The stories behind their books

“I read a poetry collection called *Forgiveness of the Sky* on a holiday. One line I wrote down was, “Would even angels know that their wings are symmetrical?” Isn’t that so cute?”

“La Divina Commedia Written by Dante Alighieri 1308-1320 (The Divine Comedy written by La Divina)”

“Recently, I enjoyed reading author Kim Ho-yeon’s book *The Inconvenient Convenience Store*. It’s about a homeless man who works part-time at a convenience store, comforting various customers and reflecting on himself. It’s a book with an emotional impact I can’t convey just by explaining it this way.”

“If I remember correctly, it’s The Jindo Dog Baekgu Returns.”

“I decided to take part in this project because I thought this book could give many people an experience like the one they might have from a moving film or song.”

“If I had read The Stranger earlier, I wouldn’t have chosen my original name, Rap Monster.”

“Nietzsche’s Words”

“Yes. I think I came to appreciate novels like that through The Unbearable Lightness of Being.”

“It explains humanity’s past and future from multiple perspectives.”

“My all-time favorite comic book from my school days was Comic MapleStory. I don’t know if you know it, but it was really fun. I think people from the first generation will relate.”

“Even amid those circumstances, the very act of somehow turning poignant episodes with the people I love into poetry made me feel a certain kinship with it. Maybe that’s why I like it all the more.”

“While browsing Instagram, I saw a book posted by an upperclassman from school and bought it. It was a book called *Lessons in Self-Esteem*.”

“Recently, before watching the film Pavane, I read the original novel, “Pavane for a Dead Princess.””

“I brought it along to read on the plane or during waiting time while filming in Japan, and I finished it there.”

“When a film based on a book comes out, I tend to read the book first.”

“A film clearly shows you a particular image, whereas with a book, I can imagine things in my own mind as I read, and I like being able to immerse myself in it in my own way.”

“So it was a great help in forgiving myself.”

“When I first encountered God, I had so many questions. This book played a major role in helping me resolve them. It was also the first Christian book I read. What especially impressed me was how the author, who had lived as a Buddhist for nearly 50 years, explains why Jesus is the answer and the truth.”

“The book I’m reading is There Is No Such Thing as Nothing Now. I get a lot of comfort from it, and I’m learning how to think differently.”

“I cried so much reading Tablo’s Pieces of You. The very first chapter was so dry. The writing. From the second chapter on, the tears just kept falling, and I was like, “What do I do? I feel sorry.””

“I read Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982, and I also read One Night When Little Things Became Something.”

“I did my reading with those.”

“Yoon Ji-un’s <Pahanjip>. I started reading it a few years ago, and I pick it up once in a while when I’m bored.”

“#Coloring”

“I was immediately drawn into that book.”

“The Giving Tree, but this feels less like it’s a person I am and more like an ideal I want to become.”

“올해 읽었던 책인데”

““Finally😭 finished reading””

“I’m Karon’s mom, Kim Jae-kyung, pleased to greet you as an author.”

“A perfect novel in every respect—the readability of the prose, the characterization, the trick, and the structure! It was what got me hooked on Keigo Higashino’s works and on mysteries.”

“It’s okay not to read it all at once. Keep it on your bookshelf and take it out whenever you need it or feel curious.”

““After reading The Power of Positive Thinking and The Secret, I changed even more.””

“Whenever I’m exhausted from practicing all day or performing overseas, Professor Shim, my spiritual mentor, has always awakened my self-esteem—the sense that I am the protagonist of this world—and given me courage. At last, he has published a book for young people. From now on, I should always carry this book in my travel bag. I sincerely want to recommend it to everyone I know.”

“At age 20, I suddenly remembered a book called *Reading the Analects Happily*. At the time, while reading it, I felt for the first time that my thinking was awakening, and”

“You have to put down deep roots so that you can stand more firmly as you grow.”

“I’m going to read my first book (manga) today!”

“As I read this, I was able to learn a little about the CEO’s life before I joined the company, since I first got to know the CEO after I started working there. It was also a chance to spend that kind of time.”

“It’s a book called Do It for Myself.”

