Nobel Prize-winning author Han Kang's 'Light and Thread' hits 10,000 sales on first day of release
by Korea JoongAng Daily
″Light and Thread,″ Han Kang's first published book since she won the Nobel Prize in Literature, is displayed at Kyobo Book's Gwanghwamun branch in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 24. [YONHAP]
Han Kang’s highly anticipated new book “Light and Thread” shot to the top of bestseller lists across Korea on its first day of online sales, marking a remarkable return to the literary spotlight following the author’s historic Nobel Prize in Literature.“Light and Thread,” released at 11 a.m. on Wednesday by Munhakdongne Publishing Group, sold approximately 10,000 copies within 24 hours through Korea’s three major online retailers — Kyobo Book Centre, Yes24 and Aladin — according to booksellers and publishing sources on Thursday.
These platforms together represent nearly 90 percent of the online book market, suggesting that the reported figures closely mirror total national sales.
The book ranked No. 1 in daily sales on Kyobo and Aladin, and No. 2 on Yes24. Despite being available for just one day, it also climbed to the top of the weekly charts for Kyobo and Aladin, and to third place on Yes24’s weekly list.
Such numbers are unusual in Korea’s publishing industry. The new release has significantly outperformed Han’s previous works in terms of first-day sales.
Aladin reported that sales of “Light and Thread” were 3.7 times greater than her 2021 novel “I Do Not Bid Farewell” (2021), 8.6 times greater than “The White Book” (2016), and an astonishing 104 times higher than “Human Acts” (2014). Han Kang's books including ″Light and Thread″ are displayed at Kyobo Book's Gwanghwamun branch in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 24. [NEWS1]
Women in their 30s to 50s formed the core readership. Yes24 data showed that 73.3 percent of buyers were women, with those in their 40s making up 23.7 percent and those in their 50s accounting for 20.3 percent. Aladin reported that women in their 30s and 40s made up 47.1 percent of all purchases.
Han saw a similar surge in readership last October when news broke that she had been awarded the Nobel Prize. On that day alone, more than 300,000 copies of her works were sold. In comparison, when she won the Man Booker International Prize in 2016 for “The Vegetarian” (2007), that novel sold about 14,000 copies in one day.
“Light and Thread” includes 12 pieces comprising essays and poems. It features Han’s Nobel Prize lecture and acceptance speech, five previously published poems, one earlier essay and three new essays: “North-Facing Garden,” “Garden Diary” and “After Living On.”
Translated from the JoongAng Ilbo using generative AI and edited by Korea JoongAng Daily staff.
Reference Written by HYEON YE-SEUL [kim.juyeon2@joongang.co.kr] Provided by Korea JoongAng Daily
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″Light and Thread,″ Han Kang's first published book since she won the Nobel Prize in Literature, is displayed at Kyobo Book's Gwanghwamun branch in Jongno District, central Seoul, on April 24. [YONHAP] 
