VOL.69/2024.04

 

[Celeb’s Book Spot ②]

Book Plant

Where Book Culture Flourishes

 

2023.03.13

 

More cultural spaces are emerging in Korea, centering around local bookstores. “Bookstores in your neighborhood” somehow sounds friendly. For book lovers, local bookstores are a nearby reading space that they can visit at any time at ease. For those that were not interested in books, they are an approachable reading place, which gives them a realization that reading is never something difficult. This month’s article introduces a neighborhood bookstore that is friendly to all, even those who have just begun reading books.
Head of Book Plant, Kim So-Yeong set up a local bookstore after she quit working at a broadcast company that she’s been working for 5 years as a newscaster. As she loved reading books, she wanted to open a special bookstore in the neighborhood, hoping that more people would read books in daily life. Following is an introduction to Book Plant, set up by Kim So-Yeong. This bookstore has caught the hearts of famous celebrities, including actress Park Ha-Sun and lyricist Kim Eana, as well as those who are in love with books, fulfilling her hope for reading to become a part of people’s daily lives.

 

 

A Bookstore with Special Curations

 

Book Plant is a local bookstore in Mapo-gu. As it is surrounded by low houses, it gives off a familiar atmosphere even from its exterior. As soon as you set foot inside, you will be surprised by the cozy interior filled with books, and once again by the delicious smell of coffee. The first thing that will catch your eye will be the bestsellers list written by Book Plant. This friendly hand-written list is updated every week, and is posted by the entrance. While Book Plant might be small, what it holds inside does is almost an entire library. The shelves organized to meet visitors’ demands display books carefully chosen by professional curators, Kim So-Yeong, and the “Curator of the Month,” which changes every month.

 

 

The categories sorted by Book Plant are more special as they differ from ordinary bookstores. Unlike the typical book classifications seen in bookstores or libraries, books at Book Plant are more intuitively sorted. For example, books about food, clothes, and living are put together under the category “Eat Well, Live Well,” and books about minorities are put together under the category “Voices that Should be Heard.” This way of classifying books helps visitors find books they are interested in more easily, and lowers the entry barrier for books of unfamiliar fields, as the names of the categories are direct and intuitive.
Also, the reviews and short introductions of books written by curators that had actually read each book attached to book covers assist visitors when choosing books. These small and delicate elements are customized services that can only be found at Book Plant. Moreover, as props, stationery, book covers, and eco-bags that go well with reading books are curated, too, Book Plant becomes a new place every time you visit.

 

Where Anyone Can Get Close to Books

 

Special curations at Book Plant do not just target specific readers. Book Plant classifies books of various fields, allowing anyone to find a book of interest more easily. Such meticulousness is what attracts people to visit Book Plant comfortably. Actress Park Ha-Sun also visited Book Plant on “Point of Omniscient Interference,” an entertainment show on MBC. On the show, Park went to Book Plant to suggest a dating course for her manager, but she was soon attracted to books after she read the bestsellers’ rank written by Book Plant. Then, she naturally grew interested in other books, and moved on to looking for picture books for her 5-year-old daughter, which was not planned at first when she came. As such, Book Plant is not just an open space for readers, but also a place where people can naturally become better acquainted with books.

 

 

Besides curations, book talks joined by writers and their Book Club, a special feature at Book Plant, help more people feel closer to books. The second floor is used for visitors to read books and rest at ease, but it sometimes becomes a special space for writers and readers to gather around and communicate. For example, last February, Sohn Hee-Ae, the writer of It’s Okay to Quit, But it is How that Matters (Winners Book), and Kim Eana, the writer of Dear the Little Child Inside Me (Samho ETM) and famous lyricist that wrote popular K-pop songs, had some time to meet with their readers. Information about the book talks can be found on Book Plant’s Instagram.
Book Club at Book Plant provides one book recommended by Kim So-Yeong, one book recommended by the “Curator of the Month,” a curation letter explaining how the curators chose the book, and a guidebook for using Book Club. Famous book lovers from various fields, such as writers, singers, and actors/actresses, are chosen for the “Curator of the Month.” For example, last February, writer Kim Keum-Hee recommended Plum (Changbi) by Lee Joo-Hye. Also, “Webinar,” an online book-reading club, allows people to have meetings without spacial constraints. Information about Book Club can be found on Book Plant’s Book Club Instagram.

 

 

Book Plant is a special place for anyone to befriend books, just like the hope of Kim So-Yeong. Besides, people find Book Plant for various purposes – some visit to read books, some come to use the cafe, and some find the place to look around the stationery and pick up a book after reading a short introduction. So, encouraging people to read books wherever they are as part of daily life, Book Plant has also been playing a role in developing book culture, showing off its great influence. The venue is not only a bookstore that sells books – it offers delicately-written curations for each visitor, opens book talks for writers and readers to interact, and hosts online book reading for people that cannot join offline. How about creating your own reading energy at Book Plant, a small giant that generates great book energy?

 

Book Plant
Website: https://www.instagram.com/danginbookplant/
Address: 10-8, World Cup-ro 14-gil, Mapo-gu, Seoul

 

 

 

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Written by Kim Jeong-Yeon