“I want to return to my childhood and reread Jules Verne’s classic science-fiction novels, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days, which I read a long time ago. These days, getting in touch with my inner child helps me relax.”

“Though our nationalities, languages, and ways of expressing ourselves are all different, I feel that sincerity always gets through.”

“I love it so much that I’ve even memorized the page.”

““I’m proud of my mentor.””

“It’s a book called My Pinky Son. I wrote a recommendation for it because of my longstanding connection with Hong Won-gi, who has the rare disease progeria.”

“I really like it, and <A Certain Secret>.”

“Recently, I read José Saramago's *Blindness* and *Seeing*.”

“I really like reading mystery novels, and there’s a book called *The Awakening of Magic* that I started but didn’t finish a while ago. It’s a quiet book, but the ending isn’t quiet; I think I might read it again.”

“I’m not really into scary movies, but I find it so much fun to feel tense while reading a book. I like thrillers and mystery novels.”

“I thought about what would be interesting and worth watching all the way through. It’s about a girl who’s a born idol but is actually hiding a huge secret, and makes it into the underground scene…”

““I also read a book called ‘Shoko’s Smile.’””

“A time when I looked back on my own capacity for empathy, wondering whether I had been viewing socially disadvantaged people through a biased lens all this time.”

“I’ve been active for about 13 years. I’ve worked with SHINee, pursued solo activities as Taemin, and also worked on a new project with SuperM. I thought I’d like to slightly change the familiar world I’ve experienced and built up so far, and show you a new side of myself.”

“Even deciding what to eat is a negotiation.”

“I think I got through it by continually reminding myself, “Let’s not fear the difficulties at the beginning.” It gave me so much strength.”

“When I was thinking about my stage name as I was making my debut, I read Han Kang’s The White Book on my CEO’s recommendation. It’s a book that contains reflections on various white things.”

“I read a lot while thinking, ‘It must be made-up stories.’”

“That author had a lot of books listed as bestsellers in Korea, including one called *Save Me*, and”

“A book that gave me a lot of courage.”

“These days, I’m reading *So My Heart Won’t Get Hurt*.”

“I’ve only read a few pages of I Haven’t Said Goodbye so far.”

“Reality Transurfing takes a more scientific approach, and The Secret could be called its popular version.”

“When I was in middle school, I received The Age of Loss as a gift from my aunt and read it.”

“It felt very fresh to learn that the sijo poems in *Cheonggu Yeongeon*, which I had encountered only in textbooks, are being newly reinterpreted as K-pop lyrics.”

“I was able to continue the lingering feeling I had experienced in this novel through that poetry collection as well.”

“A book called Iroseok, on the topic of… Looking at this book, I thought the keyword “god” was just right for you, experiencing life for the first time, to whom everything in the world is unfamiliar and difficult. So I bought this book too, and since I declared it and lay down…”

“The first flapping of wings toward freedom”

“Meeting this book was a great stroke of luck. It helped me understand my fans a little better and made me want to become a better person. I want to hold on to the precious feeling of liking someone, too.”

“I did buy it when I was just thinking, among the people around me, “Why is everyone so weird?””

“Publishing a photo book wasn’t something I had planned. Since these were photos I’d taken on my phone in my spare moments, I was hesitant to release them, but thinking of it as leaving a record of everyday life, I’ve made it this far.”

“After reading this book, I learned that it was a blessing just to have witnessed something invisible.”

“So I brought along Amélie Nothomb’s *Hygiene and the Assassin*, which I enjoyed reading.”

“Thanks to this book, I learned a lot about what I hadn’t known about everything that goes into an artist coming into being. I felt grateful to everyone who was with me, and is still with me, on the journey to becoming the ‘Baek A-yeon’ I am today. If you’re curious about the idol industry, this book will be a great help.”

“I’m especially enjoying the webtoon <The Return of the Mount Hua Sect>.”

“I read *The Art of Wandering*.”

“Just because it’s called Small Comfort doesn’t mean it’s simply small.”

