There is nothing quite like losing yourself in a good book on a hot summer's day. But if it's foreign-language works you want in Shanghai, you might need help.

Whether it's for a beach holiday or just sunbathing in your garden, this is the time to stock up on some good summer reading.

Old timers in Shanghai will doubtless know a handful of foreign-language bookstores that provide the reading staple of the expat community. But these stores often boast high prices and limited selections.

In the West, these problems have been solved by the rise of online bookstores which have huge databases of titles and send books directly to your home.

US-based online giant Amazon can also ship to China and is the default choice for many foreigners. But venture a little further into the Chinese online shopping world and you will find an increasing number of local alternatives which cut out international shipping fees and weeks of delivery time.

While the Shanghai Foreign Language Bookstore on Fuzhou Road is known as the most comprehensive place for foreign publications in the city, fewer people know that the company behind it, Shanghai Book Traders (SBT) also has an English online store at http://sbt.com.cn/en.

Here you can browse a wide selection of English books and subscribe to newspapers and magazines and have them delivered by mail, or collect them at any of their stores across Shanghai. Delivery by mail costs 15 percent of the book price and takes one to four weeks.

A more commercial alternative is www.51eng.com. This New York-based company specializes in the niche market of buying books abroad wholesale and importing them into China. Their English Website has more than 600,000 titles and features special deals.

Delivery by mail is free for orders above 80 yuan (US$12) or 4 yuan for orders below and will arrive in five to 12 days.