November 2012 – Read On

This issue of Varsity looks at books and reading in Hong Kong. The city is often described as a cultural and literary desert whose residents are more interested in shopping than reading. In Periscope, we look at several aspects of Hong Kong’s reading culture and as a market for book sales:

Eslite is Taiwan’s best-known bookshop, selling  not just books but also a certain kind of lifestyle. Now Eslite has arrived in Hong Kong, we ask whether it can really boost book sales and reading culture.

Hong Kong is a shopping paradise for mainland visitors. It’s common knowledge that milk powder, cosmetics and toiletries are hot items, but perhaps less known is that banned books are also a favourite buy. Varsity visits the book shops that focus on selling books that are prohibited in the Mainland.

Hong Kong’s young people are often accused of not reading enough, or not reading at all. Varsity asks if this is fair – we conduct our own survey on the reading habits of young people.