On the hunt for an English bookstore to call home

For many foreign students who come to K orea with a love of literature, it can be somewhat difficult to find boo k s to read because of the language barrier and the scarcity of English boo k stores — especially physical ones.

Many boo k stores around the city only sell K orean texts, which are not always the easiest option for the 1.96 million foreigners living in K orea as of 2021, according to the Korean Statistical Information Service. 

“English boo k s are available, although not widely,” said Latifa Se k arini, an undergraduate student at Yonsei University. “Since I moved to K orea, I started finding boo k s online. If you’re a U.S. citizen, you can probably ma k e an account on apps li k e Libby and connect it to an actual library card in a U.S. state. I did that several times because K orean boo k stores just do not have the boo k s I want, or it would ta k e too long to deliver boo k s.”

Although selection and availability are some big concerns, most foreigners do try to turn to online boo k stores to obtain English boo k s they want to read.  

One famous online store is Aladin, where you can browse through many sections and genres and buy physical copies and even eBoo k s if the option is available. There is also a used boo k section that you can browse to see if you can get the titles you want for a cheaper price. Aladin is available in K orean, though, so it might be a bit tric k y to navigate. It also offers one-day shipping for many boo k s, so it would be handy in case you immediately need a boo k for one of your classes.

Another convenient online store that offers a great selection is the K yobo Boo k Centre. This store doesn’t offer an English browsing option, but it is easy to navigate. You can even place orders for certain boo k s, including college textboo k s. K yobo also has a mobile app for Samsung Galaxy users called K yobo eBoo k for Samsung, so you can download the app for further convenience.

The biggest physical boo k store in K orea with an English boo k s section is K yobo Boo k Centre’s Gwanghwamun branch, located in Jongno District, central Seoul. It was opened in 1981 and since then, the store has undergone many renovations and changes, also recently extending its English section.

“In theory, I prefer buying boo k s offline, because you can ta k e a loo k at the blurb and if it is unsealed, you can flip through the pages,” said Se k arini. “There is this particular boo k store I enjoyed visiting, and it is called Hidden Boo k . Although the shelves are quite narrow and li k e any other second-hand boo k store you cannot visit with a specific boo k in mind because there is no guarantee they will have it, I always enjoy loo k ing through the boo k s they have. I’ve found really interesting boo k s for a good price.”

One of the oldest boo k stores in K orea that specializes in selling English boo k s is the Foreign Boo k Store, located in Yongsan District in central Seoul. The store was opened in 1973 to sell used boo k s from American soldiers and families at the military base in Yongsan District. The store still sells used boo k s as well as new boo k s.

The exterior of the store is covered in shelves of boo k s — mostly children’s boo k s — and is a fitting appetizer for the sheer number of boo k s inside the store. Inside, you find yourself overwhelmed as there is not an inch of wall that is not covered in boo k s.

The greatest thing about the Itaewon Foreign Boo k store is its selection. The right wall next to the entrance is covered in fantasy titles li k e “Lord of the Rings” and “A Song of Ice and Fire.” The shelves right in front of it hold non-fiction titles and bestsellers, while a small corridor to the right leads to a cave of children’s literature and a mishmash of other genres. 

The bac k of the store is full of educational boo k s li k e encyclopedias and boo k s on subjects like coo k ing, gardening and crafts. There are also spaces dedicated to specific authors such as Haru k i Mura k ami and Mitch Albom.

A lot of the charm of the store comes from the fact that it sells both used and new boo k s. The store indicates their condition using stic k ers — green indicates lightly used boo k s, yellow indicates used boo k s, and red indicates heavily used boo k s.

There are also some English boo k clubs in Seoul where avid boo k readers can find a community. One such club is the Itaewon Boo k Club. Christopher Jones and Brian Ba k er — who wor k ed at the Seoul English Education Center in Gapyeong, Gyeonggi — founded the club in 2015.

“We [ran the club] for a while, just the two of us, and then slowly but surely some more members came in and they stayed for a while and then they left and then other members would join and they stayed,” said Jones. “But all throughout we’ve had a steady stream of committed members and the reason [the club] has stayed around is because I thin k we all enjoy a good boo k .”

Shortly after, Jones and Ba k er made the group public by creating a Meetup page on the internet. Anyone can go to the website, sign up, and k eep up with club meeting announcements.

“I try my best to get the conversation started with what I found most interesting about the boo k ,” said Jones. “And then we just let the conversation go in the most organic way possible, li k e whatever people find interesting and whatever other people find interesting about that.”

The club used to meet offline but switched to an online format due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, Jones expressed his wish to resume face-to-face meetings soon and painted a very inviting picture of what offline club meetings loo k li k e.

The club has open membership. You don’t need to qualify for anything to apply — you just have to clic k the “join” button on the club’s Meetup page and show up to the meetings having read the boo k up for discussion that day.

“Heated arguments often come up, you k now, and it’s part of one of the nice areas of life occasionally,” said Jones. “But there is only one rule that I li k e to abide by, that I as k everyone to abide by in the club is just don’t interrupt people.”

“You can say anything you li k e but please don’t spea k over someone, please wait until the other person is done spea k ing before you do because, in my experience, if two people are arguing, one person doesn’t have to be proven right or show himself to be the winner of the argument. A person just wants to k now that they’ve been heard. I thin k that goes a long way in ma k ing an environment where a group of total strangers can come together and tal k about deep and rich themes together.”

Given the number of boo k  clubs and boo k stores that increasingly include English sections, it would seem that the English reading culture in K orea is thriving. However, English reading communities are still scarce and foreigners still feel the need for more reading options in K orean boo k stores.

“From a university student’s perspective, I’d say it would broaden the topic for research, since a ton of students can benefit from it,” said Se k arini. “Maybe there are students who would li k e to do research for their thesis, or students who want to broaden their vocabulary.

“I thin k K orea would also benefit from having more boo k s that are translated into English from non-East Asian countries. South Asian and Southeast Asian nations have great wor k s that have been translated into English. I remember one of my friends telling me that it was super hard for her to find English translations of South Asian wor k s.”

BY STUDENT REPORTER AAMNA SHEHZAD