{
  "id": 18028313,
  "title": "Viral 'text hip' trend boosts bookstore sales, brings literature to food aisles",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/03/viral-text-hip-trend-boosts-bookstore-sales-brings-literature-to-food",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-11-03T22:17:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Korea Times",
    "slug": "the-korea-times-koreatimes",
    "url": "https://www.koreatimes.co.kr/lifestyle/trends/20261104/viral-text-hip-trend-boosts-bookstore-sales-brings-literature-to-food-aisles"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Since graduating from college, office worker Park has rarely stepped foot inside a bookstore. Having spent most of her academic life immersed in texts, she once believed her days of reading for pleasure were behind her. However, this changed when Han Kang, the author of the International Booker Prize-winning novel “The Vegetarian,” became the first Asian woman to win the Nobel Prize in Literature.\n\nPark vividly recalled her visit to Kyobo’s Gwanghwamun branch in October 2024, where she was awestruck by the throngs of people vying to secure a copy of Han Kang's books. This encounter marked a turning point for Park, as she realized that reading need not be a burdensome obligation. Instead, it could be an enjoyable pastime to be savored for its own sake and shared with others.\n\nThe experience was further enhanced by the surge in literary accessories that added an aesthetic dimension to the hobby. From fabric book covers and book pouches to bookmarks, paperweights, and decorative book rings, these items made visiting bookstores more appealing than ever before.\n\nSince then, Park has made it a regular habit to visit bookstores. Her most recent visit, a week ago, was to pick up “Autobiography of Red,” a book that caught her eye amidst the plethora of options on display. Bookstore sales have seen a boost due to this viral trend, bringing literature to food aisles and making reading a more accessible and enjoyable activity for people of all ages.",
  "summary": "For years after graduating from college, Park, an office worker in her early 30s, barely set foot in a bookstore. Having spent so much of her academic life buried in texts, she thought her days of reading for pleasure were behind her. Then came October 2024, when Han Kang, author of the International Booker Prize-winning novel “The Vegetarian,” became the first Asian woman to win the Nobel Prize…",
  "key_points": [
    "Park, a former non-reader, visits bookstores regularly after Nobel Prize win",
    "Literary accessories, like fabric covers and bookmarks, make reading more appealing",
    "Bookstore sales surge as reading becomes accessible and enjoyable activity"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}