The stories behind their books

“I was able to spend time with the makeup team and photography team as if we were family, and the shoot was fun in a warm atmosphere.”

“This book shakes readers and ultimately changes them.”

“These days, I’ve been copying passages by hand from a book called *The Buddha’s Words, Reinterpreted*. Regardless of religion, I chose this book because I personally found a lot to learn from the sentences in it.”

“I came across the author’s book Why Are We Like This? at a bookstore. Through that book, I discovered the author, learned about love, and received a lot of comfort.”

“I did my reading with those.”

“I started reading *Darkness at Noon* the day before yesterday.”

“I really hope you’ll read this work.”

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

“A friend from my hometown whom I met then gave me a book by writer Yeonjeong called *The Sun Will Rise Tomorrow, but What About Tonight?* Rather than explaining how to overcome hardship, it simply presents difficult and happy moments as short episodes. It also has lots of beautiful words and comforting phrases. I was happy because, as I read it on the rooftop, I realized for the first time that I was enjoying that moment.”

“I definitely recommend reading it as a book, too.”

“I should read books diligently and live diligently!!”

“When I feel that my heart is short on kindling, the many thoughts and experiences that came to mind while reading this book rekindle a fire in my heart. A mysterious, time-machine-like book that took me back to happy, passionate moments.”

“The book has so many meanings and I have a lot to learn from the Prince. [Despite his age], he’s emotionally more mature than adults. His values are incredible,”

“She doesn’t express her feelings well, but in every action, sincerity is included. I think she and I deal with things similarly. I try to express my real thoughts and emotions truly to others, but it’s not easy.”

“I believe that sincerity does reach others eventually,”

“the bond depends on how much each [person] cares about developing that particular relationship.”

“I found myself reading a lot of books that make you look back at yourself. Books like *Healing the Wounded Inner Child*.”

““Finally😭 finished reading””

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

“This song was inspired by Anne of Green Gables, a classic masterpiece and the core of our Craze Angel universe.”

“Scary Stories Are the Best!”

“I’ve read a lot of Bernard Werber’s works, and I’ve read almost all of the Thanatonauts series.”

“Even now, it feels fresh. It’s as if each chapter contains a message hidden like a secret map.”

“This is a book I would recommend to everyone who is interested in art.”

“Honestly, I’m not that amazing a person, but in the book I seem like such an amazing and wonderful person. (Laughs) It made me think I should treat myself a little better. It also gave me the confidence that I can do even better going forward.”

“I’m studying Japanese on my own using Japanese books. I work hard at it whenever I have free time between schedules.”

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

“🐶 It's a book called A Good Day Will Surely Come! I read it really quickly... I've read two books this year... That's a first 🐶 But!! It's kind of!! a positive book?!? 🐶 When I read it, I feel like my personality and way of thinking are similar to mine, so I relate to it so much that I stop reading 😄😄”

“There’s a book called Kind People Win that I read recently. I really found it very relatable.”

“I hope that those who long to take some time for themselves and find themselves will be sure to read this book.”

“I read a novel called Horrorstör.”

“A book? Ah, but I haven’t finished reading everything yet... I’m still in the midst of reading it... Guns, Germs, and Steel... It’s sort of like a history book~”

“I’m really enjoying it.”

“I’ve been interested in investing lately, but I can’t afford to invest carelessly.”

“After reading the book, it resonated with me so deeply that it hurt both my body and my heart.”

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

“It felt new to imagine the personalities and ways of speaking of the characters in the book.”

“This book is so good ❤️❤️”

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

“This is a mystery novel I read recently.”

“내가 하는 위로가 살기 위해 한 위로였다면, 이 책을 읽으면서는 내 삶이 치유를 받는 기분이었죠.”

“The first flapping of wings toward freedom”

““My time is musical notes; I’m making notes day by day. I find myself thinking, ‘I hope that on the day the piece is complete, I’ll be able to sing it with a smile.’” Is that the kind of meaning that comes to mind?”

“I enjoyed reading Woo Ji-hyun’s *My Private Painting*.”

“I recalled my solo trip, which moved between excitement and apprehension, anxiety and comfort.”

“I brought it because I wanted to share it with you all.”

