FEATURE

TEXT_Yvonne Yu　PHOTOS_Panda Lei/COURTESY OF THE INTERVIEWEES　ILLUSTRATOR_Molly

Books serve as a lighthouse standing in the vast ocean of time, and promoting community-wide reading is to radiate the light of this lighthouse to a wider area, illuminating the souls of city dwellers. Over the years, the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau has been actively creating light energy for this “lighthouse” in Macao. Through facilitating territory-wide reading, it allows reading to permeate the community and create various types of common reading environments for the residents, thus promoting the culture of reading. Some non-government organisations and enterprises in Macao have also participated in this initiative. This Library Newsletter features several units telling their stories related to “Reading for Pleasure in Community”, which unfold the true face of the “Joy of Pleasure Reading in Community”. At the same time, through the analyses and explanations of scholars, as well as a series of interesting initiatives launched by the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau on community reading in recent years, we will gain an in-depth understanding of all the little things of community reading.

As Macao is committed to the development of a “City of Reading”, an increasing number of associations take part in the promotion of reading, making reading and lifelong learning the most sought-after trend. The Macao Federation of Trade Unions Worker Bookhouse, jointly established by the All-China Federation of Trade Unions and the Macao Federation of Trade Unions (FAOM), acts as a good example to encourage people to enrich their lives with reading by launching a variety of reading activities suitable for the general public, such as book recommendations, reading sharing sessions, workshops, as well as the creation of mobile bookhouses in collaboration with enterprises.

The Worker Bookhouse has a collection of nearly 3,000 books, on genres ranging from humanities and social sciences, politics, economics and finance, to children’s books published in Macao, making it a reading space for the general workers and residents. According to Lam Cheong U, Deputy Secretary-General of FAOM and the person in charge of Worker Bookhouse, the Bookhouse is slightly different from the ordinary libraries where people usually read quietly, as readers are more than welcome to “make some noise” in the Bookhouse, and meet friends through reading, discussing and sharing with fellow book mates. Therefore, the Bookhouse regularly holds events such as reading gatherings and parent-child reading workshops to attract different readers to “make noises” as they please.

Is the fact that Worker Bookhouse is only 2 minutes away from Patane Library likely to affect its visit rate? The answer is no. Fong Cho Hou, Head Librarian of Worker Bookhouse who is responsible for managing its daily operation, shared that the Bookhouse is the most bustling in the afternoons, as people in the neighbourhood and after-school students all love to visit the Bookhouse to read and relax. The reason is that the Bookhouse offers not only a traditional library area, but also a cultural and creative area, and a water bar that serves light refreshments, thus creating a comfortable and multi-functional reading environment for the readers. The relationship between the Bookhouse and the public library appears to be synergistic and complementary, satisfying different requirements of readers for their ideal reading environment, while creating a favourable atmosphere for reading in the community.

In addition to the Worker Bookhouse, Lam mentioned that they are also actively stepping out to foster the construction of mobile bookhouses in collaboration with Macao enterprises, bringing bookhouses to the enterprises, and motivating the workers to develop an interest in reading, with a view to penetrating the culture of reading in the enterprises. This April, FAOM brought its mobile bookhouse to a Macao leisure enterprise for the first time, where it co-launched with Melco Resorts & Entertainment a mobile bookhouse named Melco’s Colleagues’ Bookhouse, which has received plenty of positive responses. Veron Mok, Vice President of Human Resources at Studio City, stated that the mobile bookhouse is highly popular among colleagues. The staff said that the mobile bookhouse is a space for people to relax and enhance their knowledge, which not only enriches their after-work life, but also encourages exchanges and interactions among colleagues.

Lam Cheong U (left), Deputy Secretary-General of FAOM and the person in charge of Worker Bookhouse, and Fong Cho Hou(right), Head Librarian of Worker Bookhouse, hope that more activities will be developed in the future to bring better experience to workers and residents.

The Worker Bookhouse is open to all groups of people, providing a space for readers to read books on humanities, social sciences, politics, economics and finance.

The presence of public intellectuals is imperative in introducing literary works to the local community. The Pen of Macau, a non-profit organisation that brings together Macao writers, enjoys privileged intellectual resources. Its mission to bring literature into Macao community has prompted it to continuously establish platforms for bringing the power of young writers into the community. This year, the Pen of Macau organised the “The Voice of Macau: Youth Literary Salon”, an event series widely popular among young writing enthusiasts, and decided to hold it at the Wine Macau, which is “probably the rooftop with the best view of the Ruins of St. Paul’s”, so as to meet friends through wine and literature, and to support the “Reading for Pleasure in Community”.

