VOL.78/2025.01

 

[Celeb’s Book Spot ③]

Sehan Bookstore

A Secondhand Bookstore Full of Unique Memories and Vibes

 

2023.04.03

 

 

We are living in an era where so many books are coming out every day. How we purchase books has evolved over time as well, and it has become common to see buying books from online bookstores whenever and wherever we are. Now, there’s an old bookstore surrounded by nature that has been off the changing trend, keeping the unique analog vibe and memories. It is Sehan Bookstore in Danyang. Established in Seoul in 1979, Sehan Bookstore moved to Danyang and has kept its place as a part of nature, serving as a house for many books.
While the bookstore is located inside a quiet mountain, it became a beloved tourist spot after it was used to film the movie “Inside Men.” Visited by actor Cho Seung-Woo, cartoonist Lee Hyeon-Se, singer and MC Lim Baek-Cheon, and K-Pop idol group Golden Child, Sehan Bookstore has been playing the role of a tourist destination in Danyang, on top of it being a bookstore. Following is a trip to Sehan Bookstore, which has been giving so many visitors – from rare book fans from around the country to celebrities in various fields – a wonderful memory.

 

 

A Place Where Danyang’s Beauty Breathes Alive

 

Ride on the curvy roads until you see a sign. Get out of the car and walk, and you’ll reach Sehan Bookstore. Along the way, enjoy the mind-soothing sound of nature and the beauty of Danyang, as you get deeper into the forest. As Sehan Bookstore is in the middle of the hill, the main building uniquely consists of the basement floor and the first floor. It also has an annex, which keeps photograph-based books such as art and architecture that cannot be displayed in the main building.
The first thing you’ll see as you walk into the first floor of the main building is the guest book. The book, with the direction, “Leave your memory!” is like a intimate journal written by its visitors. Scribble in the book, step inside, and you will see cute little design props related to books and cozy interior decoration. You will feel as if you have returned to your hometown. Independent publications and design products showing Danyang’s beauty are special things to enjoy only at Sehan Bookstore. You can find various items from eco-bags to calenders with Sehan Bookstore engraved and merchandise made in collaboration with local designers. The bookstore also sells stationery designed in collaboration with illustrator Jigubulshichak. They have famous spots in Danyang printed on them, so they are good attention catchers.

 

 

The Forest of Books inside the Mountain

 

While Sehan Bookstore is located deep inside the lush forest, there’s another forest for visitors. It is a forest made of books. Go down to the underground floor from the main building and open the door outside, and this forest will welcome you. This place has a different atmosphere than the neat, bijou first floor. It is full of shelves and books. Another unique thing about this place is that it is outdoors. It might make you think it is an indoor area as tall shelves surround it, but it naturally leads outdoors with the floor covered with soil. As books here are not registered on a specific electronic system, you can have fun discovering the books you want as if you are in a maze. And during that exploration, you might also come across books that you once thought you didn’t need or of an unfamiliar field to you. It would be like a journey to find books.
The basement floor has another unique characteristic. Unlike the new books sold on the first floor, books on the basement floor are all secondhand. Secondhand books have the used traces of their previous readers and have precious memory in them that cannot be found in new books. As there are rare books that are out of print today, visitors can feel as if they are looking for treasure. Such encounters with books you didn’t expect to see add more entertainment to your trip.

 

 

Surrounded by nature, far away from the city filled with tall buildings, Sehan Bookstore is a perfect place to relieve the fatigue cumulated in daily life. If you stroll through the quiet forest of books, the smell of old books, trees, and soil will mix to bring peace to your exhausted mind. I hope you will make unforgettable memories at Sehan Bookstore, which has been reborn as a tourist destination while preserving the beauty of Danyang.

 

 

Sehan Bookstore
Website: http://shbook.co.kr/mall/
Contact: +82-10-8968-0648
Address: 46-106, Hyeongokbon-gil, Jeokseong-myeon, Danyang-gun, Chungcheongbuk-do

 

 

 

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Written by Kim Jeong-Yeon