Welcoming US bookstores reflect curious and literate culture

• Source: Global Times
• [22:23 February 24 2010]
• Comments

I think the simplicity of Chinese bookstores and the complexity of US bookstores actually reflect differences between the two cultures. Books have been a privilege of a small group of intellectuals in China for thousands of years. Although theoretically, everyone should have equal access to books today, a lot of people who consider themselves non-intellectuals still don't feel comfort-able hanging out in bookstores.

While they still have a strong desire to read, they turn to book shelves at train stations or on the street, where they can mostly find magazines or newspapers. Maybe we could learn from the experience of "The Library is for Everyone" to encourage more people to go to bookstores.

The author is a cultural critic who lives in New York and works for Google. yajuan@ gmail.com