Is it hidden in a busy downtown area or a small courtyard covered with green plants? Is it a top shelf or a patchwork old bookcase? Is there mottled traces of the times everywhere, or is it full of modern flavor? Is it a quiet page turning sound or a sharing communication under the blues? Is it the intersection of books or the collision of hearts? Is it vague or colorful?
My first bookstore dream was related to reading travel, so I had a book tour, and I especially liked the culture of youth travel, so I hid my independent bookstore in a busy downtown and enjoyed myself. Later, I found that only feelings can't last long, and enjoying myself is not in line with my original intention. What's the significance of this bookstore? Fortunately, I met my current partner, and together we established a reading club and now the "Niurentang Parr Library". In this way, from a small bookstore that used to sell only activity books to a library where real local scholars gathered, I began to do one thing more intently.
What's the difference between a bookstore and a library? Although both of them are books, bookstores mainly sell books for a living, while libraries have their own value propositions. A group of people with the same frequency get together and make books have life and soul. When we meet in such a place, we can just read quietly, communicate with our peers, put forward our own puzzles and find our own answers.
Mark Twain said that children who have never stolen books will never grow up. This is not advocating children to steal books, but deeply feeling that even in the era of material shortage, children are so eager for books. Each of us knows that reading is very important and has far-reaching significance. Then, as adults, should we not buy books and read more books when we have certain economic ability?
I mentioned a deep feeling in the first article "Why should I open a bookstore" on the official account of WeChat. When I study in Europe, whether I take the subway or wait for the bus, I will notice that people around me quietly take out a book from his bag and read it intently. If he leaves home in a hurry and forgets to bring his book, he will also pick up the free newspaper provided by the car to read. Only when the phone rings will he turn his head. Once back in Beijing, people will never forget to take a few photos with their mobile phones on crowded subways and buses, even if they are squeezed into patties.
Many people may say that if I want to study, I can borrow books from the library and buy e-books online. Why do I have to go to the bookstore to buy books? Have you ever wondered how long it will take you to meet those books that really inspire you among the many old books in the library? Among the e-books you bought online, which ones do you really want to read? Only by forming the habit of going to the bookstore regularly, feeling the temperature of each book and finding the right book is the most cost-effective method. This is my original idea of opening a bookstore.
Later, I found that a person may walk very fast, but can't walk very far, while a group of people may not walk very fast, but can walk very far. Maybe you want to study very much, but you find it boring to study alone, so you find a group of people to study together, so there is a reading club. Here, we choose 20 books and spend a year reading with you to make your reading experience visible. You can find friends with the same frequency here, speak freely and communicate with each other, and you can also turn input into output, so that more people can witness your growth.
Before, book lovers often came here and found our hidden shop. After reading each book title carefully, they turned to ask me for the recommendation list, and I thought of Mr. Lu Xun's story. Mr. Lu Xun often gives lectures in universities. After each lecture, students will hope that Mr. Lu Xun will open a list of books, and Mr. Lu Xun will say that a scholar will open a list of books just like a doctor. First of all, you should take your pulse and look at your physical condition, and then you can judge whether you need tonic or medicine, what prescription to take and what medicine to take according to your own situation. We met unexpectedly, so I can't give you a book list. Mr. Lu Xun hit the nail on the head. Yes, I can't even know your name accurately. How dare I write you a book list at will? However, in our library, we can have many opportunities to get to know each other. I can listen to your stories and understand your needs. Just ask me to talk for a few hours, so that I can get to know you better and write you a private book list.
Here, you can not only see books related to our value proposition, but also feel the local reading club and professional book list customizer. You can also set up your own private library with your own books, and even take your own books for a charity sale. Maybe you will question that my own books are afraid of being dirty and broken, and you still want me to share them with others, and these books are bought back because I like them. Why should I sell them? Ma Jiahui, a Hong Kong writer, said that it is a moral behavior for readers to give, donate and share books, and it is a person's responsibility to give books to people who love reading. If you buy a book and go home, just put it on the shelf and never touch it, the book is equivalent to dying on your shelf. And give this book to those who need and want to read it, and it will be reborn. People who really love reading will not leave their books idle waiting for the dust to settle, but will happily share them with others and transfer them to more people in need. Therefore, if the book you buy inspires you and has a certain influence, you should send it out at a certain time. Don't let it just lie there and die on your bookshelf.
I have seen people donate their books to the library, which is really good, but what are the chances of the books being opened again? It's better to take out the books for charity sale, whether it's ten dollars or eight dollars or three dollars and five dollars, so that these books can be realized again, and people who buy these books will cherish them more. After all, what they buy with their own money is completely different from what others give. The sender may be happy but will be shelved, and the buyer will make full use of it. So, here, you can have your own private library, share books with more people, or bring books that meet our value proposition, and we will help you sell them for charity. You can take the money from selling books, change new books and put it into our student aid fund to help more children who can't afford to go to school. But no matter how you choose, it will be a very meaningful thing.
This is my library, which comes out of many people's dreams and exists in reality. And I hope this is not only my library, but also the library of real scholars and intellectuals.