The stories behind their books

“I stopped watching The Ravages of Time partway through.”

“This is a book I'm reading. It's about how the story keeps going back through the generations—my mother's mother, my mother's mother's mother, and so on. So it's really interesting and has a great atmosphere. It's a healing book to read.”

“I think at least The Attributes of Money / Rich Dad Poor Dad are books really worth reading two or three times.”

“This book was written by my uncle—my aunt’s husband, you know?”

“My attitude seems to have changed, so I recommend reading the short story called *Ahopsu Gawi*.”

““I read the Analects and so much of it really resonates with me. I love learning from it. One thing that comes to mind is, ‘The noble person is at ease, while the petty person is always anxious.’ That brings comfort to my heart.””

“A book I’m so glad to find, for me, who dreams of becoming a showbiz singer at sixty.”

““I got into poetry by reading ‘Love, as if You Have Never Been Hurt (Ryu Si-hwa).’””

“This book is called "If I Could Life My Life Again" by Hyenam Kim.”

“She wrote "What would've been better if I had known at age 40."”

“So like this, it was like messages that are very professional but also messages from my mom.”

“So I cried while reading this book too.”

“Unlike the poetry books I recommended earlier, this book is not abstract.”

“I recommend this book to those who want to feel comforted in a direct manner.”

“I think I can take one step closer to becoming that kind of person only if I’m happy first and receive energy.”

““Please keep all the stories we shared in ‘1719’ as our own secret.””

“It’s about how she became a star when she was young and what life as an actor was like; it’s a really sad story.”

“They say one person’s life becomes a landscape for someone else. To EXO-L (EXO’s official fan club), I’ll continue to show you many wonderful sides of myself. Thank you. I love you.”

“I had always wanted to try to do that seemingly impossible thing: to be loved precisely and to love precisely.”

“A book one must read”

“If you find out the title of the book, most of you will probably give up [trying to read it]... The Perpetual Fluctuation of Wealth ^^ Hahahahahaha, everyone will give up. You should read it all. I also bought a book called People Born in the ’90s Are Coming. Try challenging yourself [to read] this book too 😄”

“That is so true. I’m in such a good mood today. Even if something bad happens while I’m feeling happy, I feel like I have the leeway to just laugh it off.”

“I also recommend <Happiness Doesn't Come Alone> and Sister Lee Hae-in’s essay book <Just Cry When Things Are Hard>.”

“I read *Romantic Love and Its Aftermath*. It’s such an adult book that I couldn’t understand all of it, but there was this line: “You can’t be in a relationship on feelings alone.” It meant that feelings of love or liking someone aren’t enough to be with a person; their tastes, depth of thought, and values have to align for you to become truly close to them. Just because you like someone doesn’t mean you can have a deep relationship with them. It made me think that the adults who say that, as time passes, only one or two friends remain really have a point.”

“If I were to recommend a book I've read recently... it would be Alain de Botton's Why Do I Love You?”

“As I was reading the book, my mom’s spicy whelk-and-noodle dish came straight to mind.”

“Slam Dunk is a manga I revisit regularly; it’s one of my all-time favorites. I’m not much of a crier, but works like Slam Dunk, which make my heart burn with passion, bring me to tears.”

“I tend to read several books at once, so there are quite a few books I start but don’t manage to finish. Unfortunately, Crime and Punishment became one of those books….”

“But I haven’t given up! It just means the perfect time to read that book hasn’t come yet. When I feel the time is right, I’ll definitely pick it up again, finish it, and tell W what I thought first!”

“People who are at a crossroads, people who want to travel but don’t have time, people who are curious about Hawaii, and people who need healing.”

“I underlined it because I really related to this description. When I have some kind of realization or feel really happy, I feel the same way: “Ah, this is what it feels like.””

“It’s an interesting book. It’s interesting.”

“I read Ernest Hemingway’s *The Old Man and the Sea*, and it was so much fun. It’s quite short, but I finished it in about two hours.”

“I’ve been a fan for a long time, and since this was a new release after such a long time, I bought and read it without a second thought. It didn’t disappoint, and gave Sacho lots of inspiration. Definitely a must-have, a definite must-have.”

“Actually, I was in the library club in my first year of high school, and around my second year I joined another club. Was it the economics club? We read things like 『The Prince』 and 『An Essay on the Principle of Population』, summarized them, and gave presentations in PowerPoint.”

“This book reminds me that life is worth living, so I confidently recommend it.”

“Among the books I’ve read recently is one called *Reading Schopenhauer at Forty*. I wanted to read it when I was 20, so I did.”

