I had some work over the weekend, so I ended up near Seohyeon Station in Bundang.
Because I had a very important meeting, I woke up early, perhaps from nerves, and got there much earlier than planned. Stepping out of the station, I noticed a cluster of buildings, most of them quite old. Arriving too early, I wondered where to kill time until the meeting, and that’s when ‘Aladin Secondhand Bookstore’ caught my eye.
I’m not entirely sure why, but it’s become increasingly difficult to find bookstores around these days. Occasionally, you might run into one, but they’re mostly near schools selling textbooks or assignment-related books, and even these are dwindling. Large bookstores aren’t necessarily thriving either.
‘Bandi & Lunis’ at COEX moved to a dimly lit basement across from the Oakwood Hotel after renovations, and I used to stop by whenever I was in the area. It was tucked away in one of the least populated streets near Samseong Station, making it quite a challenge to find, even if you were looking for it. The lack of customers meant it was always quiet, which I loved. Though I doubt the bookstore felt the same… 📚 But as soon as I’d enter, the staff, with nothing else to do, would swarm around me like moths to a flame, asking if I needed help. As someone who dislikes being the center of attention, it was quite overwhelming. Recently, I noticed the bookstore was gone. How many people lost their jobs, I wonder? At this rate, offline bookstores might really become a thing of the past.
Yet, there’s a bookstore that’s doing pretty well – ‘Aladin Secondhand Bookstore.’ They started online and were quite popular right from the get-go. Then, they thought, ‘Why not try offline too?’ (I’m sure there was more to the decision-making process), and they started opening stores here and there. Now, they have twelve stores in Seoul and twenty-seven nationwide. Rumor has it, Jeff Bezos saw this and thought, ‘Let’s open an offline store too!’ and thus, the first Amazon Books in Seattle was born (just kidding).
Some people might not like books with someone else’s fingerprints on them, but I don’t really mind. If a secondhand book catches my eye, I just grab it without hesitation. So, whenever I spot the Aladin sign, I usually drop in for a quick browse.
Bookstores typically place popular books up front and specialized or other books in the back, and secondhand bookstores aren’t that different. But there’s a unique section you won’t find in regular bookstores: ‘Books Just Sold by Customers.’ These aren’t even in the store’s search system yet, so browsing them feels like exploring an undiscovered ancient site. They might be books their previous owners abandoned, but with stories as countless as grains of sand, they’re definitely worth a look.
I don’t know if it’s the same for others, but when I’m in a bookstore, I often feel the urge to buy books I’ve already read or own. ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ by Harper Lee is one such book. I’ve collected several editions just because the covers are pretty or the format appeals to me. My favorite is the edition by ‘Open Books’ – the cute cover art, the perfectly compact size, and the satisfying thickness make it a winner for me. 📕
Seeing a complete series neatly boxed, like the ‘Knowledge Channel E Series’, makes me want to buy it, and even though it’s not a book, I get the same urge with box sets of movies like ‘The Lord of the Rings’ or ‘Mission Impossible’. Even if I already have some of them, I want them all! The movie ‘Gone Girl’, which I thought was much better as a book, always tempts me because the Blu-ray cover is just so appealing.
As digital content becomes more immersive and plentiful, we, as a tech-savvy nation, will access it faster and easier than others. But I hope the simple pleasure of waking up leisurely to the sound of flipping pages in the morning stays with us for a long time. 📖
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