Contrary to previous literary salons, which were considered to have a high threshold that left little to be desired, the “The Voice of Macau: Youth Literary Salon” has a much more “friendly” starting point. “We hope that the youths in Macao who are passionate about writing will be bold enough to take part in the event, where they may share or get to know the works of Macao’s young writers in this atmospheric place, over a drink, or even with more interesting cultural performances, such as dance and opera. At the end of the day, literature itself is not so much of a solemn matter.” said Lio Chi Heng, Chairperson of the Pen of Macau, with a smile.

The purpose of promoting the works of young Macao writers is to foster literary continuity, and the curator, Kam Un Loi, is a representative of the post-millennium Macao writers, who facilitated the flow of the event to be in line with the preferences of today’s young people. The first issue was entitled “City Silhouettes: Images of Macao in the Works of Young Macao Writers”, featuring a selection of works by young writers, which were printed and distributed to the attending members; the authors then led the reading of the selected works, and some renowned writers or scholars from the Greater Bay Area invited to the event shared their comments on the works, thus triggering a lively interaction among the attendees.

Apart from the literary works themselves, the main focus of the Salon also includes drinks and a beautiful view. Derek, owner of Wine Macau who claims to be a “middle-aged restaurant owner who could have pursued his literary endeavours”, adds, “We have always wanted to bring literature and art into the community, giving Macao a more diverse image. By leveraging this scenic rooftop for a joint event with the Pen of Macau, young people in Macao who love literature will discover a brand-new way of literary networking, and at the same time, they will also know about this place.” According to the Pen of Macau, the Salon will be held four times a year on different themes, with the first three times being in the form of individual readings, and the last time in the form of a gathering, in which both the public and members who enjoy literature are welcome to participate.

Lio Chi Heng (centre), Chairperson of the Pen of Macau, Kam Un Loi (left), young writer and event curator, and Derek (right), owner of the Wine Macau, discuss the opportunity to collaborate on this event series.

Poster of “The Voice of Macao: Youth Literary Salon EP2”

The MODSA Book Crossing Box Project

The MODSA Book Crossing Box Project is a time-limited flash mob organised by the Macau Overseas Design Student Association (MODSA) in response to World Book Day. The MODSA Book Crossing Boxes are placed in two shops located in the historic district of Macao, which aim to encourage the public to support local shops and learn more about design through book swapping.

Hong Ka Lok, President of MODSA, is one of the event curators, who mentioned that at the beginning of the project, most of the selected books were relevant to design. Since he hoped to attract more young people who are interested in design to join in, and share their knowledge, he then chose two shops which are popular among young people to place the book crossing boxes. Following the development of the campaign, not only design books, but also books about spirituality, literature and start-ups have been added to the boxes. The partnering shops also reflected that the book crossing boxes allow them to have more conversations with their customers and bring people closer together. In response to the positive feedback, MODSA has extended the time-limited activity. However, instead of “fixing” the book crossing box at a certain point, it is now “travelling” to more places for a limited period of time, and cooperating with shared offices, schools, and commercial organisations to share creative design and reading with a wider population.

 
The MODSA Book Crossing Box Project will be held continuously in different parts of the city to promote reading to the public.

Hong Ka Lok, event curator of The MODSA Book Crossing Box Project

The Picture Book Club

Since the founding of Cuchi-Cuchi Bookhouse in 2018, Lily Wong, the operator of the Bookhouse, has been thinking about how to better promote picture books to everyone. As part of the community, Wong believes that reading activities can strengthen the bond between people. Therefore, from parent-child reading activities, workshops, to the Picture Book Club launched at the end of 2023, she has been trying to bring new reading experiences in various forms to readers and arouse their interest in reading.

The idea for the Picture Book Club came about when she held an offline sharing session last year for the students of her Picture Book Instructor Course, which was unexpectedly well received by the participants. She then extended the event and tried to open it up to all adults to provide a thematic book club experience. In order to achieve a balance between business and reading promotion, she set a small fee as a threshold for the Book Club, in the hope that people would treasure the opportunity to come to the Club. The Book Club is now held once a month, with a different theme of picture book reading each time. Participants can bring their own picture books or choose books in the shop to read together, where they may share their feelings with others. She mentioned that the groups participating in the Book Club were mainly social workers, teachers and people who love illustrations. The happiest thing to her is to see reading lovers who do not know each other have a chance to get together and engage in sharing and exchanges.

The Picture Book Club is a monthly themed event that serves as a platform for people to share the joy of reading.

Lily Wong, operator of the Cuchi-Cuchi Bookhouse

01 “Book for Book” Activity

Suitable for: All groups of people

The “Book for Book” Activity has been rolled out in various neighbourhoods of Macao and has been well-received by residents. Participants can exchange their books with others, and through the establishment of a stable book exchange platform, the circulation of reading resources in the community can be increased. According to multiple sessions of the activity, parents were eager to bring their children to participate in the activity, so as to cultivate their interest in reading from an early age. The “Book for Book” Activity not only promotes the concept of environmental protection and waste reduction, but also enriches the spiritual life of the public and plays a positive role in elevating spiritual civilisation in the community.

