Zhang Qian

zhqcindy@163.com

RUNNING from Thursday to Sunday, the 28th National Book Expo at the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center in Futian District, its main venue, will organize more than 400 activities regarding books and reading.

More than 800 publishers from across China showcased the books they have published when the fair officially opened Thursday. A total of 41 delegations from 31 provinces and regions are also displaying books during the fair. Nearly 1 million books are going to be showcased and traded at high discounts.

More than 150 well-known authors from all over the world have been invited to give talks, launch new books or hold reading salons at the main venue and five subvenues across the city.

The main venue will be a 50,000-square-meter exhibition area in Halls 1, 2 and 5. The five subvenues, located in five Shenzhen Publishing and Circulation Group bookstores, will provide additional exhibition areas totaling 50,000 square meters.

The Book City Luohu store will mainly exhibit books on the humanities and social sciences while the Nanshan and Futian stores will feature books and literature for minors. Bao’an has set a target of turning the fair into a reading carnival, while the Book City Longgang store, the first intelligence-based store, will hold the Intelligence and Book Industry Development Forum.

Yu Dan, a nationally renowned author of books reviewing Confucius’ works with her own understanding in modern and simple language, will give a lecture on how reading energizes a city at Xixiang Assembly Hall in Bao’an District on Saturday night.

The famous food columnist and critic, Chua Lam, is going to meet readers in Hall 1 of the Shenzhen Convention and Exhibition Center from 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday.

The globally well-known Israeli writer Yuval Noah Harari, author of “Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind” and “Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow,” will debut the third installment of his trilogy Saturday at 6 p.m. in Hall 5.

Apart from books and activities, exhibitors are also bringing high-technology devices to promote reading at the fair.

A 24-hour self-help intelligent bookstore on display at the fair attracted a lot of visitors interested in experiencing the new mode of shopping Thursday. Without the help of a shop assistant, visitors can gain access to the bookstore with face-recognition technology, find the books they are looking for via automatic machines and pay for the books using an online payment system.

The exhibitor of the smart bookstore is Shenzhen Book City, and a staffer said more 24-hour smart bookstores will be placed in major Metro stations for the convenience of residents.

The fair is free of charge. Participants can obtain tickets by scanning the QR codes available at the entrance of the venues.

The main venue of the fair will open to the public from 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and the opening hours extend to 10 p.m. Friday and Saturday.

The National Book Expo is organized in a different city each year. This is Shenzhen’s second time hosting the fair in 22 years, since the 7th National Book Expo was held at Shenzhen’s old Book City in Luohu District in 1996.

(Photo Highlights on P9)