The book 'In the End, the People Do It' written by Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, regained the top spot on the bestseller list.
According to the bestseller rankings announced by Kyobo Bookstore on May 9, 'In the End, the People Do It' climbed three spots from last week to reclaim the top position. The candidate's book reached number one in the second week of April after its release, but fell to second in the third week and fourth in the fourth week. However, as the presidential election nears, it has returned to the top this time.
Along with this, the candidate's previous book is also gaining attention. The essay 'The Road We Walk Together' published in 2022 has newly entered the rankings at number 24.
A Kyobo Bookstore official noted that readers are increasingly reading previously published out-of-print books as e-books, such as 'Lee Jae-myung's My Boy Diary' and 'Lee Jae-myung's Curved Arm.'
Supporters' encouragement and broadcaster Kim Eo-jun's remarks appear to have influenced book sales. Following the Supreme Court's ruling on May 1 confirming the guilty verdict on the candidate's election law violation case, posts encouraging the purchase of the candidate's book began to flood online communities.
On the 30th of last month, Kim mentioned the candidate's trial and attorney expense issue during a broadcast on his YouTube channel 'Kim Eo-jun's Humble Is Hard News Factory,' saying, 'It’s absurd to be charged and have five trials, but all the expenses must be covered personally. Recently, what book does the candidate have? We should run a book campaign for a while.'
Meanwhile, the revised edition of Yoo Si-min's 'Reading of Youth' entered at number two upon its release. The purchasing ratio for those in their 40s was the highest at 40.1%, followed by 32.5% for those in their 50s and 17% for those in their 30s. The ratio of readers in their teens and 20s was merely 3.8%.
Last week's number one, Han Kang's 'The Light and Shadows,' dropped to third place. Another book by the author, 'The Boy Comes,' rose one spot to rank seventh.
Kim Geum-hee's new novel 'First Summer, Wanju' has entered at number 17. Koo Byeong-mo's novel 'The Old Woman with the Knife,' published 12 years ago, rose 29 spots to 22nd place, benefiting from the release of the film of the same name.