A bookstore that brings back the fun of reading

By Li Jingrong: 0 Comment(s)Print E-mail China.org.cn, April 23, 2016

The Bell Book Club in Hangzhou of Zhejiang Province, situated on the city's Star Avenue, is the book club's third branch, and is the first to be opened outside of Shanghai, just in time for World Book Day on April 23. The photo was taken on April 19. [Photo by Zhu Yinwei/China.org.cn]

Strolling around the boundless interior of the Bell Book Club in Hangzhou, people might feel as though they entered a dreamland of knowledge.

The bookstore, situated on the city's Star Avenue, is the Bell Book Club's third branch, but the first to be opened outside of Shanghai - just in time for World Book Day on April 23.

The bookstore covers an area of more than 1,000 square meters which combines a 200-square-meter reading room, where the ring-shaped walls are filled with books, and a massive ceiling mirror creating a sense of boundless extension into the sky.

The most imaginative part of the bookstore is the children's reading area covering 200 square meters. Here, a carousel, roller coaster, hot air balloon and pirate ship serve as both decorations and bookshelves to create a sense of childish playfulness. The floor is drawn from a galaxy chart, where children can learn about the universe and be inspired by what lies beyond.

The Bell Book Club was founded in suburban Shanghai in April 2013. It has been praised as the "most beautiful bookstore in Shanghai," and is considered a benchmark in the reform and transformation of Chinese bookstores.

The book club has a collection of 60,000 volumes, focusing mainly on social science and literature. It also has a stationery section to meet the needs of customers nostalgic for old traditions.

As noted, the bookstore in Hangzhou is the Bell Book Club's third branch in China. The second branch has been under construction in Yangzhou, Jiangsu Province since September 19, 2015.

Jin Hao, head of the Bell Book Club, explained that the bookstores are based on the principle of "recommending good books for readers" in order to build a good reading environment for the people, saying "we must be able to ensure everyone has access to books in every place."

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