The fourth week of April, which is next week, will mark China's first National Reading Week. Various activities will be held across the country to promote reading for all and build a scholarly society. Xiji County in Guyuan, Ningxia, recognized as China's first "Hometown of Literature," has made reading and creative writing a cultural hallmark. The locality hosts hundreds of lectures and reading events annually. Recently, a visit to Xiji County revealed multiple reading activities and encounters with numerous literature enthusiasts.
Shi Jingbo, founder of Mulan Bookhouse, delivered a reading-sharing lecture at Xiji Third Primary School, captivating the attentive students. A native of Xiji and a rural reading advocate, Shi left his city job seven years ago to return to his hometown, Yanghe Village in Jijiang Town, where he established Mulan Bookhouse. The bookhouse now holds 15,000 volumes—5,000 from his personal collection and 10,000 provided by the Ningxia Library.
Shi invites local literature lovers to gather at the bookhouse, offering tea and snacks while facilitating group reading and discussion. Gradually, more villagers began frequenting the bookhouse after finishing farm work and tending to livestock. Shi reflects that personal experience is limited, especially in a village setting. Without books, knowledge merely passes from grandfather to father, then to son. But reading opens new horizons, teaching what one does not know.
Recently, Mulan Bookhouse hosted a reportage study session commemorating 30 years of Fujian-Ningxia collaboration. Among the participants was Li Chengshan, a resident of Gaotong Village. Li describes literature as "spiritual nourishment" that enriches his life. After a day's labor, he finds joy and relief in reading. A full-time farmer who tends crops and livestock, Li also dedicates time to books. Once, he mediated a dispute among villagers over card games by sharing insights from his reading, even recommending a book to them. Inspired, he converted a room in his home into a reading space. Li expresses happiness in sharing his reading experiences with others, enriching his own soul in the process. In winter, he heats the room and invites villagers to read together.
Shi Jingbo has witnessed how reading transforms people in surrounding villages. Today, over 1,600 individuals in Xiji County engage in literary creation, including 300–400 farmer-writers. While reading may not directly change livelihoods, it reshapes one’s inner world, mindset, and outlook on life.
In Xiji, a blind literature enthusiast named Zhao Ling hosts reading sessions in his tuina massage shop. For him, books connect friends and hearts. Zhao co-founded a book club that holds 20–30 gatherings annually, attracting diverse participants regardless of age or profession. Zhao, who lost his eyesight and suffered left-side paralysis due to a brain tumor in 2000, recalls initial despair. Books became his solace. Through audiobooks, he gained perspective and calm, repeatedly listening to works like *How the Steel Was Tempered* and Yu Hua’s *To Live*. He now wears an audiobook player while working, sometimes discussing moving passages with clients. Recently, he has been engrossed in Bi Feiyu’s *The Massage*, which vividly portrays blind individuals’ lives.
A regular attendee, Chen Hongqin, finds her life enriched and anxiety eased through the book club. Shi Yongcheng, a domestic worker, describes reading as a life-enjoying ritual that brings comfort and color to his days. Zhang Shuo, a student at Xiji Third Primary School, initially struggled with self-esteem but improved his language skills and grades through persistent reading. Ma Juan, an employee at the Xiji Literature Museum, emphasizes the power of words to reveal unseen worlds and unreachable places.
As National Reading Week approaches, Xiangyang City in Hubei Province is also fostering a vibrant reading culture. From audiobooks for the visually impaired to repurposed printing factories turned chic reading spaces, the city ensures accessibility through its "15-minute reading circle." The Xiangyang Library offers specialized resources like smart audiobook players and Braille materials. Librarian Hao Lingli plans to expand outreach and volunteer training to include more special-needs individuals in the joy of reading. Xiangyang has established an integrated reading network with the main library at its core, supported by seven themed city bookrooms, 24 branch libraries, and 266 mobile service points, enabling book borrowing and returns across the system.
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