Novels Return as New Year's First Bestseller: "Goethe Said Everything"

On January 1, the Bestseller Was the Novel
"Goethe Said Everything"
Third Time in a Decade a Novel Tops the New Year's List

As of January 1, according to Yes24, the overall bestseller ranking was topped by "Goethe Said Everything," a novel by Yui Suzuki. This marks the third time in the past decade that a novel has claimed the number one spot on New Year's Day, indicating a renewed surge of interest in literature among readers.

"Goethe Said Everything" is a work by Yui Suzuki, a rising Japanese author born in 2001. Since its release in November last year, the book has steadily gained popularity through word of mouth. As the winner of the 173rd Akutagawa Prize in 2025, it gained widespread attention following a recommendation by critic Lee Dongjin, and its ascent to the top on New Year's Day reflects a reading trend focused on introspection about life through philosophy and literature.

Despite the strong showing of literature, practical books also made a notable impact in the New Year's bestseller market. From late December 2025 to early January 2026, sales in the "novel, poetry, and drama" category rose by 9.1% compared to the previous week, while practical categories such as exam preparation, certifications, foreign languages, IT, and self-development also experienced significant growth. Among the top 10 overall bestsellers were three novels: "Goethe Said Everything," "I Said Goodbye," and "Honmono." In addition, "Contradiction" and "Rapid Current" regained attention as long-running steady sellers.

Amid ongoing economic uncertainty, exam preparation and investment-related books were also favored by readers at the start of the year. "2026 Star Teacher Choi Taeseong's Special Korean History Exam Advanced" ranked second and third overall, while sales of books on stocks and ETFs increased year-on-year, with "Stock Investing for Progress" taking the top spot in the economics and business category. Titles such as "Sapiens," "Cosmos," and "Hackers TOEIC Actual Test VOCA" have maintained their positions within the top 100 bestsellers on New Year's Day for up to 10 consecutive years, solidifying their status as classic "first books of the year."

Meanwhile, the influence of broadcast and OTT content continued to be felt. Following the airing of the cooking program "Black and White Chef: Culinary Class War Season 2," books by participating chefs saw their sales surge by more than 200 times, once again confirming the trend of video content directly boosting the publishing market.

A review of New Year's Day bestseller trends over the past decade reveals a clear reflection of social issues and reading trends. While self-development and practical books have consistently performed strongly, literary works-especially novels-have recently regained their presence, creating a more balanced market. This underscores how the "January 1 bestseller" still serves as a key indicator of the publishing industry's direction for the year.