Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop

By: Hwang Bo-reum, Shanna Tan - translator

Narrated by: Rosa Escoda

Bloomsbury presents Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop by Hwang Bo-reum, read by Rosa Escoda.

INSTANT USA TODAY BESTSELLER * NATIONAL INDIE BESTSELLER
INDIE NEXT PICK * Debutiful Most Anticipated Book of 2024 * Powell's Pick of the Month * A Bookshop Best Book of the Year So Far

The Korean smash hit available for the first time in English, a slice-of-life novel for readers of Matt Haig's The Midnight Library and Gabrielle Zevin's The Storied Life of AJ Fikry.

Yeongju is burned out. She did everything she was supposed to: go to school, marry a decent man, get a respectable job. Then it all fell apart. In a leap of faith, Yeongju abandons her old life, quits her high-flying career, and follows her dream. She opens a bookshop. In a quaint neighborhood in Seoul, surrounded by books, Yeongju and her customers take refuge. From the lonely barista to the unhappily married coffee roaster—and the writer who sees something special in Yeongju—they all have disappointments in their past. The Hyunam-dong Bookshop becomes the place where they all learn how to truly live.

A heartwarming story about finding acceptance in your life and the healing power of books, Welcome to the Hyunam-dong Bookshop is a gentle reminder that it’s never too late to scrap the plot and start again.

©2023 Hwang Bo-reum and Shanna Tan (P)2024 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Living a perfect life

The theme of what makes a perfect life explores following expectations, following dreams, and doing what you do well. The bookstore becomes an allegory for a perfect life seeking diversity and providing guidance to others.

I fell in love with reading again.

This book made me fall in love with reading again. I felt like the main character was really rooting for me to succeed. The story was a nice escape from the current world. It also made me want to open my own bookshop. I loved it.

Calming.

I would give this 3.5 stars if I could, as it was very calming, pleasant, and mildly interesting. I felt I could easily lose myself in this book. The writing was OK, not great. And I would say the same about the story. But somehow I found it very pleasant to listen to. The narration was good, but I had a bit of a hard time at times understanding the accent, and sometimes there is a bit of a lisp or mild whistle which was a bit bothersome. However that was only in spots here and there. Overall, I recommend this as a sweet and calming story.

Pace of book and life stories was gentle.

Plot didn’t really go anywhere, characters weren’t complex. Nothing special about Korea or Korean culture in this book.

British Reader of a Korean Authored Book?

I could not tell the male and female characters or any characters apart in this book. Had I checked the book out from the library I would not have finished the book. Min Jun is male. Jin Mi is female. Setting is with a cafe or bookstore.