Sit back, read and relax in this unique space

A GIANT bookstore is planned for Xujiahui by 2021 as a new downtown reading and cultural landmark.

The 18,000-square-meter Xujiahui Bookstore will be built in the core area of the Xujiahui commercial hub with the cooperation of the Xuhui District government and Shanghai Century Publishing Co.

It will open on April 23, 2021 to celebrate World Book and Copyright Day and the 460th birthday of Xu Guangqi, the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) scientist and official after whom Xujiahui is named.

The bookstore will be one of the largest reading spaces in Shanghai to help boost the reading atmosphere of the city, according to Fang Shizhong, director of the Xuhui government, during the Shanghai Book Fair.

The bookstore will be built near the iconic Xujiahui Cathedral which reopened in December 2017 after a two-year renovation.

The bookstore will be titled the “Light of Shanghai” to be on a par with other landmark bookstores in the city such as the newly opened Duoyun Books, on the 52nd floor of the 632-meter Shanghai Tower, known as the “Top of Shanghai,” and the Guangfulin bookstore at the relics park in Songjiang District, known as the “Root of Shanghai,” Fang said.

The Xuhui government also released a series of books at the fair about the city’s architecture and three popular historical roads — Wukang, Hengshan and Fuxing — in downtown Xuhui.

Famous writers and scholars were invited to share their impressions of the historical streets with readers. Zheng Shiling, a professor of urban planning and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, recommended Hengshan and Huaihai roads to visitors from abroad.

Writer Chen Danyan recommended Wuyuan Road, a small street within the HengshanFuxing historical conservation zone, because it has many local residents and authentic small street shops.

The district government also released a virtual reality technology to allow readers a panoramic view of the historical villas on Hengshan and Fuxing roads, historic structures at Xuhuijia and industrial heritage on the West Bund waterfront.

Xuhui is known as the origin of haipai culture, which refers to the avant-garde but unique “East meets West” culture from Shanghai that emerged in the 20th century.

In recent years, China’s bookstores have been transforming into cultural spaces amid competition from booming ecommerce platforms.