“[Unread Book with a Pretty Cover #1] 'Don't Let Your Mood Become Your Attitude' by Lemon Psychology”

“I recently read Harry Potter.”

“Reading a book in Queensland, where my parents live, made me even happier and more excited. The writers describe places that are good to stay in while visiting—not only Brisbane and the Gold Coast, but also other parts of Queensland—in their own distinctive language. It was interesting to read, almost like looking through a diary.”

““I recommend ‘Laugh Like Haha’s Mom.’””

““These days, I think I’ve come to prefer books or works with this kind of humanism.””

“When I go to a bookstore, I sit down, pile up a ton of books, and read. I like bookstores because people there don’t pay attention to others. I brought home a whole stack recently, too: “Children of Gaeng-i-buri Village,” “The Little Prince,” “Confession,” “March Is a Red Ravine,” and “Norwegian Wood.” I also have a poetry collection by poet Lee Byeong-ryul. I get a lot of book recommendations, really often.”

“I didn't really like it before, but after reading The Analects, so much of it resonated with me, and I enjoyed learning from it.”

“Like the title says, I’d recommend it to everyone moving toward their purpose in life.”

“This book lets you see again, feel again, and think again about the things around us that we miss and pass by, through the perceptive and discerning eyes of Kim Hyung-seok. When you read this book, you too will feel what I feel when I talk with Kim Hyung-seok. I hope you will immerse yourself in a conversation with Kim Hyung-seok.”

“When I was really into novels, I read the Japanese novel *The Age-70 Death Bill Passes*.”

“After reading No Longer Human, I sought out and read The Setting Sun as well.”

“I think I've read these three books several times: The Lighthouse Keeper, You Too Are a Sky Lily, and Yeontan-gil.”

““Ah, Paris” is something the author wrote after going to Paris, like a diary. At first, I bought it because the style was pretty and because I wanted to go to Paris. I’d never been to Europe. It feels like I’m secretly peeking into someone’s diary written in Paris. It captures the little details and atmosphere of everyday life in Paris—the restaurants, the streets, and so on—so I felt as if I were there in Paris myself.”

“I like books, so I try to read.”

“It’s a story about my cat. It’s called *I Love You Every Day*. But after I finished writing it, I realized there was a lot about my dad in it.”

“The lyrics and poems by poet Won Tae-yeon that touch my heart are always a gift. 『Today, Here, Us』 feels like an even more special gift.”

“As soon as I got it today, I read through it in a flash. My whole day was filled with the teacher’s warm and comforting conversations.”

“Since it was a book that prominently covered stories about Italy, the birthplace of poisoning, I brought it along on my business trip to Italy and read it twice during the journey.”

“Book: The Little Prince”

“As I read it, I found it incredibly delicate. Not only the expressions and descriptions, but also the emotional threads are woven together so intricately that it pains my heart as I read. I think it’s a book every Korean should read.”

“When I first started writing, I felt more fear than excitement, but now I’m glad I can share my stories in writing.”

“I think I can take one step closer to becoming that kind of person only if I’m happy first and receive energy.”

“My favorite series is Percy Jackson.”

“A few days ago, I took that book out and read it again. It’s still on my desk.”

“These days, I’m reading a book called “Why Do Smart People Believe Nonsense?””

“Those points weren’t written to be funny, but I find them so funny. As I read, I keep thinking, “Ah, this person is a T.” I’m really enjoying it.”

““I’ve always liked author Kim Yeon-su. Many people may sometimes feel as though they’re losing, even when they try to find strength in their own circumstances. I feel that way, too. At times like that, a warm book that says nothing can become a very good friend. The author says he came to a realization while considering the various meanings of ‘the words that we don’t lose’ and discovering concrete examples of them: ‘To reach hope, one must inevitably accept despair.’ We’ve come to live through a difficult time, with many unavoidable realities, when everyone is having a really hard time. Even so, I recommend this book, hoping that each of us will find a way to make things better in our own way.””

“I think Nausea should be read slowly, at a measured pace. One of the characteristics of the humanities is “slowness,” isn’t it? That is about “oneself” …”

“Actually, when I'm having a hard time, I don't seek comfort from anyone. I can't even read books like *You Did Well Today*.”

