'Dike's Tears' Selected as Book of the Year 2023... Jo Guk Shares on SNS

"An Award Chosen by Readers Makes It Even More Delightful and Appreciated"

Dasan Books announced that former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's book, Tears of Dike, has been selected as one of the "Books of the Year 2023."

According to a summary of reports from Segye Ilbo on the 13th, Dasan Books stated in an official social media post the day before, "Among the books released in 2023, readers selected the 'Book of the Year' at Aladin, one of Korea's top three online bookstores," and "Cho Kuk's Tears of Dike was chosen as one of the 'Books of the Year.'"

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk, who was sentenced to two years in prison in the first trial on charges of admission fraud involving his children and covering up an inspection, is attending the continued second trial held at the Seoul High Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the afternoon of the 20th. 2023.11.20

Dasan Books expressed, "We are especially pleased and grateful because this award was chosen directly by readers who still believe in the power of books," and "We would like to once again extend our gratitude to author Cho Kuk for his efforts." They added, "We will continue to repay with good books." Former Minister Cho shared the post on his own social media.

In addition to this, Aladin selected the following as the "Books of the Year 2023": City and Its Uncertain Walls (Haruki Murakami, Munhakdongne), Seino's Teachings (Seino, Day One), Slam Dunk Resource (Takehiko Inoue, Daewon C.I.), Fubao, Happy Every Day (Kang Cheol-won, Ryu Jeong-hoon, Sigong Junior), Stolen Concentration (Johann Hari, Across), Tears of Dike (Cho Kuk, Dasan Books), Science Study for Liberal Arts Men (Yu Si-min, Dolbegae), Even with a Very Faint Light (Choi Eun-young, Munhakdongne), Suzume's Door Lock (Makoto Shinkai, Daewon C.I.), and Sky, Wind, Stars, and Humans (Kim Sang-wook, Bada Publishing), listed in order of ranking.

Tears of Dike was published on August 30 last year. The publisher described the book as "a work that condenses the struggles endured over the past turbulent decade as a private individual, neither a professor nor a minister."

In the prologue, former Minister Cho wrote, "'Dike, the goddess of justice, is not a reckless figure wildly wielding a sword like a ruffian, but a calm figure who always values balance and fairness," and "I believe Dike is a deity who approaches people with empathy and compassion, not one who demands submission and obedience through punitive power."

Former President Moon Jae-in is greeting former Minister Cho Kuk at the event "Tears of Dike, Meeting with Author Cho Kuk," held on the afternoon of the 9th at Pyeongsan Bookstore in Pyeongsan Village, Habuk-myeon, Yangsan-si, Gyeongnam. 2023.11.9 Photo by Yonhap News

He added, "I believe that in the near future, sovereign citizens will clearly realize that 'rule of law' is not 'rule by prosecution,' and ultimately, a time of 'rule of law' rather than 'rule by law' will come."

Tears of Dike topped the Kyobo Bookstore bestseller list in the first week of September last year, shortly after its release. Kyobo Bookstore reported that at that time, buyers in their 50s accounted for 39.4%, those in their 40s for 30.7%, while buyers in their teens and twenties combined made up only 1.8%.

Meanwhile, in November last year, former Minister Cho held a book signing event for his new book Tears of Dike at Pyeongsan Bookstore in Pyeongsan Village, Habuk-myeon, Yangsan City, Gyeongnam Province. Former President Moon Jae-in warmly shook hands with Cho and others who visited the bookstore and posed for photos with a bright expression.

On the 9th, former Minister Cho served as the moderator for the first seminar of the think tank "Reset Korea Action," which aims to overcome Korea's crisis and propose expert policy alternatives. This think tank is known to be led by Cho Kuk.