Description A legendary educational comic series that has met 18 million readers across generations—now evolving even in the AI era with its newly published 5th revised and expanded edition! Emphasizing that it has gone "beyond eras, beyond generations," Meonara Iutnara returns with a revised and expanded edition. More than 40 years have passed alongside this book since it began serialization in a children's newspaper in 1981. The series' early readers have since become parents and pillars of our society, and the next generation has become new readers—truly transcending both time and generations. In the early volumes of the series, the perspective was filled with admiration and envy toward Europe, focusing on reflecting what our country lacked. However, Korea has developed at a remarkable pace, growing into a wonderful nation standing shoulder to shoulder with advanced countries. As Korea's standing in the world has risen, our perspective on the world has gradually broadened and diversified. I, too, have come to view the world more calmly and objectively. I believe this has been reflected in the book through numerous revisions. _ From "On Publishing the 2024 Revised and Expanded Edition" Beginning with six European countries in 1987, and continuing through Japan (2000), Korea (2002), the United States (2004–2005), the Middle East (2007), China (2010–2011), Turkey (2018), Russia (2020), and India (2022), Meonara Iutnara—which has been completing a map of the world—now returns with its 5th revised and expanded edition, going "beyond eras, beyond generations." Over the roughly 40 years during which Professor Lee Won-bok has guided readers through nearly 60 "faraway" countries becoming "neighboring" ones, Korea itself has truly grown into a nation standing alongside the advanced countries covered in the series' early volumes. Through numerous revisions over the years, Meonara Iutnara has strived to view the world with a broader and more objective perspective befitting Korea's rising global status. Under the principle that "history is always being rewritten," the series has been revised roughly every five years since its first publication, continuously updated to keep pace with a changing era. Thanks to its vivid portrayal of living moments in world history, the reputation of this legendary educational comic remains ever-current, no matter how centuries turn or generations change. This newly published edition, "Meonara Iutnara: Beyond Eras, Beyond Generations," is no exception—it reflects recent global affairs and the international order, shedding light on newly emerging historical and cultural developments. Above all, the author has added a "Highlights" appendix for each country, carefully compiled over a long period, allowing readers to neatly review the key points of each nation and region. From a Frog in the Well to the Center of the World: The Secret Behind 40 Years and 60 Countries in Meonara Iutnara's World Map Meonara Iutnara began as a series on six European countries serialized in the Sonyeon Hankook Ilbo (Korea Children's Daily) in 1981. That original manuscript was compiled into a book (published by Koryowon) in 1987. At the time, overseas travel was not yet freely available, and the internet was unimaginable. With the arrival of Meonara Iutnara, which combined information and entertainment, the mindset of global citizenship began to take root in Korea in preparation for the coming global era. It was truly a monumental work that expanded our thinking and worldview—once confined like a frog in a well—onto the world stage. More than 40 years later, Meonara Iutnara continues to be recommended by parents to their children and by teachers to their students, read across eras and generations as the singular pioneer and definitive name in educational and learning comics. Why has Meonara Iutnara been so deeply loved by readers for nearly half a century? First, there is Professor Lee Won-bok, who pioneered the era of educational comics and continues to actively draw comics to this day. The author's connection to comics began when, while attending Gyeonggi High School, he took a part-time job copying foreign comics arranged through a children's newspaper company. He went on to study architecture at Seoul National University before studying abroad in Germany. During his more than ten years abroad, he studied comics from countries around the world, worked as a freelancer contributing comics and posters to West German newspapers, and even drew the cover for the 150th anniversary issue of the prestigious German newspaper Allgemeine Zeitung. After returning to Korea in 1984, Professor Lee Won-bok began teaching at university while also starting...