“Another one is a book called *All the Time in the World*. These days, everything moves so fast, and it’s hard to imagine life without videos like Shorts, right? This book is about a life of slow accumulation, in connection with quantum mechanics, and offers various perspectives on letting time rest, bending it, and stretching it. It’s a good read for people who want to create some breathing room in their lives.”

“After that, I also read a book called <Miracles of the Namiya General Store>.”

“Miracles of the Namiya General Store”

“My members. Books → Miracles of the Namiya General Store lol.”

“I bought a book, not a poetry collection. <Quiet Excitement>. It's a book about what happened during the author's three-month trip to Europe. Even the really trivial things are written down, and they're all so cute.”

“고등학교 때, 서양고전문학 수업을 들었는데요. 『군주론 』, 『일리아스 』 같은 어려운 고전을 매주 1권씩 읽고 서평을 썼어요.”

“The book I recently enjoyed reading was Paulo Coelho’s The Alchemist.”

“I recommend it to you.”

““I also read the slice-of-life novel The Uncanny Convenience Store,””

“I like reading books.”

“Watching that, I resolved to make an album the way I wanted.”

“Even the small, uneventful days without any big events must be one of countless foreshadowings in the movie of life.”

“I read Ernest Hemingway’s *The Old Man and the Sea*, and it was so much fun. It’s quite short, but I finished it in about two hours.”

“I don’t know much about painting, but I found the story of solving the riddle very interesting.”

“The book I wrote, ‘Girl Group Yoga,’ is a book that even beginners can easily follow.”

“When I was in my teens, I was deeply impressed by Bernard Werber’s book *Papillon*, and its story remained in my heart even into my twenties.”

“If I were good at English too, I would have read it that way.”

“After reading Anne of Avonlea thoroughly, I felt a strong pull…”

“The last book I read was in middle school—Life at Nine?”

“I like the scene where the protagonist is standing in first place among the other aliens.”

“It’s a work that allowed me to get absorbed in the story and completely focus. It’s also good for killing time. It was made into a movie, too, but I recommend reading it as a book.”

“I also recommend <Happiness Doesn't Come Alone> and Sister Lee Hae-in’s essay book <Just Cry When Things Are Hard>.”

“There was a passage I always carried in my heart on set.”

“There are many passages that resonate with me, so I keep reading it.”

“DinDin reading at 4 a.m., photographed by my salon buddy Seon-ho hyung #TheInterpretationOfMurder #ILoveYou #KimSeonHo #JongminHyungToldMeToVote #DontBeUpset #DinDin #2DaysAnd1Night #DanbiIProtectedYou”

“I also recommend “One Person on Earth” (Jung Se-rang).”

“#RomanceWillKillMe I met lyricist Seo Ji-eum, who has such a girlish air~ Please show lots of love for writer Ji-eum’s book too~”

“Reading this book helped spur me on in that mindset.”

“The book I’d like to give as a gift—I’d like to recommend this book.”

““Torrent””

“The professor explained positively that being sensitive means you’re someone with highly developed senses and someone who can stand out in a particular field, so this is a book that gives me even more comfort.”

“SODA’s first Photobook: Candid🍬”

““I mainly like poetry collections. Poetry seems like the genre that best reveals a poet’s temperament and sensibility. Poets look at things we often see in everyday life from a different perspective and express them in a few words. I think those words often resonate deeply. In this collection, I like the poem ‘Knot.’ In particular, when I read the passage, ‘Do not call it a knot. The hardest part—once, this too was so tender and fragile. It was only that passion went too far, and after a single wound, it could never bloom again,’ I thought that a poet could see a tree’s ‘knot’ in this way, too, and something about it really struck me.””

“I read it too, and the elements were interesting.”

“A novelist with a style like his own face, reflecting reality as it is without making a fuss or being timid.”

“Each chapter in this book is organically connected to an album track.”

““I’ve been living in Korea for four years and have read many Korean literary works in English. Each time, I felt, ‘Ah, this is a translation.’ But I was surprised by how excellent the English was in these two works published this time. I think it’s at a higher level than the English I use. (Laughs.)””