02 “POP-UP” Library 

Suitable for: Those of you who do not wish to miss out

Can libraries “pop up” on streets? Yes, this is exactly what the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau has launched, the “POP-UP” Library. Several public areas in Macao have seen colourful book installations these days, which are small convenient book treasure boxes that “pop up” in the community, where residents can choose their favourite books on their own. This activity is like a mysterious guest performance in the reading world, building a reading treasure trove in the community, creating a cultural atmosphere of community-wide reading, and allowing the seeds of reading to take root and sprout in various parts of the city.

03 Book Delivery Service

Suitable for: Social welfare organisations, non-profit organisations, schools

Starting from 2020, the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau have been offering Book Delivery Service to provide convenience to social welfare organisations, non-profit organisations, schools, residential care homes for the elderly and more. The applicant organisations are allowed to borrow 200 items of library items at a time free of charge for their members or students, and the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau will then deliver the requested items to the organisations concerned. Whether in the premises of social welfare organisations, in the corners of campuses, or in residential care homes for the elderly, the power of books can always find its way. Through this service, books serve as a bridge to connect different social groups, allowing the power of reading to warm up every corner of the city, and jointly create a social atmosphere filled with the aroma of books.

04  “Self Service Holds Pick-up Locker” established on campus

Suitable for: Teachers and students

The new trend of reading on campus - Self Service Holds Pick-up Locker - puts knowledge at your fingertips. Students can borrow books easily by searching and reserving their favourite library items through platforms such as the website of the Cultural Affairs Bureau, “My Library” or the “My Borrowing Books” on the “Macao One Account”, and choosing the Self Service Holds Pick-up Locker at their own school as the pick-up point. For the time being, 9 schools in Macao have set up Self Service Holds Pick-up Lockers, and the number will be increased to 12 this year, so that knowledge and convenience can go hand in hand, making reading a part of campus life.

A reading culture in the community is a long-term process that requires patience and continuous efforts to cultivate. As stated by Dr Kou Seng Man, President of the International (Macau) Institute of Academic Research, who has been engaged in social services and academic research for years, “In promoting community reading and building a ‘City of Reading’, close cooperation among individuals, families, schools, associations and the Government is required and indispensable.”

In recent years, the Macao SAR Government has been dedicated to optimising the software and hardware facilities of the public libraries as well as launching a wide range of reading resources and promotional activities; initiatives such as encouraging young people and children to visit libraries, and fostering the habit of parent-child reading, all of which have increased the residents’ interest in reading and made it easier for them to participate in reading. However, while the number of promotional activities and books are on the rise, Kou pointed out that attention should also be brought to improving quality, including the provision of multilingual and multicultural reading materials and the support for locally published works. He explained, “Macao enjoys the strength of being the ‘China-Portuguese-speaking Countries Commercial and Trade Service Platform’, which has a greater abundance of Portuguese-language books than any other regions, and such uniqueness should be highlighted. In addition, I also suggest supporting Macao authors and their works and promoting them to the general public, as promoting local works can also strengthen the cultural identity and creativity of the public”. At the same time, Kou is also aware of the “Book for Book” Activity launched by the Public Library this year. He agreed that the campaign realised the exchange and sharing of library resources, which reduces the “cost of reading” for the public. However, at the same time, he also suggested that Public Library should cooperate with different community organisations to set up more free book crossing boxes, which could cater for the needs of people from different classes, and also increase the circulation of books in the community and the convenience of reading for the public.

While continuous reading promotion in the community is essential, family support also plays a vital role. As the father of two children, Kou Seng Man shared his personal experience, “When my children were small, I often read storybooks with them and encouraged them to write about it, which gradually cultivated their interest in writing. With time and efforts accumulated, their writing skills have improved over time. Last year, the two siblings even published their first ever co-authored works.” Therefore, Kou also encourages parents to try to read with their children more often, and exchange reading experience with them, not only to develop a lifelong reading habit, but also to enhance the relationship between parents and children.

Dr Kou Seng Man, President of the International (Macau) Institute of Academic Research

The outreach activities of the Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau have been widely popular, which not only enhanced the Library’s social impact, but also stimulated the public’s passion for reading. In the first quarter of 2024, we welcomed about 660,000 visitors, which is a significant increase of nearly 20% compared to the same period in 2023 of about 560,000 visitors.

In terms of book borrowing, we have also witnessed a continuous rise in demand for reading. The number of books borrowed in the first quarter of 2024 reached about 70,000 readers, compared to about 64,000 readers in the same period in 2023, representing an increase of almost 10%.