Bestsellers through the Ages

It is hard to avoid mentioning the Journal of Baekbeom when discussing Korea¡¯s best-selling literature during the modern and contemporary period. Published in 1948, the book is an autobiography written by Kim Gu, a prominent Korean independence activist, and all Koreans are familiar with it. Kim¡¯s book, which talks about his experiences leading the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea in Shanghai and his fight against Japanese imperialism after Korea became a colony of Japan, is still read by many Koreans and helps them to understand their national and historical identities.

The biggest bestseller of Korea¡¯s modern period is Jung Bi-seok (1911-1991)¡¯s novel Madame Freedom, which was published in 1954. The book sold 140,000 copies when the most popular novels only sold around 30,000 copies. It became even more popular when it was made into a film. The book came as a shock to many readers because it focused on sexual morality. Specifically, it portrayed a married woman and her university professor husband involved in extramarital dalliances. Many people openly criticized Jung for the novel. Nonetheless, Madame Freedom was popular because it showed the realities of the country¡¯s society at a time when it faced confusion, disorder and the collapse of traditional values right after the Korean War.

Korea had rapidly achieved industrialization by the 1970s. While the era was defined by high economic growth, Korean society faced increasing difficulties. Koreans needed psychological comfort to come to terms with the endless competition to achieve success and the fatigue caused by a consumption-driven society that looked down on human values. The book Musoyu (Non-possessions), written by a Buddhist monk named Beopjeong, gave readers comfort and soon became a bestseller. The book still ranks as the biggest seller in Korea¡¯s ¡°essay¡± market and continues to be a steady seller.

In the 1980s, Korea entered an era of political oppression. Korean society, for its part, was faced with worsening mammonism and hedonism. Kim Hong-shin¡¯s novel Human Market sold more than one million copies in 1983, just two years after its publication, becoming Korea¡¯s first book to sell more than a million copies. The novel, which combined action, eroticism and melodrama, was popular because it offered an escape for people under political oppression.

By the 1990s, Korea had achieved both economic development and democratization. For the first time in the modern era, Koreans enjoyed respite from their past difficulties and, naturally, began to turn to fulfilling their cultural desires. Yoo Hongjun¡¯s book, My Exploration of Cultural Heritage helped to fill this craving. The book, which introduced cultural and historical sites the author had visited, was a 10-part series, with the first volume published in 1993 and the last volume coming out in 2017. The book¡¯s move to the bestseller list reflected people¡¯s new interest in experiencing history and culture through travel.

Koreans have tried to find their way forward by
reading various genres of literature.