With the implementation of the Regulation to Promote Public Reading, we are encouraged to reflect on how reading can be woven into everyday life. The Public Library of the Cultural Affairs Bureau (hereinafter referred to as the “Public Library”) has launched the “10-Minute Reading Corner” initiative, bringing “Reading” into a wide range of daily settings, including hospitals, leisure areas, cultural and sports venues, cafés, and other urban public spaces. In the small pockets of time found amid busy routines, residents can return to books and rediscover the joy and calm that reading brings.

This issue of Books and the City, themed “Joyful Reading Community”, introduces a range of services offered by the Public Library and helps readers discover reading resources beyond traditional library spaces. We begin with reflections from users of the “Mobile Library”, highlighting the mobility and inclusiveness of public reading resources. Next, the manager of a “10-Minute Reading Corner” demonstration site shares the impact of promoting reading through real-life settings. The “10-Minute Reading” Incentive Scheme adds an “Online Reading” option, encouraging residents to build a steady daily reading habit. The “Book Delivery Service” extends reading resources to communities with special needs. In this issue, representatives from participating organizations share how the “Book Delivery Service” broadens trainees’ horizons and nurtures their interest in reading. In addition, the Public Library presents a variety of outreach activities, including the “Introduction to Macao Public Library Resources and Services” Community Exhibition, “Book for Book” Activity, “Fun Reading Guide for Seniors”, and the “Health & Wellness Stations”. Each program serves a distinct purpose: expanding service outreach, encouraging resource circulation, empowering older adults, and integrating culture with wellbeing - collectively meeting the reading and cultural needs of different age groups and communities.

“Macao Just Read ‧ National Reading Campaign Week 2026”, held in April 2026, has left the city with a lingering love of books. In this issue, the “Library Handbook” section continues the momentum by looking back on “National Reading Campaign Week” and showcasing the diversity of its activities. We also highlight selected services provided by the Public Library, helping more residents understand, access, and make practical use of library resources. In “Library Magnifying Glass”, readers will find introductions to the Public Library’s themed book exhibitions, along with newly added electronic resources acquired in recent months. This Author’s Say invites Dr. Iok Lan Fu Barreto, translator of the Portuguese-language literary work Mong-Há, to guide readers through Henrique de Senna Fernandes’s fact-and-fiction intertwined stories of the era - revisiting old Macao through narrative and appreciating the city’s many facets.