1980 that promotes a culture of reading among children in Korea. It marks its 45th anniversary this year. The 1970s, the period before the KCBA’s founding, was a time when human rights were severely violated in Korea, with freedom of speech and publishing being taken away amidst the oppression and repression of the dictatorship. Against this backdrop, teachers formed reading circles focused on children’s books to discover and introduce to children literature that captures Korean sentiments and culture. Then, in 1980, the KCBA was formed to carry out the campaign for children’s reading culture in earnest.The KCBA’s activities spread from teacher- to parent-oriented in the 1990s, and local clubs named “Adults Reading Children’s Books (동화읽는어른모임)...

VOL.85 / 2025.08

[TREND / TOPIC]

The Art of Selling Books: Innovative Strategies by Korean Booksellers

Topic The Art of Selling Books:Innovative Strategies by Korean Booksellers 2024.11.04 You will be able to find the figures for “reading preferences” in the results of the National Reading Survey conducted by the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism in Korea last year. It gives a hint to the “actual” reading population based on the ratio of people liking books. The overall reading rate covering paper books, e-books, and audio books was 95.8% for elementary, middle, and high school students and 43.0% for adults; the actual reading preferences turned out to be 39.6% for students and 18.3% for adults. The actual reading rate, which means readings done autonomously, is cut in half from the overall reading rate as the overall figure includes cases in which people have to read books for necessary reasons, such as for work or educational purposes. Why do people read books, but have very few “enjoyable” experiences reading them? Well, consi...

VOL.76 / 2024.11

[TREND / BOOK TRIP]

In Search of a Garden Where Our Beautiful Korean Language Breathes

Book Trip [A Trip to Literary Museums ②] In Search of a Garden Where Our BeautifulKorean Language Breathes Introducing Sonagi Village at Hwang Sun-won, Literary Housein Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do, and Beyond 2024.06.03 The works of Hwang Sun-Won have a solid presence in Korean literature. The literary world he has built transcends time, genre, and ideology, naturally expressing the most Korean emotions. It was around 1952, when Korea was undergoing the Korean War, when his representative short story Rain Shower (read Sonagi in Korean) was released. However, it is difficult to recognize such a period from the portrayal of the two main characters in the novel. The only clue that connects the story to reality is the place name “Yangpyeong” that appears at the end. The thoughts that germinated in this place became the driving force for creating a literary space, and it led to new attempts to reinterpret the work in various ways.The Sonagi Village in the Hwa...

VOL.71 / 2024.06

[TREND / TOPIC]

How Book Club Platforms Captivate Readers

Topic How Book Club Platforms Captivate Readers 2024.03.11 It is the age of communities. From sneaker manufacturers to franchise cafes, companies are putting as much effort into building communities as they are into making things. Gathering loyal fans in one place to generate buzz and feedback has become a proven business strategy in an environment where we are bombarded with information and products. The publishing industry is no exception. Publishers and bookstores are opening cafes and book clubs, creating apps, and publishing newsletters. They reward book club members with exclusive editions of books and merchandise to give them a sense of belonging, or even let them choose the cover design of a new book.Beyond the business strategy of the publishing industry, the importance of book-reading communities is growing every day in the overall book culture ecosystem. There is something contagious about people’s activities. If you are surrounded ...

VOL.68 / 2024.03

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Publishers and YouTube: Current Status and the Future

Knowledge Publishers and YouTube: Current Status and the Future 2024.03.11 Publishers start their own YouTube channels When Minumsa first started YouTube in early 2019, YouTube’s influence was already at its peak, with teenagers perceiving it as synonymous with the internet, and creators being at the top of children’s future career lists. In the Korean publishing industry, the term “YouTube-seller” emerged, with books introduced on YouTube becoming bestsellers. Naturally, it became the main task of publishing marketers to find influential booktubers to advertise or endorse new books. In order to proactively respond to this environment, many large and well-funded publishers have started to launch and operate their own YouTube channels.At this point, most publishers’ YouTube channels can be characterized by th...

VOL.68 / 2024.03

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Korean Libraries’ Various Book-reading Activities and Cooperation Efforts with the Publishing Industry

Publishing Industry Korean Libraries’ Various Book-reading Activitiesand Cooperation Efforts with the Publishing Industry 2023.11.06 Libraries are public service organizations that are easily accessible to anyone in their daily lives when it comes to reading activities. The Korean Library Act also defines a library as a place that contributes to the promotion of reading culture based on library materials. After the Korean government designated 1993 as the “Year of Books,” the Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism and publishing organizations carried out vigorous campaigns to promote reading among the public. They pushed for the enactment of the “Reading Promotion Act (tentative title)” as a basis for more systematic and continuous promotion. In the process, as discussions progressed with the library community, the Li...

VOL.64 / 2023.11

[TREND / KNOWLEDGE]

Reader-friendly Publication Marketing

Publishing Industry Reader-friendly Publication Marketing 2023.05.02 Readers living in 2023 no longer get the latest news through book reviews in newspapers or advertisements. Instead, most of them purchase books through influencers on Instagram, YouTube channels, and book clubs and newsletters managed by publishing houses. As a result, more readers are meeting books through faster, friendlier, and more familiar channels.As an editor making book-review magazines in online bookstores, there’s one question that I always ask readers that buy 2 to 3 books every month - “Where do you get the news about the latest books? Are there times when you buy books recommended by other readers?” As a result, heavy readers were subscribing to newsletters of at least five publishing houses and were following dozens of authors they like on Social Media. Publishing companies, of course, have ...

VOL.58 / 2023.05

VOL.94/2026.05

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