Dollar Good Dream Department Store series top bestseller chart

“The elevator suddenly soared. It was a 20-story apartment building but the elevator went up over 100 floors.”

I was surprised to see this post on an online community. I was not the only having this kind of dream.

The fantasy novel “Dollar Good Dream Department Store” series are centered on the Dollar Good Dream Department Store, which sells all kinds of dreams. The series are based on a plot that there are people who have similar dreams, such as elevator soaring through the top of the building or flying in the air. People who have fallen into an REM cycle visit the Dollar Good store to buy dreams. The ones that are popular are quickly sold out. Some people buy the same dream every day, and others strangely buy a nightmare, where they are re-enlisted at the age of 30.

The first book, published in July last year, contains a variety of episodes about the Dollar Good Dream Department Store, where the main character Penny just joined, its employees, dream makers, and dream buyers. The second book, published last month, delves into the stories of regular customers, who did not appear in the first book.

One of them is a lucid dreamer, who knows that he is dreaming while sleeping and gets involved in what is happening in the dream. He seems to have powers that ordinary people, who forget everything once they wake up from their dreams, do not have. He, however, is also an escapist, who chases the fantasy in his dreams. This episode relates to people, who had those days when dreaming was happier than living a reality.

The first book is a bestseller, having sold over 570,000 copies in paperback alone since its publication in July last year. The second book is currently ranked first on Kyobo Books’ Best Seller section as of Thursday.

The name of the book might give you the impression that the book is for children. But the moment you open the book, you will understand the rave review of the book that it is a beautiful fairy tale for adults. Anyone who has dreams would find this book interesting. Maybe we all wander around the Dream Department Store every day and buy a dream for today.


Hyo-Ju Son hjson@donga.com