K-Book Trends - 3rd Week, May

3rd Week, May

Bestseller Trends in the Four Biggest Online Bookstores in Korea

2020.06.01

If we look at the bestsellers of four major online bookstores in Korea for the third week of May, books written by Youtubers will catch our attention. New Yorker This Month that hit the top list the day after its publication is about the episodes which Hong Se-Rim - a Youtuber with 600K subscribers (channel name: Serim’s Life) - experienced when she was living in New York for a month. Also, COVID-19: Investment War written by three Youtubers of an economy channel “the Three Professionals TV” talks about their opinion on the changing economic landscape after the outbreak of COVID-19. This book was a sensation among Korean readers that it even became the bestseller in bookstores with only the pre-sales. Youtube is a hot market in Korea nowadays, and it seems that such a trend has also affected the publishing market.
One other thing that catches our eyes is that essays, economics & business administration books and novels are of great popularity. On top of the two books mentioned above, The Answer that has been Prepared for a Long Time by Kim Young-Ha, a star writer in Korea and 1cm Diving that has been keeping its place on the list since its publication in January were notable in the essay category, while Loon Shots and Prisoners of Geography by overseas writers, and The Boy is Coming by globally prominent Han Kang and La Boite de Pandore 1, 2 by Bernard Werber, a beloved writer in Korea, were added to the bestsellers’ list in economics & business administration and novels respectively.
Meanwhile, The Answer that has been Prepared for a Long Time was a republished version of Memory Lost (RH Korea) which was published in 2009. Besides, The Boy is Coming features the May 18 Gwangju Democratic Movement, a heartrending incident in Korea that happened in 1980. As the Movement marks its 40th anniversary this year, the book was republished as a special limited edition with a new cover. First published in 2014, it also won the 20th Malaparte Prize in 2017.

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

Best sellers
1		*The Having* Author \| Lee Seo-Yun, Hong Joo-Yeon Publisher \| Suo Books Genre \| Self-development
2		*Loon Shots* Author \| Safi Bahcall Publisher \| Next Wave Media Genre \| Economics & Business Administration
3		*The Answer that has been Prepared for a Long Time* Author \| Kim Young-Ha Publisher \| Bokbok Seoga Genre \| Essay
4		*Prisoners of Geography* Author \| Tim Marshall Publisher \| Sai Book Genre \| Economics & Business Administration
4		*La Boite de Pandore 1* Author \| Bernard Werber Publisher \| The Open Books Genre \| Novel
6		*La Boite de Pandore 2* Author \| Bernard Werber Publisher \| The Open Books Genre \| Novel
7		*1cm Diving* Author \| Taesoo, Munjung Publisher \| FIKA Genre \| Essay
7		The Boy is Coming (Special Limited Edition) Author \| Han Kang Publisher \| Changbi Genre \| Novel
9		*COVID-19: Investment War* Author \| Jung Chae-Jin, Park Seok-Joong, Lee Gwang-Soo, Kim Han-Jin, Kim Il-Gu,Yeouido Class, Yoon Ji-Ho, Choi Jun-Young Publisher \| Page 2 Books Genre \| Economics & Business Administration
10		*New Yorker This Month* Author \| Hong Se-Rim Publisher \| Book 21 Genre \| Essay
10		*Who Made Me a Princess 4* Author \| Spoon Publisher \| KW Books Genre \| Comics