By Xu Aiying and Kim Young Shin
Photos = Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism
Seoul | June 20, 2018

"We want to publish more top-notch literary works, like those written by Han Kang.”

So said Anne Meadows, an editor at the U.K. publisher Granta Books. She was one of the international publishers who expressed interest in the export and translation of Korean literature at the Korean Literature Showcase, hosted by the Korean Culture and Information Service (KOCIS).

The event was held on the sidelines of the 2018 Seoul International Book Fair, one of the biggest book-related events in Korea. The book fair, attended by 234 Korean publishers and 91 non-Korean publishers from 32 countries, including France, the U.S., Japan, China and, the guest of honor this year, the Czech Republic, continues until June 24.

As this year marks the “year of books,” the organizers decided that “a new definition of the book” would be the theme, and hosted many exhibitions and lectures that help to expand the traditional definition and concept of the word “book.”

Special exhibitions at the book fair include a “light novel festival,” a “digital book fair” and an “era of magazines.” At the “light novel festival,” famous novella writers and illustrators from Japan were invited to a signing event and to an exhibition of original artwork. At the “digital book fair” and the “era of magazines” events, a wide range of digital publications and magazines were on display.

“I came to meet novella writers and read rare collections here,” said Park Sinyeol, a visitor to the light novel exhibition. “I’m a fan of novellas and short stories, and it’s a great pleasure to get to see some original drawings.”

There are also exhibitions for newly published books this summer and a “peace exhibition” that displays North Korean publications.



Exhibitions dedicated to the Czech Republic, the guest of honor at the fair this year, were also crowded. Czech publishers had prepared many different events to celebrate three important anniversaries: the 100th anniversary of the foundation of Czechoslovakia, the 50th anniversary of the Prague Spring, and the 25th anniversary of the establishment of today’s Czechia, or Czech Republic.

The special exhibitions in the Czech section included: “Contemporary Czech children’s book illustrators and comics authors” and “Meanwhile, elsewhere – a 100 year history of Czech comics.”

“The 2018 Seoul Book Fair is expected to be a turning point in the mutual relationship and cultural exchanges between the Czech Republic and the Republic of Korea,” said Director Michaela Lee from the Czech Centre Seoul. “Historically, it’s the first time for Czech literature to be presented to Korean readers. Literature is a powerful medium, which is able to contribute to better understanding between nations.”

President Moon Jae-in also celebrated this year’s book fair on his Facebook profile on June 20. He said, “The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism designated this year as the ’year of books’ in the hope that publishers would introduce more books to be read together by people in Korea.” He also mentioned that the theme of this year’s book fair is “a new definition of the book” and said, “In order for books to be read by more people, enhancing the accessibility of books should be continued. The government will also try to expand opportunities for the disabled and the socially disadvantaged to read more.”

xuaiy@korea.kr