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Healing essays top bestselling list

Self-development and self-help books top the bestseller list for this year according to analysis by Kyobo Bookstore.                                  / Korea Times file “Things Can Be Seen When You Stop” by Ven. Hyemin“You Can Become an Adult When Shaken a Thousand Times” byKim Ran-do“It’s Not Late Even If a Snail Goes Slow” by Ven. Jeongmok                                / Korea Times fileBy Chung Ah-youngAs the economic woes continue to grip the nation, readers have sought for relief from books. This year, the largest number of readers chose “Things Can Be Seen When You Stop” by Ven. Hyemin, which includes inspirational lessons and wisdom.Kyobo Bookstore, the nation’s largest book retailer, has conducted its yearly analysis of what has sold both online and offline from Jan. 1 to Dec. 2It shows that the sales of the essays on healing and soul-searching rose

Dec 7, 2012
Healing essays top bestselling list

Australian illustrations on show

The National Library for Children and Young Adults is holding an exhibition of Australian illustrations through Jan. 29.                             / Courtesy of National Library for Children and Young AdultsBy Chung Ah-youngAn illustration from Wayne Harris’ “Edge of the World”The National Library for Children and Young Adults is holding an exhibition of Australian illustrations through Jan. 29 in collaboration with the Australia-Korea Foundation under the Australian Embassy.Titled “Hello from Australia” it features some 40 illustrations including major works of world-renowned authors Ann James and Ron Brooks and related picture books which were presented to the 2012 Bologna Children’s Book Fair. James, one of the founders of Books Illustrated, planned the exhibition. Her vividly detailed book illustrations mixed with wit and humor and using various drawing methods such as pen, ink, charcoal and water colors are on show. The exhibition includes James’ representa

Dec 5, 2012
Australian illustrations on show

Ko Un's works published in three countries

From left, covers of Ko Un’s books “First Person Sorrowful,” “Maninbo — Dziesiec Tysiecy Istnien” and “Scairt Feithide” published in Britain, Poland and Ireland, respectively.                                             / Courtesy of Literature Translation Institute of KoreaBy Chung Ah-youngProminent poet Ko Un’s works have been published in three countries with the support of the Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI). The institute has supported the translations of 33 volumes by Ko in 14 languages so far.The newest translations are “First Person Sorrowful” published by Bloodaxe Books in Britain, “Maninbo — Dziesiec Tysiecy Istnien” (Ten Thousand Lives)by Znak in Poland and “Scairt Feithide” (Crying of Bugs)by An Sagart in Ireland.“First Person Sorrowful” was published in Britain last month when it was presented to Aldeburgh Poetry Festival in November. I

Dec 3, 2012
Ko Un's works published in three countries

Recent Books

DigitalholicLee Jae-yong; Jeyoung Communications: 320 pp., 13,000 wonYou might find a friend or your partner tapping on a smartphone while having dinner or talking to you, sometimes ruining the human relationship. Relentless social ills in cyberspace are already a part of the digital culture.This book offers reasons why users of digital device are addicted to the Internet and how they can overcome it.Addiction to online games, social networking sites and online chatting is overwhelming social activities.The author says that many people are addicted to online games because they offer immediate rewards and achievements within a short period of time. “They bring their dreams, which are hard to achieve in reality, which come true through cyberspace,” the book says.Such a phenomenon forms a “cyber identity” which separates the ego from reality, in which people don’t feel guilty about their actions. It also widens the generation gap as it also creates a new culture for the young who use Internet-related slang.― Chung Ah-young Gum Nan-se's Symphony GuideGu

Nov 30, 2012
Recent Books

Heart-felt talks reveal Ban's leadership style, dreams

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks during a news conference in Brasilia, Brazil, in this file photo.                                                            / AP-Yonhap “Conversations with Ban Ki- moon: What the United NationsIs Really Like: The View from theTop” by Tom Plate; MarshallCavendish; 240 pp., $29.5By Chung Ah-youngThe United Nations is often criticized for its bloated bureaucracy and inefficiency. The position of U.N. secretary-general is no doubt daunting, responsible to maintain peace and order in the world.The job becomes tougher in a second term, as is true for current U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. There have been more sarcastic reviews by the media rather than compliments attached to his leadership and management after he succeeded Kofi Annan. Ban himself realizes that the organization is in crisis and knowsAuthor Tom Platehe faces challenges ahead.The eighth secretary-gener