“After reading this book, my image of The Great Library changed a little.”

“After reading this book, I thought I wanted everyone to find their own happiness and live at their own pace. We can run, but we can also walk or crawl. Everyone has a different way of living, so this book made me realize that we should respect and be considerate of one another. It's a science fiction novel, but its warm, sensitive expressions touch your heart, so anyone should be able to read it without difficulty.”

“And this is a line from the novel Dallergut Dream Department Store.”

“As soon as you turn the first page of this book, the voices you’ve missed may come tumbling out in a lively chorus.”

“I’ll definitely finish reading Eragon!!”

“I found it interesting while reading Small Things Like These, so I finished Foster and am having coffee now.”

“A Thousand Years of Love, Father.”

“I'm also continuing to read it, curious to see whether I'll make it to the end. Since it's a book that's received so much praise, I want to make sure I read it all the way through, if only out of curiosity.”

““Watching people from all walks of life take on challenges with courage filled me with a sense of adventure!””

“A book that comes to me when I make time to read, even for just five minutes, because I want to clear my mind and feel happy.”

““Even with my busy schedule, I try to make time to read. I love those moments when I can focus and organize my thoughts as I read.””

“This time, I bought a book called The Practice of Not Reacting. I wanted to calm my mind. (Laughs)”

“Just as I comforted myself by saying, “Not everything is like that,” I hope that through this book, you too will find words of comfort or a perspective of your own.”

“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.”

“Sometimes in life, a single word from someone else can easily bring us down. This book talks about how to protect yourself and love others through “just the right amount of positivity and just the right amount of courage.” I sincerely hope that all of you readers will come away from this book with “just the right amount of positivity and courage.””

“I was impressed by that and named it Dongihon.”

“It's a book called < 1cm+ >, and a fan gave it to me.”

“I have read the manga since I was little, so its characters have influenced me.”

“I hope this book can offer even a little strength to people who are at a crossroads or feeling exhausted.”

“It's interesting.”

“Like imagining myself as a character in a novel, for example.”

“to me I would definitely say five stars”

““I was drawn to the line on the first page of this book, ‘You’re crazy because of the person you love,’ so I bought it right away and read it.””

““I have lived 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 that the two works released this time were written in such excellent English. I think the level is higher than the English I use. (Laughs.)””

““One Piece””

“Shall I recommend Pride and Prejudice?”

“Encyclopedia of Strange Diseases.”

“I also liked Hideo Okuda’s The Aerial Trapeze. Each short story features unusual patients who receive counseling and suggested treatments. I wanted to get counseling from Ibura, the doctor in the novel, too.”

“Maybe because I read it when I was young, it has somehow stayed in my memory.”

“Seongju speaks English so naturally. It’s not as if he learned it; it’s more like he’s always been good at it. And the fact that he kindly shares all his secrets like this—there’s no reason not to try following his example!”

“I hope many musicians studying composition don’t read this book. Let me be the only one!”

“Joan Didion’s *Blue Nights*.”

“This book and the “Gen Z Bookshelf” interview sparked my interest in reading.”

“Three years ago, I was given a book called *Anything Can Be Inspiration* as a gift. It’s also an essay, but it inspires you in a really impactful way. We work in a profession where we need to find inspiration, you know. So it helped me a lot, and it’s for people who are marketers.”

“Among the many books, one is Music Short Story Collection, a book that gathers short stories inspired by music by five novelists.”

“I think that anyone who has ever struggled with dieting will be able to take some courage from this, and I think you’ll find all the information you’re curious about.”

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

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

“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.”

““When I first read Blindness, I had a primal feeling.””

“I really empathized with it to the point of experiencing catharsis.”

““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.””

“The Devotion of Suspect X.”

“I wanted to build my own stage with “Ruby.””

“I define a singer as “someone who conveys.” Elements like pitch and performance are certainly important, but in the end, the most important thing is conveying a song and its meaning to someone.”

“I read To Kill a Mockingbird back in school, and...”

“I wanted to share with more people my everyday thoughts and feelings that I couldn’t fit into song lyrics.”

“It’ll be a happy ending anyway”

“I recommend it to you all too❤”

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

“It really deserves it. It’s entertaining, and I imagine a lot as I read.”

