A bonanza for bookworms

Since March 2013, the Chinese public's passion for reading has undergone a big change.

Slogans promoting the activity are plastered across bus stops, next to adverts for the newest movies. Meanwhile, Line 4 of the Beijing subway has been turned into a reading wonderland: the cars carry posters bearing illustrations and selected paragraphs from books. Passengers can scan a code with a smart device and receive selected chapters of featured books so they can gauge the content.

More reading spaces, public and privately owned, have sprouted in cities, and while most are small, they are cozy, chic and full of bookworms. Bookstores are also drawing larger numbers of customers, and extending their opening hours as a result.