“After finding the answer in the Bible, I became able to answer the question “Why do you live?” without hesitation. That answer became the anchor of my life and the source of my passion. (...) I sincerely hope this book can give a clear reason to live to someone who feels empty, desolate, lonely, anxious, afraid, or depressed—and above all, to someone who is thinking of giving up on life (p. 10).”

“I also recommend “One Person on Earth” (Jung Se-rang).”

“Author! I read *Human Acts* while I was in the military. Sob, congratulations!”

“Prince is actually my favorite of the whole series”

“I think this is a book of aphorisms that I enjoyed reading about six or seven years ago.”

“I highly recommend it.”

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

“This one. If Cats Disappeared from the World.”

“It's been quite a while since I bought Douglas Kennedy's The Big Picture, but I've been so busy that I still haven't started it.”

“Milan Kundera’s *Slowness* was good too. It was exactly what the word says: “slowness.” It felt like a book telling people who have to live in this fast-paced modern age that they should live slowly. I’m really slow myself.”

“A little while ago, I read a book called *The Wizard’s Bakery*.”

“The book I read yesterday was one called Maldok, and it was really interesting.”

“I sought out and read Pachinko because I suddenly wanted to get a feel for Korea’s modern history.”

“I recently read Philosophy Changes the Weather. I’ve always been quite interested in philosophy and found it fascinating, but this book discussed philosophy through everyday topics that were easy to relate to, so I really enjoyed it. After reading it, I wanted to try books that explore philosophy in greater depth.”

““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 bought the book! I'll enjoy reading it.”

“It’s a book written for artists, and I felt like it really opened up my perspective.”

“Hahaha, if my mom sees what I read, she might say something, but these are the books I picked up from January through March at the beginning of this year while talking about things like “the energy of the universe.” I think The Nature of Money and Rich Dad Poor Dad are really books worth reading two or three times, and the other books left me with a lesson along the lines of “use your heart for good.” People shouldn’t live narrow-mindedly, you know.”

“This is a very warm and easy-to-read book.”

“It is set during the Japanese colonial period, a time when society was highly unsettled. Although women had relatively fewer opportunities than men at the time, she fought for the social course she believed was right. It was a book that made me reflect on myself.”

“I found *The Buddha’s Words, Newly Translated* really impressive, and when I heard those words, they gave me so much strength, so they stayed with me.”

“Still, I thought, “I hope lots of people get to know about this,” and I really hoped it had helped, even a little.”

“I read Human Acts while in the military. Congratulations.”

“For me, I would definitely say five stars.”

“O my Kafka on the Shore”

“i recently read a book called <me before you>. it was really touching. you should read it.”

“as i said earlier, there's a book called <me before you> and i hope you try and read it once. i think it'll be really fun if carats read it.”

“This is a book I started reading because it was at the TWICE dorm, and I think this book is exactly what its title says: “doing something for myself.””

“As I read it, I found it incredibly delicate. Not only the expressions and descriptions, but also the emotional threads are woven together so intricately that it pains my heart as I read. I think it’s a book every Korean should read.”

“Orbital”

“Have you read <A Person Harmless to Me>?”

“Knulp is a book I found after reading Demian and becoming curious about Hermann Hesse’s work.”

“I really, really recommend this poetry book”

“I’ve only read about twenty pages, but you know that thrilling feeling, that kind of feeling…”

“The wit in Berlin Diary is really something.”

“There’s a book by bell hooks called All About Love. It’s still my favorite work. Picking a favorite is so hard, especially for someone like me. (laughs) It taught me about the importance of community and how to create a culture where love can exist. So it also made me reflect a lot on my work with LE SSERAFIM. I think I would have come to this realization much later if I hadn’t read this book. The timing of when I read it, too, makes it a meaningful book. I’ve talked about it a lot with the members, so the memories I have connected with All About Love are incredibly precious to me.”

“I think at least The Attributes of Money / Rich Dad Poor Dad are books really worth reading two or three times.”

“I regretted not having read your books sooner.”

“How to boost your courage and confidence, recommended by Hyeongseop 🐰🩵📚📖”

““Don’t cling to things. If you don’t cling to anything in the world, there’s nothing to worry about; but the moment you become attached, that way of thinking gives rise to suffering and makes things difficult.” Seeing those words gave me a lot of strength.”

“It has helped me a lot, so I often recommend it to people around me.”

“I heard it was fun.”

“I had read it once before, and it was really difficult.”

“If I had read The Stranger earlier, I wouldn’t have chosen my original name, Rap Monster.”

“the wings of kirin”

“I remember reading this book while crying. I hardly ever cry when I’m reading. The protagonist has a terminal illness.”

“There’s also a book I recently bought after it was recommended to me, which I’m planning to read: The Laws of the Mind by Volker Kitz and Manuel Tusch. My acting mentor, Min Jun-ho, head of the theater company Ganda, recommended it, and I’m planning to read it soon.”

