SNU Students Prefer Novels

The list of the 10 books most frequently checked out by students of Seoul National University over the past year is chocked full of novels and essays.

SNU’s central library released data it had been collecting on the most frequently checked-out books over the past year on Wednesday. According to the data, “The Aerial Swing,” by Japanese writer Hideo Okuda, was checked out 110 times, making it the most frequently borrowed book.

The novel, which is a funny treatment of the stories of Irabu, has contributed to boosting the popularity of Japanese culture. In Korea, more than 300,000 copies of the novel have been sold since it was released in January 2005.

Kim Hoon’s historical novel “Namhan Mountain Fortress” was checked out 104 times, second to the Japanese novel. It was followed by “11 Minutes” by Paulo Coelho (91 times), “The Girl Who Leapt through Time” by Yasutaka Tsutsui (89 times), and “Li Jin” by Shin Gyeong-sook (87 times).

Only one of the 10 most frequently borrowed books was not a novel. It was an essay entitled “Spain, You’re Free,” written by Sohn Mi-na, former announcer of the Korean Broadcasting System.

A librarian said, “More students these days buy books related with their majors. Also, the majority of students read books on studies or culture in the library, instead of checking them out.”

gaea@donga.com