The reason why natural science books are so popular these days is because of the increasing tendency of the media to shed light on science-related TV programs and movies and frequent exposure to scientists and mathematicians who were somewhat unfamiliar to the public in the past. (image: Kobizmedia)
SEOUL, Feb. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — According to internet bookseller Yes24 on Wednesday, sales of books in the natural sciences increased continuously from 2014 to 2018, with growth varying from 3.5 percent in 2015 to 20.4 percent in 2016.
Science-related books have emerged as a breath of fresh air in the doldrums of the publishing industry. Sales have steadily increased over the past five years without any slump.
Last year, 427,000 books were sold, up 50 percent from 2014.
The favorable tendency continues, as 64,000 science books have been sold thus far this year, resulting in an 8.9 percent increase from the same period last year.
The reason why natural science books are so popular these days is because of the increasing tendency of the media to shed light on science-related TV programs and movies and frequent exposure to scientists and mathematicians who were somewhat unfamiliar to the public in the past.
According to Yes24, sales of natural science books began to increase in 2014 when the movie ‘Interstellar’, which is based on space and quantum physics, was a huge success in South Korea.
‘The Science of Interstellar’, a book that describes the phenomena of space science and physics from the movie ‘Interstellar’, was a huge hit.
The science fiction film ‘The Martian’, which depicts an astronaut’s struggle to survive alone on Mars, laid the foundation for the upward trend in the popularity of science books.
When AI AlphaGo and Lee Se-dol’s game of Go made headlines in 2016, related books became popular among members of the general public.
Since 2017, books recommended by scientists appearing on a famous JTBC TV program intrigued many readers.
In particular, ‘Lab Girl’, which former Welfare Minister Rhyu Si-min chose as the book he wanted to give his daughter, was the best-selling science book of the year.
Meanwhile, people in their 40s enjoyed books related to the natural sciences, accounting 48.9 percent of total readers. While the number of readers in their 50s has increased, the number of readers in their 30s decreased slightly.
The popularity of science books is expected to continue this year as science-related books on various topics are being published, and there is still interest in the so-called ‘steady-sellers’, such as ‘Cosmos’ and ‘The Selfish Gene’.
Ashley Song (ashley@koreabizwire.com)
