The outdoor library event "Read at Seoul Plaza" from April 23 will be opened in the space in front of Seoul City Hall in the capital's Jung-gu District. (Yonhap News)

By Hong Kilju

The Seoul Metropolitan Government on April 19 announced the opening of the outdoor library event "Read at Seoul Plaza" on April 23 at Seoul Plaza in front of Seoul City Hall to mark World Book Day.

This is the first outdoor event to be held at the site in two years due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

From April 23 to Oct. 29, the library's hours will be from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays. It will be closed during the rainy season and on the Chuseok (Korean Thanksgiving) holidays.

People can read books from the outdoor shelves of Seoul Plaza or Seoul Library during the event period.

The outdoor space consists of bookshelf, reading and event zones.

The Bookshelf Zone has more than 3,000 books on eight mobile shelves that resemble book carts.

The Reading Zone is an open lawn space where up to 500 people can read books, and will have 70 bean bags, 330 mats and 20 parasol sets.

And the Event Zone will host interactive programs.

On the outdoor library's opening day, a 10 m-tall balloon in the form of someone reading a book will be installed. The outdoor stage will also feature a magic show, circus, musical performances and book discussions.

The poster for the outdoor library event "Read at Seoul Plaza" (Seoul Metropolitan City)