VOL.75/2024.10

2nd Week, April 2024

Best seller Trends in the Four Biggest Online Bookstores in Korea

2024.05.07

It is the 2nd week of April, when spring is in full swing, and two non-fiction titles with uplifting, heartwarming messages made the top 10 overall bestseller list. At No. 4, Don’t Need a Path of Flowers, My Life is a Flower is a book with sunshine-like sentences that embrace the latter part of life. It offers a rich emotional experience to readers by combining writings that encapsulate life’s wisdom with masterpieces that gain more love as time passes. Another book, A Circle is a Circle, Even if It’s Dented, by musician Kim Chang-Wan, who has left a profound mark on Korean pop culture, came in at No. 7. Featuring the letters he answered to listeners on his radio show as well as the opening lines he wrote himself, the book delivers lighthearted reassurance and the voice of a “real adult” from a musician that reaches across generations.
Some books on the list are especially welcome as they have been around for a while. The latest release of Winners of the 15th Munhakdongne Young Author Award 2024 in March has been making a splash. The Young Author Award, which has been held annually for 15 years and has garnered great interest from Korean readers, aims to highlight the remarkable progress of writers with less than a decade of publishing experience. The 7 works in the collection offer readers the fresh and energizing “fun of reading Korean literature.” Meanwhile, KINO, a film magazine that last appeared in 2003 with its 99th issue, has returned with KINO Cinephile, its first book in 20 years. It contains critiques of the major works of Korean and foreign directors who have been active in the last 20 years, along with readers’ reviews and contributions from 12 directors. If you love movies and need a “movie buddy,” it is recommended that you read KINO Cinephile for serious movie talks.
Meanwhile, The Birth of a Masterpiece, The Artist of the Time, introduces the lives and paintings of 27 artists who have left a mark on art history. Just like René Magritte’s quote, “I show my thoughts visually through my paintings,” this book gently guides you through the lives of the artists and their times through their masterpieces and the stories behind them. Next up in the art and pop culture category is the script collection series of the popular drama “Our Blues,” which was released in 2022 and is available worldwide on Netflix. In addition to the complete script of the drama, which delivers a heartwarming message of “May all of us living be happy!” the series includes features such as Q&As with the writers and their intentions.

* The rank of best sellers below was organized after integrating domestic best sellers in the second week of April from the four biggest online bookstores in Korea – Kyobo Bookstore, Aladdin, Yes 24, and Interpark.

Top 10 best sellers for the 2nd week of April
1		Understatement Author│Matthias Nöllke Publisher│First Penguin Genre│Self-help
2		Same as Ever Author│Morgan Housel Publisher│Seosamdok Genre│Business
3		Conditions To Be Exceptional (できる人) Author│Takashi Saito Publisher│Feelm Genre│Self-help
4		Don’t Need a Path of Flowers, My Life is a Flower Author│Oh Pyung-Seon Publisher│Forest Books Genre│Non-fiction
5		Let’s Go to Family Restaurant 1 Author│Yama Wayama Publisher│Munhakdongne Genre│Comics
6		Winners of the 15th Munhakdongne Young Author Award 2024 Author│Kim Mella, Gong Hyun-Jin, Kim Ki-Tae, Kim Nam-Sook, Kim Ji-Yeon, Sung Hae-Na, Jeon Ji-Young Publisher│Munhakdongne Genre│Fiction
7		A Circle is a Circle, Even If It’s Dented Author│Kim Chang-Wan Publisher│Woongjin Jisik House Genre│Non-fiction
7		Reading Schopenhauer at Forty Author│Kang Yong-Soo Publisher│Uknowbooks Genre│Humanities
9		KINO Cinephile Author│KINO Cinephile editors Publisher│Plain Genre│Art & Pop culture
9		The Mysterious Candy Store 20 Author│Reiko Hiroshima Publisher│Gilbut School Genre│Children
9		All the Beauty in the World Author│Patrick Bringley Publisher│Woongjin Thinkbig Genre│Non-fiction

 

Top 5 art & pop culture books for the 2nd week of April
1		The Birth of a Masterpiece, the Artist of the Time Author│Sung Soo-Young Publisher│Hankyung Arte
2		Our Blues 1 Author│Noh Hee-Kyung Publisher│Booklog Company
2		Our Blues 2 Author│Noh Hee-Kyung Publisher│Booklog Company
4		Correspondences Author│Tim Ingold Publisher│Gamangseosa
5		Winning Strategy for Drama script Contests Author│Oh Ki-Hwan Publisher│Vookda