Kids read books at the Ningbo Children's Library. Photo: Courtesy of the Ningbo Children's Library

Lü Xingyue has been a frequent visitor to Ningbo Library in East China's Zhejiang Province since she was two and a half years old. She listens to stories and plays games with teachers, learns about intangible cultural heritage, visits exhibitions, and participates in study trips. 

"She is only 6 years old now and has a good knowledge of traditional culture. This is inseparable from the time spent in the library," said her mother Liang Xiaowen.

Young kids are growing up with books, and have their own experiences when it comes to reading. Chinese libraries are "entering" the younger generation's childhood in a friendly and accessible way. "Go to the library" is not just a slogan, but is becoming a daily routine.

"We are always guided by children's needs and target children's growth, make full use of resources such as books, space and activities, and strive to help children acquire knowledge and grow up in a healthy online and offline environment," Xu Yibo, director of Ningbo Library, told the Global Times. "We are making the library a new cultural base for children."

Joy of reading 

Bao Xinyi, a fifth-grade student, looks forward to entering the library almost every day, where she can "rehearse, perform, dub, record songs, dance... The most unforgettable thing is playing the role of an owl in the picture book drama 'Forest Library.' She has also taken time to learn about the various functions, rules and regulations of the library.

With hand puppet performances, clay painting, live performances and other creative ways to shoot short videos based on picture books, Ningbo Library allows children to participate in dubbing, performance and prop production throughout the process.

Wang Ying, director of the Children's Affairs Department of Ningbo Library, said, "In this way, children's reading promotion has truly become immersive and three-dimensional. Children's willingness to participate in reading and their desire to enter the library is growing stronger and stronger."

"I have been thinking when I will have the opportunity to share my favorite books with adults and children." Eight-year-old Lang Miduo is a major fan of the short reading video account "Tianyi Night Reading" that the library opened and uploaded videos about recommending books. On this day, the young boy finally had the chance to enter the recording studio of the library and shared the book Shenshixi Animal Discovery Camp.

Middle school student Xu Chuyi and her mother read the book On the Other Side of the Mountain, which shares the message with parents "Give yourself and your children more courage." 

Now, watching the "Tianyi Night Reading" short video has become a daily ritual for many Ningbo children.

"Wherever there is a screen, there is a library," Director Xu Yibo said. "Wherever the readers are, we will expand our service areas. Nowadays, many children are born with the internet, so we provide them with what they need, using short reading videos to attract more young readers to read. We also launch the special edition of 'I Read Classics with My Children' every Sunday night."

Starting from January 1, 2024, the Tianyi Night Reading account has been updating daily, and the "short video + in-depth reading" format continues to attract fans. As of June 28, 180 issues of Tianyi Night Reading have been published with more than 6 million accumulated views on the entire network.

The Ningbo Children's Library Photo: Courtesy of the Ningbo Children's Library

Favorite space 

The old residence of Nobel Prize winner Tu Youyou who discovered the drug artemisinin to treat malaria is located in the historical streets in Ningbo, where children were seen reading her biography while experiencing the legend of Tu during field visits. They also used traditional Chinese medicine to draw in new readers. Ten-year-old Dai Siqi was very excited. She said, "I finally got it! My teacher also talked about artemisinin in science class, but today's teacher talked about it in more details."  

Eight-year-old girl Gao Liaofan is participating in the Tianyi Children's Art Training Class and follows the teacher to sing songs adapted from ancient books on poems. Her father Gao Can, who accompanies his daughter to the library every weekend, does not check his mobile phone while waiting, but busily reads a book called "Growing Up Together." 

"Her name was inspired by the book Liao Fan's Four Lessons. These classic wisdom may make their hearts full," said Gao. "When ­accompanying her in the library, I felt like I was reliving my childhood."

Starting from a book, let children read a book together and visit a scenic spot together. Wang Lan, director of the Haishu District Library in Ningbo, explained that the local cultural study activity "Reading and Traveling in Ningbo" has been held 58 times since 2018, with 58 books read and more than 2,900 people participating. 

At present, about 10 percent of Ningbo Library's borrowing volume is completed "outside the library." Public places such as B&Bs, cafes, hospitals, banks, and tourist centers can be turned into libraries, where readers can borrow books as convenient as possible. Director Xu Yibo particularly recommends the "Tianyi Book" service that delivers books to  those who "stay at home" and don't want to go out. "Even the farthest island in Ningbo can receive a book within 72 hours."

Ningbo Children's Library, new space only for children has been open to children during the summer vocation in early July. The marine elements in the space have become favorites, together with various tailored services including 800,000 children's books. 

"As an important institution of social education, libraries are responsible for moral education, physical and mental health education, and scientific education as well as cultural education," said Chen Ying, vice president of the Library Society of China, at the Fourth National Library Service Forum for Minors on Thursday.