Nov 30, 2012
Heart-felt talks reveal Ban's leadership style, dreams

Authors promote Korean literature in Mexican book fair

Kim Young-ha will introduce Korean literature at the 26th Guadalajara International Book Fair in Mexico from today to Friday.        / Courtesy of LTI Han KangBy Chung Ah-youngProminent Korean authors Kim Young-ha and Han Kang will promote Korean literature at the 26th Guadalajara International Book Fair in Mexico from today to Friday. The Literature Translation Institute of Korea (LTI) will also attend the fair to present Korean books translated into Spanish and hold lectures about Korean literature during the event. The fair is the largest international book festival in Central and South America with some 660,000 visitors and 2,000 publishers participating every year. It is not only a venue for transactions of copyrights but also the home of various cultural events. For this year’s event, Chile is the guest of honor.The institute will hold the four events during the festival. On Monday, it will introduce Kim Su-young’s poetry collection and Kim Ki-taek’s “El Chicle” to the Spanish-speaking audience and authors. O

Nov 25, 2012

Recent Books

Seoul to Wall StreetLee Young-ju Nielson; Adbooks: 288pp., 15,000 wonNew York City’s Wall Street generally reminds people of the extravagant life of traders who live in palatial residences and enjoy luxuries.This Korean woman Lee Young-ju Nielson, who currently works as a partner at a New York hedge fund, talks about the reality of the financial district. She says in the book that unlike what everyone thinks, bankers and traders working in Wall Street spend every day of their career with passion and endeavor.After she graduated from Yonsei University in Korea, the author left for the United States to study her master’s and Ph.D. degree at the University of California, Berkeley, and University of Pittsburgh.Lee worked at Bear Sterns as managing director, and until the first half of 2012, she worked as executive director at Citi Group and JP Morgan investment bank. The book comprises of 12 chapters covering such topics as the collapse of Bear Sterns, Wall Street jobs, professional investment strategies and Koreans on Wall Street. The writer also suggests future directions f

Nov 23, 2012
Recent Books

Book forecasts trends 2013

Kim Rando, author of “Trend Korea 2013”By Chung Ah-youngFor Koreans, this year might be remembered as a murky, cruel time due to prolonged economic woes and social uncertainty. Crimes are getting more heinous and consumers are tightening their belts. Amid confusion and insecurity, a dark year usually generates unique social phenomenon, pushing people to find their shelters to avoid the harsh reality.“Trend Korea 2012” depicted the trends that would change the way people ate,“Trend Korea 2013” by Kim Rando et al.; Miraebook Publishing: 399 pp., 16,000 wonspent, played and lived this year and many of the predictions were proven true.Now “Trend Korea 2013” written by Kim Rando, a professor at Seoul National University (SNU), and his compatriots, predefines the next year’s trends in two words — COBRA TWIST.COBRA TWIST is the acronym for 10 trends — City of hysteria; OTL ... Nonsense; Bravo, Scandimom; Redefined ownership; Alone with lounging; Taste your life out; Whenever U want; It’s detox time; Surviving a bur

Nov 23, 2012
Book forecasts trends 2013

Online bookstores hit hard by economic slump, heated competition

Unable to survive ever-heating market competition and economic downturn, one of South Korea's top five online bookstores will go out of business next month, industry sources said Wednesday.Daekyo Libro (www.libro.co.kr), the fifth largest player, has suffered from management difficulties as online bookstores engage in fierce competition to discount prices amid deepening economic woes.It will be the first of the country's big five online bookstores to drop out of the market since their first emergence in 1997.According to industry sources, Daekyo, an educational service provider, sent formal documents to its book publishing subsidiary, Daekyo Publishing Co., Tuesday to impart its decision to pull out of the online bookselling business by Dec. 31.Under the decision, the online bookstore will stop accepting new members from Thursday and cease taking book orders about 10 days before the closure, they said.Daekyo's online bookstore officials confirmed the news. "Last year, the company's revenues were more than 30 billion won ($27 million) but it could not escape a deficit," one of the off

Nov 21, 2012

Recent Books

Han FeiziWang Gweng Bin; Translated from Chinese to Korean by Hwang Hyo-soon; Basic Books: 496 pp., 22,000 wonThis book sheds light on the lesser known Chinese philosopher Han Fei and his monumental work “Han Feizi” that originated Legalism in the East around 200 B.C.His work, which is both a compilation of his thoughts and a guide book for those in power for ruling, was the backbone to Confucianist politicos that shaped and controlled the 2,000 year long consecutive dynasties of the most influential country in Asia. The book offers snippets of his work as well as his life.Han isn't considered equal in standing to Confucius and Mencius (whose Latinate names are a testament to their fame in both hemispheres), much like Socrates and Plato's predecessors to the two in the West.But like his Western counterparts, his contribution is worth more than a side note in history.Most readers will find him very similar to Machiavelli, but 1,500 years earlier and, in the same degree, ruthless. The book says that Han believed all people's actions were motivated by selfishness, even betwe

Nov 16, 2012
Recent Books
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