Namjoon’s Recommended Reads

We stan an intellectual legend

If you’re part of the BTS ARMY, you’ll know that Namjoon seeks inspiration from the arts (it’s no wonder he’s full of words of wisdom). He’s always been an avid reader and has recommended a fair few titles over the years, from dystopian novels to philosophical non-fiction.

Do you want to know what he’s read, as well as the books that inspire BTS’ concepts? Here’s a list of everything I could find. If you want to read these books with fellow ARMYs, check out the BTS Book Club. Happy reading!

Classic Fiction & Modern / Cult Classics

Albert Camus - The Stranger

Ryu Murakami - Almost Transparent Blue

Franz Kafka - The Metamorphosis

J.D. Salinger - The Catcher in the Rye

Douglas Adams - The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy

William Golding - Lord of the Flies

George Orwell - 1984

Henry David Thoreau - Walden

Banana Yoshimoto - Kitchen

Yukio Mishima - Confessions of a Mask

Hermann Hesse - Demian (Inspired Blood, Sweat and Tears music video)

Ursula K. Le Guin - Those Who Walk Away From Omelas (Inspired Spring Day music video)

Contemporary Fiction

Haruki Murakami - Kafka on the Shore, Norwegian Wood, The Wind-up Bird Chronicle, Killing Commendatore 1 & 2, IQ84

Jojo Moyes - Me Before You

Han Kang - Human Acts

Cho Nam-Joo - Kim Ji Young Born 1982

Hitomi Kanehara - Snakes and Earrings

Shin Kyung-Sook - Please Look After Mom

Julie Maroh - Blue is the Warmest Colour (RM mentioned the movie adaptation on a V-Live)

Becky Albertalli - Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (RM shared a song from the soundtrack of the movie adaptation Love, Simon so this totally counts)

André Aciman - Call Me By Your Name (V said he enjoyed the movie adaption on a V-Live so I think this counts)

Non-Fiction

Martin Gayford - A Bigger Message: Conversations with David Hockney

Erich Fromm - The Art of Loving

Andrew Solomon - The Noonday Demon

James R. Doty - Into the Magic Shop

Tony Porter - Breaking Out of the Man Box: The Next Generation of Manhood

Ray Kurzweil - The Singularity is Near: When Humans Transcend Biology

Michael J. Sandel - Justice: What's the Right Thing to Do?

Hwang Kyung Shin - Eleven O’Clock at Night: 120 True Stories & Innocent Lies

Murray Stein - Jung’s Map of the Soul: An Introduction (Inspired Map of the Soul: Persona)