Kim Youngha's "Only One Life" Becomes April's Best-Selling Book... Outsells Reference Guides
Integrated Publishing Distribution System Rankings
Online and Offline Combined, "Only One Life" Takes First Place
After the New School Year, All Top 10 Spots Go to Standalone Books
Author Kim Youngha's new essay, "Only One Life," was recorded as the best-selling book in domestic bookstores throughout April.
According to the "Top 200 Noteworthy Books" compiled by the Korea Publishing and Culture Industry Promotion Agency's integrated publishing distribution system, which aggregates sales data from Kyobo Bookstore, Yes24, Aladin, Youngpoong Bookstore, and 277 local bookstores nationwide, all of the top 10 books were standalone works such as novels. This is a shift from March, the start of the new school year, when 9 out of the top 10 books were reference or study guides. Only 2 reference books made it into the top 20.
The second spot went to author Han Kang's new release, "Light and Thread." In addition, four of Han Kang's works?including "The Boy Is Coming," "We Do Not Say Goodbye," and "The Vegetarian"?were included in the top 20.
Total book sales for April amounted to 139.3 billion won, a 26.38% decrease compared to the previous month (189.2 billion won), but a 4.49% increase compared to the same month last year (133.3 billion won).
A representative from the publishing data system explained, "After the start of the new school year, sales of reference and study guides declined, resulting in a significant month-on-month drop in sales. However, the release of new books by high-profile authors appears to have driven a year-on-year increase in sales."
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The "Top 200 Noteworthy Books" list is announced around the 10th of every month and provides readers with information on popular books. Detailed analytical data for the period can be found at the end of the month in the publishing data system's "Sales Data Report." In addition, the system offers a variety of statistical data, including rankings by sales channel, number of copies sold, and total sales revenue.
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