2017上海书展将于八月启幕 - 2017年07月28日

MORE than 50 outlets from 17 local bookstore brands will serve as extra venues for the city’s book fair this year to give the city’s readers more choices.

The week-long 2017 Shanghai Book Fair runs from August 16 -22 at the Shanghai Exhibition Center. It will feature more than 500 publishing houses and 150,000 titles.

Xu Jiong, head of the Shanghai Press and Publication Administration, said that previously, the book fair’s bookstore branches were only in the Shanghai Book Mall or Xinhua Book Stores.

“But over the past few years, bookstores have come back to the city again, with emerging brands like Zhongshuge Bookstore and SiSYPHE,” Xu said.

“Not only the number has increased, but they are also very popular.”

Xu said the emerging bookstores have new talent who will bring more momentum and innovation.

“The main venue (the Shanghai Exhibition Center) is always the most popular venue of the book fair,” Xu said.

“However we’ve also received complaints that the crowded and noisy environment harmed the visitors’ experience during reading events.

“That’s why we are moving some events that require a quieter environment to branches to provide better experiences for the readers.”

The book fair’s branches include not only bookstores, but also local libraries and community cultural centers.

In 2011 and 2012, many bookshops in the city closed, sparking public concern.

To support development of local bookstores, the city government introduced a series of policies including subsidies.

Over the past few years, bookstores have transformed from only selling books to providing a more integrated cultural space for residents.

Shanghai’s original bookstore brands such as Zhongshuge have expanded to other cities.

Others from outside Shanghai, such as SiSYPHE, are expanding their presence in the city.

And this year’s Shanghai International Literature Week, part of the book fair, will also focus on the city’s lovers of science fiction — the theme of this year’s week.

It will feature more than 30 guests, including Hugo Awards winner American writer Mike Resnick, at more than 50 reading events. The exhibition center will open from 9am to 9pm. Tickets are 10 yuan during the day and 5 yuan at night.