by Lee Hyo-won
Staff Reporter
A literary theme park inspired by Kim Joo-young iconic novel ``Gaekju'' will be built in Cheongsong-gun, North Gyeongsang Province, the county announced Friday.
Kim, who will turn 70 on the 26th, rose to prominence by chronicling life in the late 19th-century during the Joseon Kingdom (1392-1910) through the adventures of wandering bobusang (merchants) and gaekju (brokers who commissioned sales of goods and businesses, from warehousing to banking). ``Gaekju'' was published over 1,400 episodes in a daily newspaper from 1979 to 1983, and won Kim the 1st Yu Ju-hyun Literary Award.
The 16-member organizing committee has designated a 150,000 square meter area in Jinan-ri for the Gaekju Literary Theme Town. The state and other sources will fund the 15 billion won project, scheduled over three years from 2010 to 2012.
The park will feature a ``Gaekju'' literary center displaying Kim's manuscripts and personal items; a theater showing films on classic and contemporary literature; an area where visitors can learn and experience traditional folk music; and a Joseon-style tavern.
Cheongsong-gun began planning the project in 2007 to celebrate the novelist's literary heritage and promote the county's economy through tourism. The park is expected to draw visitors alongside local attractions such as Mount Juwang and Yasong Art Gallery.