'This Book Stood Out'... Millie Releases 2025 Year-End Review of Reading Content

Expansion of Diverse Reading Formats
Distinct Diversification of Reading Patterns

According to the "2025 Year-End Review of Reading Content" released by KT Millie's Library, reading this year has expanded into various formats such as e-books, audiobooks, chatbooks, and docent books, leading to a more diversified pattern of content consumption among users.

2025 Year-End Review of Reading Content Released. Provided by KT Millie's Library

In the e-book sector, rather than focusing on specific bestsellers, a variety of works gained popularity each month depending on current issues and special projects. In February, "Toemarok: Korea Edition 1" was well received due to the full series release effect. In March, the release of the Minumsa World Literature Series brought attention to "Siddhartha." In June, the video series "Literature Appreciation Society" led to a surge in popularity for Eun Heekyung's "A Gift from a Bird." In October, when the Nobel Prize in Literature was announced, "Satantango" immediately rose to the top spot upon release. Among teenage users, "Rapids" and "Demian" were the most read, while science books such as "The Selfish Gene" and "Why Fish Don't Exist" also attracted significant interest.

For audiobooks, "listening to books" has established itself as a major reading method, resulting in a significant increase in usage. Users in their 40s accounted for the largest share, with the fiction genre being particularly strong. By month, popular titles included "Things So Trivial" in January, "Outside Is Summer" in February, "Toemarok: Korea Edition 1" in May, "A Bird That Drinks Tears 1" in June, "Lonely Suspect" in September, and "Honmono" in October. Notably, works featuring celebrity narrators, such as "Outside Is Summer" and "The Wings" read by actress Kim Taeri, as well as steady-selling audiobooks, received enthusiastic responses for their high level of immersion.

As reading habits have shifted away from a focus on finishing entire books toward enjoying shorter, lighter content, the use of secondary content such as chatbooks and docent books has surged from 80,000 cases in 2019 to 2.7 million cases in 2025. In the chatbook category, series like "Step-by-Step Economic Common Sense," "Diary of Emotional Exchange," and "Classics Fandom" were popular, while in the docent book category, economic and humanities books such as "Principles," "Studying Neuroscience When You Want to Know Yourself," and "The Changing World Order" were widely used.

Millie's Library analyzed that this year-end review demonstrates how reading is expanding beyond paper books into various formats, and that users are increasingly consuming a wide range of content each month according to their situations and preferences.