“It’s a name taken from a character in the webtoon *Tower of God*. I was so gentle-natured, so the CEO gave me the name to make me tougher.”

“I read *At the Edge, But I Haven’t Fallen Yet*! It’s divided into various topics, so I enjoyed reading it, and it warmed my heart. It’s a book that really helps you regroup. Now let’s get moving!”

“"The Little Prince feels different every time I read it—now, five years from now, or ten years from now."”

““The love and psychology between men and women in many different situations are captured like a movie.””

“And the book I’d like to recommend today is The Tea House at Cape Rainbow. It’s a book I read as I entered my thirties. Lately, I’ve found myself drawn to the author’s descriptions of scenery and flavors. When I encountered abstract and emotional ideas, I felt a deep attraction to the writing, savoring it as I formed my own images from my experiences.”

“Ah, is that it?”

“I think it would be good to read it with a light, relaxed mind.”

“I started reading so that I could live as an ordinary person. I’m reading to find out what I want to become and what I need to do from now on.”

“Financial security creates creative freedom.”

“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.”

“Wow ㅠㅠ Make sure you read it all!!”

“The way it unfolds is so unique and captivating that I read the whole thing in one sitting. I had been caught up in a hectic routine amid my busy schedule, but throughout the book, its gripping storytelling gave me a very new feeling.”

“A while ago, a director I know gave me What Is Death? as a gift. It compiles lectures by Professor Shelly Kagan of Yale University, but honestly, it’s very difficult.”

“It’s a book called *Obsession*. Annie Ernaux writes candidly, like a diary, about how awful she became when the lover she’d been seeing got a new lover. I think that’s when I first became a little curious about it.”

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

“Whenever I learn something from reading a book like this, I feel bad if I don’t tell Gaeko.”

“저 절창이라는 책을 사봤는데 재밌는 거 같아요!!”

““When I ask you an awkward question, you know? (Announcer Kim Ju-woo) smiles and politely turns me down.””

“As I got further into the latter half, I found myself thinking how astonishing it was. This is the first book that has made me feel that way. I was amazed by how it planted clues and then brought them back later.”

“There’s a book I finished in two days. It’s called The Greenhouse at the End of the Earth. It’s really good.”

“Most recently, I read a book called Almond that a friend gave me.”

“I read Gu Byeong-mo's book *Gills* three times.”

“Then I remembered that I had read Musso’s earlier book, Call from an Angel, some time ago…”

“While reading that book called Tools of Titans”

“I also read poet Kim Seung-il’s *Prometheus*. Poet Kim Seung-il’s poems were very difficult, but I was shocked in many ways.”

“Paulo Coelho once said, “Travel alone or with your wife.” To me, it sounded like, “Travel alone.””

“I cried a lot, especially at the parts about parents.”

“Two people, each with their own wounds, meet and make each other's everyday lives feel okay. To me, you're that kind of friend.”

“A little arboretum breathing in the palm of my hand”

“The Courage to Be Disliked.”

“The Little Prince is such a famous work, you know. I first encountered it as an animated film, and later read it as a book. I want to express the feelings I experienced through contemporary dance.”

“I like writing handwritten letters, and I’m very grateful to receive them, too. A letter is something you put your heart into, and you write it because you really like that person. In fact, (fans) can’t always see me. There are so many times when we’re far apart, but when I think that they must have pressed their feelings into each and every character as they wrote while thinking of me, I really can’t take the letters lightly. I feel like I get a lot of strength from reading them.”

““The part I like best is when the man, who had kept his heart closed off, opens up to the woman and says, ‘Stay with me tonight, Clara.’ Even in the film based on the novel, that scene is the best.””

“That's why it has become a truly unforgettable novel of my life, even to this day.”

“Just as I have put into the book the hope that the fleeting emotions I felt in each moment might offer comfort and strength, even if only for a single moment, to someone who picks it up, I want to create a time when we can share empathy and communicate not as writer and reader, but as people.”

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

“I really want to recommend the book I’m reading right now to you all. A Man Called Ove. I bought it and started reading it without giving it much thought, just because people said it was fun. As I read, there were times I laughed, I almost cried, and I learned a lot. You should definitely read it 👍”

“I’m not very interested in novels, but this book made me so curious about what would happen next that I kept reading.”

