1. Irene of Red Velvet: Kim Ji-young, Born 1982 by Cho Nam-joo

In a bizarre case of life imitating art, the book about a woman's encounters with everyday sexism sparked outrage, with many of Irene's male fans tearing up and burning posters and photocards of the idol in anger at her "feminist leanings." The book, which became the first million-selling Korean novel since Shin Kyung-Please sook's Look After Mom in 2009, follows an ordinary young woman in Korea as she deals with sexist events and the expectation and reality of quitting her career to become a stay-at-home wife and mother. She later fights with mental illness, and we watch her "psychic decline in the face of dogmatic misogyny."

 

2. RM of BTS: Almond by Sohn Won Pyung

Seen in hands of the Hyungs of BTS in their reality show, The story follows Yunjae, who was born with alexithymia, a neurological disease that makes it difficult for him to feel emotions such as fear or rage. He's never had any friends, but he lives a happy life with his mother and grandmother, who teach him social cues and leave Post-it Notes around the bookstore they own to remind him how to act.

On Christmas Eve, though, a horrifying act of violence leaves him completely alone in the world. As he struggles with his enormous loss, Yunjae forms an unexpected bond with a disturbed new kid at his school and gradually begins to open up to people, bringing him into a new life he could never have imagined for himself.

 

3. Juyeon of the Boyz: Prism by Sohn Won-Pyung

Juyeon has recommended Prism by the author of Almond, which is featured further up the list as a suggestion by half of BTS! Prism is defined as a story about men and women in their twenties and thirties coming to terms with the world and with themselves, about the complexities of human relationships, and about how coexistence may both complicate and heal a person's life.

 

4. Jeon Jungkook of BTS: I Decided to Live as Me by Kim Soo Hyun 

In Season 3 of BTS's travel variety show Bon Voyage, the group's golden maknae Jungkook was seen carrying this book in his bag.

Unlike most self-help books, this one does not prescribe a way of life, but rather helps to alleviate the anxieties, uncertainties, and struggle to fit in that are prevalent in youth. Kim Soo Hyun's collection of short articles to calm your nerves. The book is full of pearls of wisdom such as, "The person you always have to respect is no one else except yourself." This straightforward, no-nonsense self-help book (interspersed with charming graphics that lighten the seriousness of some of the issues) imparts key life skills that will enable everyone to accept themselves for who they truly are and live happily.

 

5. Jay B of GOT7: I am a season that does not exist in the world by Kim Kyung-Ju

The #ReadingwithJaeBeom has been used by fans as personal recommendations by the idol since 2019  and now it seems that JayB has wandered the world of poetry with  Kim Kyung Ju's poetry takes place in a world where no one seems to belong: "the living are born in the world of the dead, and the dead are born in the world of the living." I AM A SEASON THAT DOES NOT EXIST IN THE WORLD, now in its thirty-first printing in Korea, is considered one of the most important books in the Miraepa, or future movement, by Korean critics.