Description: A legendary educational comic series that has crossed eras and generations to reach 18 million readers—now evolving even in the AI age with its newly published 5th revised and expanded edition! Under the theme "Beyond Eras, Beyond Generations," this revised edition of Meonara Iutnara arrives more than 40 years after it first began serialization in a children's newspaper in 1981. The book's earliest readers have since become parents and pillars of our society, and the next generation has now taken up the series as new readers—truly transcending both eras and generations. In its early years, the series looked upon Europe with admiration and envy, focusing on reflecting what our country lacked. But Korea has since developed at a remarkable pace, growing into a country that now stands shoulder to shoulder with the world's advanced nations. As Korea's global standing has risen, our perspective on the world has broadened and diversified, and I too have come to view the world with a more objective and clear-eyed perspective. I believe this shift has been reflected through the many revisions of this book. — From "On Publishing the 2024 Revised 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 has steadily completed its map of the world. Now, "beyond eras and beyond generations," the series returns with its 5th revised and expanded edition. Over the roughly 40 years that Professor Lee Won-bok has guided readers through nearly 60 "faraway" countries turned "neighboring" ones, Korea itself has truly grown to stand alongside the advanced nations the series once admired from afar. Through numerous revisions, Meonara Iutnara has continually strived to view the world with a broader, more objective perspective befitting Korea's rising international status. Guided by the principle that "history is always being rewritten," the series has been revised roughly every five years since its first edition, continually updated to keep pace with a changing world. Thanks to its vivid portrayal of living world history, the legendary educational comic's reputation remains as strong as ever, even as centuries turn and generations change. This new edition, "Meonara Iutnara: Beyond Eras, Beyond Generations," is no exception—it reflects recent global affairs and the shifting international order, shedding light on newly emerging historical and cultural developments. Most notably, the author has spent considerable time preparing a "Highlights" appendix for each country, offering a clear and organized summary of the essential points for each nation and region. From a Frog in the Well to the Center of the World: The Secret Behind 40 Years and 60 Countries What is the secret behind the enduring popularity of Meonara Iutnara, which has completed its map of the world across 60 countries over 40 years? Meonara Iutnara began in 1981 as a series on six European countries serialized in the Sonyeon Hankook Ilbo (Boys' Korea Daily). Those installments were compiled into a book (published by Koryowon) in 1987. At the time, overseas travel was still tightly restricted, and the internet was unimaginable. With its blend of information and entertainment, Meonara Iutnara helped plant the seeds of global citizenship in Korea, preparing the nation for the coming era of globalization. It stands as a landmark work that expanded the horizons of a nation 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 icon of educational comics in Korea. What is it that has earned Meonara Iutnara such deep and lasting love from readers for nearly half a century? First, there is Professor Lee Won-bok himself—the man who opened the era of educational comics in Korea and who, to this day, remains actively at work drawing comics on the front lines. His journey into comics began during his years at Gyeonggi High School, when he took on a side job copying foreign comics through the arrangement of a children's newspaper company. He went on to study architecture at Seoul National University before pursuing further studies in Germany. During his more than ten years abroad, he immersed himself in comics from around the world, working as a freelancer to publish comics and posters in West German newspapers, and even illustrating the cover of the 150th anniversary issue of the prestigious German newspaper Allgemeine Zeitung. After returning to Korea in 1984, Professor Lee Won-bok took up a position at university while also beginning...