5 K-Pop YA Books to Tide You Over Until Next Comeback
Interest in all things K-pop is at an all-time high nowadays, with Seoul-based musical acts and artists gaining prominence on radio, television, music and video streaming platforms, and, of course, on social media. But one final frontier for K-pop is literature. While fanfiction and self-publishing have been forums for fan-written stories based on the lives of their favorite stars, 2020 is a milestone year for young adult novels centered around the Korean pop music industry.
Arriving as the latest ripple of the Korean Wave, a.k.a. Hallyu, K-pop YA is having a moment with U.S. publishers, with several books arriving recently that explore the life and times of K-pop stars and idol hopefuls. Some are written by stars themselves, and others by lifelong aficionados or recent arrivals down the K-pop rabbit hole, but they all explore fictionalized versions of this glossy, performance-based world that has become beloved by so many across the globe.
While varied in scope, each book discusses the complexities of K-pop star lifestyles, careers, and training systems. They also delve deep into issues like diversity and representation in media, with main characters making their way from the States to Korea to pursue their dreams after growing up without seeing many Asian faces in Hollywood. With a splash of love and a dash of drama mixed into each novel’s tale of the competitive path towards the stage, these stories may be fictional, but they evoke true-to-life feelings and insights into what it takes to achieve success, and what it’s like to try and make your dreams a reality.

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