“The Little Prince”

“Maybe it’s also similar to the story of *Peter Pan*. So before this round of activities, I started digging into *Peter Pan* and went through various dark fairy tales. The dark fairy tales in particular felt new to me because they were different from what I knew as a child.”

“It contains ways for creators to express how they communicate with the public and inspire empathy, as well as methods for finding inspiration.”

“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…”

““A book Choi Ja recommended to me; it was written based on research on aging.””

““I know how avid readers actually read books and how intellectual people think, so I hope people will just read it casually.””

“I think I found a lot of comfort.”

“Of course, you need to have practiced enough, and you also need to be fully prepared in terms of how you look onstage. But what matters most is believing in yourself and enjoying the stage.”

“It’s called ‘Übermensch’—advice you need for living? That’s the sort of thing it is. I haven’t finished reading it yet either. It has content similar to the ‘values’ I mentioned earlier. I haven’t even read quite half, but it was such a good book that I’d like to recommend it! And it’s not thick. You know how the book Cosmos is, like, this big, hahaha. I think it’s good to carry around and read. I think it was in the car...”

“Father, I thank you for letting me know, even if only vaguely, the joy of a life focused on you.”

“In particular, the poetry collection *Love as if You Have Never Been Hurt* left a deep impression on me.”

“I started writing and reading books again, as I did when I was young. I recently read Life Lessons by psychiatrist and writer Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, and what I’m reading now is About Her by Japanese author Banana Yoshimoto.”

“It’s kind of giving me chills, but when I read this first sentence, I realized I’m the one who became Spencer as Holfield grew up.”

“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.”

“I’d like to recommend A World of Children to people who enjoy watching My Golden Kids and want to understand themselves and others a little better.”

“That's pretty ingenious, though—but wow!! I honestly don't quite get the whole pure, devoted love vibe.”

““I enjoyed reading the novel Coffee Prince, 1st Shop.””

““Rebonds” is a particularly special project to me. I’m very proud and excited to be part of this project supporting UNICEF. This initiative shows how important it is to protect and support those in need, especially children. Every child deserves equal opportunities in life, and it is our collective responsibility to ensure that the most vulnerable receive essential support.”

““At the time, the bestseller was The Courage to Be Disliked. I came out with a lot of courage to be disliked.””

“I find it so amazing too, and hearing that the song I made as a gift for my child is coming out as a picture book like this feels quite moving.”

“It is a quick-results diet book for getting bikini-ready for summer.”

“It feels as though the pieces of Motown I already knew are falling into place.”

“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’d read a book called *The Secret* before, too, and it was similar to the law of attraction described in it...”

““There are a few rules I dislike. (…) First, rhymes are usually grouped in sets of an even number, and one criterion is that the two words shouldn’t both be nouns. I also tend to dislike rhymes like ‘did something, would do something, did something? would do something?’ On the other hand, the rhymes I consider best follow all these criteria, while still making the content clear in your mind just from reading the rhymes. For example, there might be 16 bars of lyrics, but even reading only the rhymes should bring the content to mind. (…) (In the hook of ‘Jakdu,’) ‘Jakdu’ and ‘ssakduk’ rhyme, but one is a noun and the other is an onomatopoeic word. The rhyme works, their parts of speech are different, and the meaning makes sense. That’s what I think makes a good rhyme. _p.354””

“I found some time to relax on this trip.”

“This is a silent human drama. It’s such a joy to see a friend you care about succeed. It brings back all those ambitions we had back then: we especially loved the weird and wanted to be even weirder, in some way. Thanks to this book, I feel as though a passion that will never rot, like Kim’s fruit, and the spirited Moonchi I was back then have come back to me. Thank you so much! And there’s nothing about me in it, huh?”

“As I was writing this book...”

“When I hear this song, I think of the book Toward the Place Where the Sun Sets.”

“A book I want to take out and read whenever I think of my beloved pet who went to Dog Star. I related to Jiyul’s feelings and was deeply moved by Byeol’s love!”

“There’s a book by author Kim Eana called *Ordinary Words*.”

“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 really enjoyed reading the book. It helped me see the world a little more deeply and broadly.”