“Until now, making music was the only way I knew how to talk about myself. I’m not someone who likes to go on at length to people about myself, so I had only put my voice into music. Now that I’ve had the opportunity to talk about myself through a book, in writing and photographs, I decided that since I was doing it, I might as well be honest.”

“I’d like to recommend it.”

““I wasn’t someone who read novels often. But as I was transitioning into acting, I thought I should read a full-length novel. Then I remembered that I had read Musso’s earlier work *Call from an Angel* some time ago, so I picked up his new book, *A Paris Apartment*.””

“In a few passages, it does feel like things are simply being forced to fit, but overall it seems plausible, so I was able to enjoy reading it. It was so enjoyable that I savored it.”

“I looked it up, and apparently one of them is water residue.”

“A piece that once again reminds us how precious and radiant it is, in the midst of life, to ask one another how we are.”

“Actually, there were many more kinds of baby food I fed Seo-a. I recorded them in a notebook or on my phone each time. They said the book shouldn’t be too thick, so I included about 20 recipes and snacks for each stage, making a total of 131 recipes.”

“I've been reading a book lately. It's called The Bare Minimum of Korean History. It does a very good job of explaining things concisely, from Gojoseon through modern and contemporary history. It made me think, “I should study more history,” and I hope many people will read it.”

“So I lowered the level a bit and set myself the goal of reading all of Minumsa’s World Literature Collection before I die.”

“This is a classic rumination on how to live your best life, as if each day could be your last. It feels important now more than ever to remember that happiness doesn’t come from your circumstances, but your spirit. It’s a reminder to shut out the noise and be in the moment, whenever you can.”

“A book one must read”

“I recently bought this book. It’s called *8 Rules of Love* by Jay Shetty. Um, it’s a cute title, right? It feels a little cheesy. So normally, I don’t think I would have picked it up at a bookstore.”

“At first, it was hard because I kept trying to write only grand, impressive words. I completed it by making a great effort to take the force out of my writing.”

“It’s a book that brings so many emotions, from warmth to sadness. In particular, it made me reflect on my mother once again.”

“I found myself feeling drawn in by a book I had picked up casually, so I’m writing this.”

“When I read those lines, I felt so comforted that I even had the ridiculous illusion that perhaps all the time I had lived through and experienced was for the sake of reading this poem.”

“I’m not sure yet what kind of thoughts and feelings the poet is speaking to me with.”

“And I, too, as I suddenly began writing down the poet’s poem, am not sure what on earth I’m trying to say to you all.”

“But one thing I can say for certain is that those lines brought me great comfort, and rather than offering you the usual, countless, dazzling pleasantries, I wanted to return that comfort to you by writing down my sincere thoughts, one character at a time.”

“Actually, while creating the music for this show, I think I drew a lot of inspiration from books and videos I liked when I was young. For example, I worked with books like Peter Pan and Snow White, and videos of myself playing outdoors as a child playing in the background.”

“So I really, really recommend reading it.”

“This book carefully explains how both cats and their guardians can be happy, accompanied by cute and fun illustrations. When you run into a problem that affection alone cannot solve, I’m sure you’ll be able to find an answer in this book, just as you might ask Teacher Nyaongshin for advice.”

““Since the book came out, I’ve been getting a lot of requests to write, so these days I’ve been focusing on writing. Writing song lyrics feels fresh and enjoyable. The appeal of creative writing is that you can take your time with it.””

“I somehow ended up holding an exhibition, and apparently a woman saw it and cried. Then she left me a letter.”

“There's also another manga called Touch by the same author. It's so much fun.”

“I didn't start writing because of any particular occasion. I gathered the things I had jotted down—fleeting thoughts, like entries in a diary—and they came to be a book.”

“I really recommend 0 to people like that.”

“When I was stressed, I went to a bookstore and a book called *That Sort of Person, Still a Person* caught my eye. At first, I was drawn to the cover and title (laughs). The passage I remember most from the book is: “Today is the only time when I can choose and put into practice what I want. If today, too, passes by like this, it will become yesterday, and I’ll miss it.” I think I was hurt and having a hard time back then, and I made up my mind to try to live this one day well. After reading those lines, I mean.”

