VOL.74/2024.09

Best Sellers

2nd Week, September 2021

Bestseller Trends in the Four Biggest Online Bookstores in Korea

2021.10.05

It’s September in Korea, and the warm sun and the cool breeze put smiles on people’s faces. As the traditional book-reading season of autumn approaches, fiction is showing its presence on the integrated list of bestsellers. Along with the continued popularity of the Dollagoot Dream Department Store series, which has brought about a fantasy fiction syndrome in Korea, writer Han Kang’s I Do Not Bid Farewell ranked first on the list. This book is the first new title from Han Kang in five years since she won the International Booker Prize in 2016 with The Vegetarian (Changbi) and has been gaining popularity among not only Korean readers but also foreign readers. The story I Do Not Bid Farewell depicts the memories of love that make human beings human in poetic sentences against the background of the Jeju April 3 Incident, a painful event in Korean history.
While we are already past mid-year, books that offer advice for living your life wisely have been popular as well. Non-fiction Life is Real gives a message that it is important to survive in reality without going bust. It offers hands-on information in areas such as financial management, getting a job, and going to university, as well as wisdom for happiness such as human relationships, love, and friendship. Meanwhile, Lucky, a self-help book, introduces seven keywords for success, just like his subtitle "7 Principles to Wake Up Luck in You." It presents ways to draw luck inside you that will help you overcome problems to come into life in a realistic and practical way.
For children’s books, Legend of My Friend, written by Yi Gee-Eun, who won the Bologna Ragazzi Award in 2021 for comics –ranked third. Her new series after Legend of the Red Bingsu (Woongjin Thinkbig) is a story about a tiger notorious for its bad temper and the flower attached to its tail, like destiny. Additionally, a book on Chuseok ranked fifth with the national holiday is just around the corner. The book Sol’s Chuseok Story is about a family visiting their grandmother for Chuseok. While it’s difficult to meet families far away due to the pandemic for this year’s Chuseok, I hope children could feel the abundance and warmth of the holiday through the book.

* K-Book Trends Vol. 37 – Interview with writer Yi Gee-Eun

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

Top 10 Bestsellers for the 2nd Week of September
1		I Do Not Bid Farewell Author│Han Kang Publisher│Munhakdongne Genre│Fiction
1		Dollagoot Dream Department Store 2 Author│Lee Mi-Ye Publisher│Sam & Parkers Genre│Fiction
3		Dollagoot Dream Department Store Author│Lee Mi-Ye Publisher│Sam & Parkers Genre│Fiction
4		Life is Real Author│Joo Eon-Gyu, Shin Young-Jun Publisher│Sangsang Square Genre│Non-fiction
5		No Matter If Our Love Disappears Tonight In This World Author│Yichizo Misaki Publisher│Momo Genre│Fiction
6		Oketing: You Don’t Have to be Special to Become Rich Author│Oh Doo-Hwan Publisher│Daehan Publishing Company Genre│Business & Money
7		It’s Not Over Yet Author│Kim Yeon-Koung Publisher│Kayun Genre│Non-fiction
8		The Socrates Express Author│Eric Weiner Publisher│Across Genre│Liberal Arts
8		Lucky Author│Kim Do-Yoon Publisher│Book Romance Genre│Self-help
10		Form of Sympathy Season 1 Set Author│Park No-Deok Publisher│Beside Genre│Comics

 

Top 5 Children’s Books for the 2nd Week of September
1		100-Story Home in the Forest Author│Toshio Iwai Publisher│Book Bank
2		I Keep Promises Author│Masanobu Takahama Publisher│FIKA JUNIOR
3		Legend of My Friend Author│Yi Gee-Eun Publisher│Woongjin Thinkbig
4		Disney Pop-up Book for Babies: Peekaboo! Author│Blue Rabbit Editing Team Publisher│Blue Rabbit
5		Sol’s Chuseok Story Author│Lee Eok-Bae Publisher│Gilbut Kids
5		I’ll Open It All Author│Shinsuke Yoshitake Publisher│Wisdom House