“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.”

“There was nothing to do at the training camp, so I read books. I also kept a diary, and I cried twice.”

“At the time, I really liked the great insight I gained from the story of the Indians in writer Park Min-gyu’s book *Pavane for a Dead Princess*.”

“It’s a work that reflects on the value of human life through a doctor named Sashal, who is a metaphor for a “lucky person” in modern society, where most people are unhappy. But more than that, what resonated most with me was Sashal’s way of embodying the ideal human relationships I hope for.”

“I thought I should have my child read it, so I made a note of it, bought it, and had my child read it.”

“This book is called “Schopenhau to Read Before Bed.””

“You can see there are so many bookmark tabs.”

“There were so many passages I could relate to and wanted to learn from! [How YVES Reads #2]”

“So I can’t finish this book! lol I have to read it over and over again.”

“So that’s what he said. But on the very next page, he says, “In life, suffering and concerns are necessary.””

“Then I get all confused while reading!”

“I’m like, “But you just said they’re the two enemies!””

“And then again, it’s like, “Suffering and concerns are common in life.””

“Ah, I see.”

“Mmm... I see what you mean.”

“This book is also very realistic, and it’s a great book to read if you want to be comforted and clear your mind of your worries.”

“So I recommend this book too.”

“I ended up making an effort to get away from the media world a bit.”

““Don’t compare yourself to anyone else; compare yourself only to who you were yesterday. When someone else is speaking, think of them as someone who may tell you something you need to know. Speak clearly and precisely. Keep company only with people who expect the best of you. Choose the meaningful path, not the easy one. Through these and all twelve rules, I hope you can end a meaningless life and wisely ‘navigate’ the sea of life.””

““Thrillers are the best airplane reads and this one is an all-time fave when I need a little escape from reality. I am personally addicted to stories about people who will go wild lengths to get what they want.””

“He gave me a book as a gift.”

“It’s a book called The Joy of Young Werther.”

“I haven’t read it yet, but I think my dad gave me a book he’d already read. It wasn’t new!”

“Not that famous book! I think it’s another essay!”

“Actually, I haven’t read The Sorrows of Young Werther either, so I’m going to start with The Joy of Young Werther!”

“Yeah, yeah, maybe he hoped I’d find the wisdom in the conversations I’d had with my dad in this book, too. I should read it!”

“Anyway, I thought that someday I want to be someone who can pass on this kind of wisdom to someone else in my own way!”

“I find that wisdom in our ATINY, too, so I should become that kind of person myself.”

“Even when I read books, I imagine all the scenes as I go.”

“I really, truly, uh, loved it so much that I was like, “This is the book of my life.””

“Perhaps it means that you shouldn’t worry so much about other people’s opinions and should live at ease. I think they want me to know that even if I live according to my own opinions, the world won’t change all that much.”

““I read it when I was young, too, but it seems to mean something different each time I read it. As I get older, and at each stage of my life, my interpretation changes. There are lots of plays on words in the book, and it’s a world of make-believe, isn’t it? They stimulate my imagination, and it’s fun to picture a Wonderland in my mind. And above all, I think the book’s strength is that it doesn’t force a lesson on you.””

“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 didn’t study music theory separately, and there’s a book called Popular Music Theory. It’s a thick book that teaches you things like the basics of arranging and how chord progressions work. That’s how I learned.”

“I was surprised by the content, which seemed to look into the joys and sorrows I experienced while promoting as a member of H.O.T.”

“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.”

““Reading is the foundation of music creation.””

“I immediately bought and read the translated original novel.”

“I went to Canada to study abroad when I was 12. I compiled the diary I wrote at the time and published it as a book.”

““A favorite book? The one I read this time was My Own Secret.””

“I read it straight through for eight hours on the 15th, which was a weekend, and my mother, whom I had buried deep in my heart and forgotten about in my everyday life, came to mind, and I sobbed uncontrollably.”

“This is my first book report! I’m a man who keeps his promises.”

“Before my debut, I read Han Kang’s novel The White Book and was deeply moved. In particular, the line “Even if I am sullied, I will pass on only the white things” resonated deeply with me, and I chose the stage name “Heen (HYNN)” because of it.”