The Reading Room of the CBNU Main Library, ahead of the exam period, has tension like a tight bowstring. In the silence, students sit at desks stacked with textbooks, facing not only competition for grades and employment but also anxiety and uncertainty about the future.

  Today’s university students witness others’ achievements in real time through smartphones and are placed in an environment of constant comparison and competition. Many also experience fatigue from human relationships and lack of self-confidence, and the reality is that they do not always know where to share this burden. Amid the vast flood of information, deep reading that truly strengthens the one’s inner resilience is often pushed aside.

  Therefore, to comfort the minds of students exhausted from academic and career-related concerns and to activate a reading culture, the CBNU library operates three customized book curation programs, including ▲Chaekbongtu ▲Sagolchaek ▲ChungBOOK 100seon, aiming to deliver warm messages of support to students.

  On the third floor of Building 1 (Original Building), visitors can see neatly listed paper envelopes with an unfamiliar but warm banner. This is the Chaekbongtu, a special book curation program which is getting a great response from students.

  A key feature of this program is its commitment to complete anonymity in lending. On the envelope’s surface, instead of listing the book’s title, author, or publisher, each envelope contains only sincere hashtags—such as #Mind_Record, #Depression, #Human_Relationships—alongside short reflections written by a librarian, Woo Su-jin, after deep contemplation. Readers select an envelope not by recognizing a book’s popularity or specifications but by projecting their own current state of mind onto these words.  The process of choosing a book itself becomes a time of contemplation and self-confession, allowing readers to look into their own concerns.

  After finishing the loan process without knowing the title, students open the envelope in their own space. At that moment, the book transforms into a secret counselor prepared only for them, more than a printed object. This unexpected encounter offers an experience that differs from the existing search-based loan system.

  Librarian Woo who planned this program said, “Today’s students in their 20s are often expected to have clear correct answers and the best choices at the crossroads of life. However, there are no correct answers in many problems of life,” and added, “I avoided books that simply provide professional knowledge or instruction, and carefully selected books that allow readers to feel a deep sense of solidarity and comfort while turning pages.” She also added, “Instead of the speed and convenience of digital searching, I wanted to give an analog experience in which students personally visit the library, look at the envelopes, and carefully choose a book that resonates most closely with their current state of mind.”

  While the Chaekbongtu program focuses on students’ personal concerns, the CBNU library’s ongoing programs help students broaden their perspectives and explore the wide range of topics.

  One representative program is Sagolchaek, which means books recommended by a librarian. This program introduces 15 books carefully selected every two months under a new theme. For students overwhelmed by the library’s enormous collection of hundreds of thousands of books, the program acts as a reliable compass guiding them toward meaningful reading choices.

  Reflecting current social trends, the latest exhibition features the theme, Reading the World Today, highlighting topics such as ESG management and the climate crisis in a specially arranged section of the library. Thanks to the thoughtful curation of librarians, students who would normally search only for familiar subjects or books related to assignments are now encountering unfamiliar books such as Jessica Bruder’s Nomadland: Surviving America in the Twenty-First Century, expanding their perspectives on society and discovering new ways of thinking.

  Alongside this, the ChungBOOK 100seon program also deserves attention for deepening students’ intellectual growth. The program presents 100 recommended books selected by experts from various fields, including professors at CBNU and media organizations, as essential readings for college students. Moving beyond simple bestseller-oriented reading habits, the program provides valuable opportunities to engage with classics and high-quality literature while helping students strengthen their intellectual and cultural foundation.

  Librarian Woo recommended I Was About to Live Hard written by Ha Wan to students who were exhausted from academic pressure and career concerns ahead of the vacation period.

  Librarian Woo explained that “Rather than forcing ourselves to run according to others’ standards, it is important to understand ourselves or listen to our inner voice and set our own direction, even if our pace may be slower.” She added that she hopes the book will offer students a warm reassurance that their pace is not wrong.

  The curated collections found on the third floor of the CBNU library may not provide magical solutions to students’ struggles. However, they quietly offer a sense of solidarity, reminding students that the uncertainty, anxiety, and hidden worries they experience are all natural parts of growth and that they are never alone.

  Although the realities of grades and qualifications will continue to weigh heavily on students’ lives, it may still be meaningful to take a moment to step into the CBNU library’s Stacks. While a single sentence inside an anonymous envelope may not offer a complete solution, it could provide exhausted youth with practical comfort or serve as a turning point in their lives.