The bookstores that still speak volumes

• Source: Global Times
• [11:00 April 27 2010]
• Comments

Chaterhouse bookstore located on Middle Huaihai Road. Photo: Courtesy of Chaterhouse

By Hu Bei

With all the new electronic reading devices being launched, and "cool kids" on the metro clutching their readers, many have declared the beginning of a new age of reading, known as the "e-book era." However, some people, whether they like fighting trends or not, prefer the intellectual statement of an old-fashioned book. Fortunately, Shanghai is a city that provides a number of options for fans of literature in its traditional form.

Limited literature

For the better part of a century, Fuzhou Road has been the premiere destination for both locals and travelers to buy books and stationery in Shanghai. Among the estimated 30 bookstores on this road it is possible to find the Shanghai Foreign Language Bookstore (SFLB), which, at 60-years-old, is the oldest and largest foreign language bookstore in the city.

According to Gu Bin, the Deputy General Manager of SFLB, from when it opened in 1950 to the late 1970s, the SFLB was a prime spot for local residents looking to learn English, and they came in droves to buy English literary classics and textbooks. "This was because we were the only bookstore that sold English language books in Shanghai, and we catered specifically for people wanting to learn English," said Gu.

After the reform and opening-up began in 1978, the SFLB began to stock more contemporary English language books in response to greater demand caused by the increase in foreigners living in Shanghai. No longer limited to classics and textbooks, the store began to include things like travel guides, cookbooks, business manuscripts, and popular modern novels. "Since we are a state-owned company, we must cater to customers of all different economic classes. So, we carry lots of popular and common books… I still remember the day when Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince came out, people started lining up the day before and the queue ended up stretching outside the gate," Gu told the Global Times.

Despite these changes, the SFLB's primary customers are still domestic English learners, who make up an estimated 70% of their clientele. Classic literary works from Western countries and English language learning materials still make up a large proportion of their stock.

This can be seen as a detractor by foreigners, many of which have little interest in re-reading the classics of their school days. One foreigner at the store, who came from the US and declined to be identified beyond his nationality, said, "I have not brought many books with me from the US. When I came here, it was difficult to find anything but classics, like Gone with the Wind and Hamlet."