Turning up the heat

A TCM doctor shares the secrets of an ancient therapy with Chen Zhiyong

Life Literature

Publishers turn the page to a tough year

The Beijing 2007 Book Ordering Fair is considered a market barometer for the coming year. It ended last weekend, drawing about 1,800 book companies and thousands of distributors. The fair garnered 2.45 billion yuan ($314 million) in trade volume, slightly up from the 2.39 billion yuan ($306 million) last January.

The troubling reality of today's fiction

In contrast to the popularity of history and classic books, fiction in 2005, especially by well-known Chinese writers Mo Yan, Su Tong and Yu Hua, generally flopped among readers and became a target for critics.

Millions they wrote

Beijing bookworm Yang Yalian takes great pleasure in collecting autographed copies of best-selling books. "Buying the right books is as hard as making friends with the right people," Yang said. "Once I hit upon a delicately made book that not only arrests my eyes but also wins my heart, I develop an emotional attachment with it and its author.

Life Style

Glittering minds think outside the jewelry box

Lauren Crowell loves to sculpt and paint.

Jonny Apple seed

Jonathan Ive was onstage, lovingly dismantling an iBook laptop in front of an audience of enraptured designers. For more than an hour, he handled the object, describing the journey of its creation, revealing the elegant necessity of every curve, hinge and surface.

Life Travel

Somewhere over the rainbow

Xu Xiaomin journeys to Shangri-La in Yunnan Province to witness its natural charm and unique ethnic culture

Life Health

Chinese standards for instant beauty

Doctor Xia Yang from Beijing Shijitan Hospital has practised cosmetic surgery for almost 15 years and said the nip and tuck trend began about a decade ago.