Former President Moon Jae-in will attend the Seoul International Book Fair, which opens on the 18th.
The Seoul International Book Fair, the largest book festival in the country, will feature participation from 534 publishing-related organizations and publishers from 17 countries. Various prominent figures, including former President Moon, contemporary authors representing Korea, director Park Chan-wook, former professional Go player Lee Sedol, and acting president of the Constitutional Court Moon Hyung-bae, will visit the fair to meet with attendees.
Former President Moon will attend the 'Best Book Awards in Korea' ceremony at 5 p.m. on the 18th and is also likely to participate in a 'Meeting with Authors' event hosted by Pyeongsan Bookstore the following day. At this event, poets Do Jong-whan, Ando Hyun, and Park Sung-woo will discuss poetry.
This year's event will see over 100 overseas publishers from 16 countries, including Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Thailand, and Saudi Arabia, operating in the international hall. In Korea, over 430 publishers will conduct various programs such as a book market, exhibitions, lectures, and signings. The guest country of honor is Taiwan, featuring over 30 authors, including Ch'en Hsueh and Ch'en Ssu-hung, along with 26 publishers and organizations.
This year's theme is 'A reliable corner.' The intent is to seek each individual's 'reliable corner' at the book fair amid the increasingly challenging reality. The Korean Publishers Association, which hosts the fair, explained, '"A reliable corner" could be someone close by, something I need to create, or something yet to come. We represented everyone's 'reliable corner' in the official poster for the fair.'
Notable guests are also expected. Director Park Chan-wook will attend the 'Meeting with Authors' event on the 20th with literary critic Shin Hyung-cheol, while at the 'Meeting with Authors' program, picture book author Baek Hee-na, novelists Kim Ae-ran, Yoon Sung-hee, Son Won-pyeong, Choi Jin-young, Jeong Dae-geon, Jang Ryu-jin, Kim Ki-tae, and Kim Ho-yeon will meet with the audience.
The 'Book Talk' program will feature author Kim Joo-hye, the recipient of the Tolstoy Literary Award (International Literature sector), as well as novelists Kim Geum-hee, and actor Park Jung-min, the representative of the publishing company that published his book, along with authors Kim Cho-yeob, Jeong Bo-ra, Chon Seon-ran, and Han Yoo-joo.
Lee Sedol, who competed against AlphaGo, and acting president of the Constitutional Court Moon Hyung-bae will also participate. Acting President Moon is scheduled to meet with Kim Jang-ha's scholarship students at the 'Seeds of Adult Kim Jang-ha' book talk on the 22nd.
The organizers stated that the Seoul International Book Fair has already attracted significant attention, with early ticket sales for all sessions selling out, and they expect about 150,000 visitors.