“When I’m stressed, I think just going to a bookstore and looking at books can be comforting. Even if I don’t read it right away, just buying a book and bringing it home somehow makes me feel cozy and healed.”

“I was also very impressed by Anxiety.”

“I couldn't finish reading The Three-Body Problem because it had more pages than I expected.”

“There are times when we can’t open up to anyone about anything, shut ourselves away, and feel empty. When our hearts are lonely like that, I think the most important—and truly necessary—thing is for someone to reach out first. The author describes that hand as “connection.” Just as I hope my music can reach someone like a hand reaching out, I hope this book will be like that hand, too. Hoping that love and peace will spread through the world instead of isolation, I recommend this book.”

“Until now, I’ve thought imagination was the greatest power music gives us. Songs leave their beginnings and endings open. When you sing about a breakup, no one tells you why the couple broke up or what happened afterward. I wondered whether a single story running through my music, whose beginnings and endings are ambiguous, might bring out more complex emotions and clearer images. That curiosity led me to write it.”

“Like the picture diary you kept as a child, try drawing your own memories each day, following wherever your heart takes you. Finding little moments of happiness in everyday life is quite a joyful thing.”

“Its implications were particularly distinctive, which left a strong impression.”

“I think it’s this very moment. I’m looking at “You Have to Look at It for a Long Time to Find It Lovely” right now. It’s a book I’ve been reading lately, and at some point while reading it, I just felt something romantic. I tend to find romance even in the smallest things.”

“This is a book I'm reading. It's called The Consciousness of Seth Nutter. I went to the store, saw it right there, and thought, “Oh, I'm curious,” so I opened it up. I was struck by one sentence, and that's why I bought the book.”

“I couldn't wait for the next film, so I finished reading it in the car while traveling.”

“I’m honored to receive the Content of the Year award. Grapefruit Apricot Club is a work that sincerely captures the reality the children face and the pure solidarity through which they hold on to one another and try to make it through.”

“Someone recommended a book called Look at This Poem to me.”

“My mom bought it for me.”

“When that exact verse appeared before my eyes among the tens of thousands of pages on the shelf, I had no choice but to collapse completely before the presence of the living Lord. It was supernatural confirmation that ‘God is dealing with me right now.’”

“I read it during a time in high school when I was very lonely, and it comforted me. I’ve read it several times since, and each time I find new comfort in it.”

“I’ve been reading a lot of books lately. I read Kim Ji-young, Born 1982, and I also read One Night When Little Things Became Big Things.”

“I did my reading with those.”

“I like Kafka’s The Metamorphosis.”

“I’ve read it all once, but it made such an impression on me that I wanted to read it again, so I brought it: Even If This Love Disappears from the World Tonight.”

“이어서 카뮈의 또 다른 작품 <반항하는 인간>까지 읽고 나니까 그 마음을 얼추 이해하게 됐어요.”

“Finally 😭 I finished reading it”

“It’s very good.”

“I changed even more after reading the books The Power of Positive Thinking and The Secret.”

“It’s a very warm novel about things that happen in a convenience store. They’re stories that could happen in our everyday lives, and they move and comfort you. I read it all in one sitting.”

“I want to return to my childhood and reread Jules Verne’s classic science-fiction novels, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days, which I read long ago. These days, my inner child helps me relax.”

“I decided to publish a book to share the happiness of cooking for myself.”

“This is a book I'm reading. It's about how the story keeps going back through the generations—my mother's mother, my mother's mother's mother, and so on. So it's really interesting and has a great atmosphere. It's a healing book to read.”

“I was intrigued by the way he invited people close to him to a funeral before he died, so they could share their memories of one another. It even made me want to have a funeral like that before I die.”

“It's really fun.”

“I first read it in middle school at a church student council book club, and when I picked it up again recently, I ended up sobbing all over again.”

“I stopped watching The Ravages of Time partway through.”