By Kwon Mee-yoo
Cafes, galleries and bookstores will open up for local book clubs during idle time.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) will run a test trial of the book club space-sharing project at four regional municipalities ― Gwangjin District in Seoul and the cities of Gunpo, Gangneung and Jeonju.
The project aims to provide a reading venue for local book clubs since space shortage is often mentioned as the major constraint of book club activities. The ministry, along with the Publication Industry Promotion Agency of Korea, will discover new meeting places to promote reading communities.
The municipal governments and local libraries will recruit participating venues throughout the year. A venue should be an independent space that can host gatherings of at least seven people, such as a community service center, cafe, gallery, bookstore or religious or sports facility.
Select venues will be open for local residents during idle time and receive subsidies up to 120,000 won per month as well as other aid such as furniture and a traveling library.
Visit readin.or.kr for more information.