The 2019 Reading Culture Camp, sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, hosted by the Korea Publishing Industry Association, and proceeded with the Gyeongnam Library Foundation, was held on October 19~20 at the Historic Park of Geoje P.O.W. Camp and Ramada Suites Geoje Hotel.
The purpose of this camp was to read and experience. It is to raise youth's will for nonviolence and peace in Geoje, which has overcome the pain of war and has become a land of peace. I participated as an instructor, helping students to open up their minds and write of their thoughts. We had a rewarding time inviting ones from various classes, including low-income youth, multicultural youth, and out-of-school youth in Gyeongsangnam-do.
For the long period, our society has explored and emphasized the importance and value of books and their utility. Books are still our best friends to care, comfort, and accompany us. All participants participated in the camp by reading Choi Soo Chul's ⌜Dance of Prisoners⌟ recommended by the 2019 Reading Culture Camp. The event is to overcome the war, read a book about war in Geoje, standing in peace, and visit the "Geoje P.O.W. Camp" to experience the field.
In the second part of the camp, groups were composed of 7 units of 6-7 people. The youth who participated in the camp had distinct personalities. After reading the novel of Choi Soo Chul, who usually writes based on historical reality, we paid attention to the scars of modern Korean history. This work proves that frustrated love and death are not exceptional and incidental events of the individual in the history of the Geoje P.O.W. camp where the extreme conflict between pro-communist prisoners and anti-communist ones took place.
The students at the camp said, “We thought the book was far away from our regards, but it wasn't. Experience-style reading is a new experience. And we wish we had a chance to read interesting books like this often.”
In addition, I firmly believe that the youth, as citizens of the only divided nation in the world, felt the value of peace in discussions through key words about war and peace, ultimately praying for a unified Korean peninsula. A very valuable experiential reading camp was held to read, experience, feel and write with the protagonists of our future generations. As a result, I also wish it will plant the joy of reading and the desire for world peace in the minds of all the youth who attended the camp.