“I also liked his newly released *Me Without You*.”

“And this book—I'm reading it now.”

“When I was grappling with questions about life, I drew a lot of strength from Hwang Sok-yong’s The Evening Star.”

“But I apparently read it.”

“I enjoyed reading Han Kang’s Love of Yeosu and The Vegetarian, Yang Gui-ja’s Contradiction, and Jeong Dae-geon’s Torrent, among others.”

“It really felt like a drama, with such a story of grown-up love that I even thought, “I wonder if I could find it if I looked it up.””

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

“Books are difficult. I didn’t understand it, so I closed it around halfway through.”

“I chose Hermann Hesse’s novel Siddhartha as my first book. Appearing on Minumsa TV’s YouTube channel got me interested in classical literature, and since it was a story about Buddhism, I thought it might calm my mind. I usually like mystery and thriller genres, but for the first book of this year, I wanted to start with one that could help me find peace of mind.”

“It was something that gave me insight and resonated with me.”

“Others read it at forty, but I wanted to read it at twenty.”

“I read your book *Human Acts* while I was in the military. Congratulations.”

“If you’ve read even one book, you’re a reader.”

““I want to look back on everything from our debut up to now before more time passes.””

“These days, I’m reading a book called “Dallergut’s Dream Department Store.” When the novel talks about the dream department store, I can picture it in my mind. I read while imagining myself shopping there.”

“I didn’t just read this book once; I read it several times, but…”

“This is also a book read by Heath Ledger, an actor I like. It's Gustave Flaubert's novel Sentimental Education. After seeing the book appear in the documentary film I Am Heath Ledger, I became curious about what he was thinking when he read it.”

“Although you may think it’s difficult because it’s a classic, once you open the book, you can enjoy reading it.”

“It's really fun.”

“I think every artist should read it at least once”

“[Next is 'Hunger'] And 'Hunger' is”

“a love story”

“But it's an extremely tragic and sad love story”

“What struck me the most was…”

“After Gu dies, Dam becomes determined to eat him”

“But as I was reading…”

“I knew what the plot was about before I started reading”

“By the time I finished reading, I was kind of convinced It felt like that”

“There were so many lines that resonated with me”

“But that book is really polarizing”

“There are a lot of graphic descriptions too”

“But the people who like it will really like it”

“I personally loved it!”

“I did well in January The book for January was 'Hunger'”

“I enjoyed reading Han Kang’s *Love of Yeosu* and *The Vegetarian*, Yang Gui-ja’s *Contradiction*, Jeong Dae-geon’s *Torrent*, and others.”

“It’s really fascinating: by coincidence, I always end up reading a book connected to our next album. After ‘EASY’ wrapped up and before we started promoting ‘CRAZY,’ I read a book called *The Madman* by Lee Hyuk-jin. The protagonist was literally a real madman. (Laughs.) So I read it thinking, ‘CRAZY—this person is really CRAZY.’ It was a book about how you can go that far when you become obsessed with something. So this book came to mind when we were promoting ‘CRAZY’ and then ‘HOT.’”

“Saying, “Am I a fan or a disciple?”—the book I’ve been working hard to read lately. I wonder if I’m going to stop being a fan and become a disciple now, or if I’ve become more resolute at heart. Because I’ve lived like a fan, I find stories about life in the world really interesting; I’ve thought I was lucky, liked having lots of money, and felt proud when I achieved my goals. But I don’t want to miss it.”

“One of the books I’ve read recently is Scythe.”

“It’s about a world where, with the emergence of something called the Thunderhead in the future, people no longer die, and a figure called a Scythe regulates the population. I think the concept is so unique: when an age comes in which people no longer die, someone still has to die, so the question is who should be the one to die.”

“I found ‘The Buddha’s Words, Newly Translated’ an impressive read.”

““I read your book Human Acts while I was in the military, Ms. Han. Congratulations.””

“The book we'll read together this time is The Man Who Died Twice by Richard Osman, the second book in the Thursday Murder Club series we read last time! You're curious about how the story continues, right?! Me too! I want to read it together… It was so much fun reading the first book together!”

““It’s something like a debate among philosophers about love. It makes you think seriously once again about how love is being consumed in modern society and about our attitudes toward dating.””

“The title mentions cats, so you might think it’s about cats, but even people who don’t have pets can relate to it.”

“Professor Jung Jae-seung’s *Twelve Steps*. It was the first book I read in the military. It made me realize that what I’m worrying about and finding difficult right now is actually perfectly natural. It was a book that guided me so I wouldn’t fall into self-pity.”