Reading Month to host over 2,000 themed activities

The 24th Shenzhen Reading Month, with over 2,000 activities lined up and 11 subvenues set up across the city, will kick off at the Shenzhen Book City CBD Store on Nov. 4, according to a press conference held by the city government at the Civic Center on Friday.

This year’s Reading Month intends to advocate understanding history, facilitate the inheritance and innovation of excellent traditional Chinese culture, and strive to create a new culture that belongs to this era.

A man rides past posters of last year's Shenzhen Read Month at Shenzhen Book City CBD store in Futian District. Liu Xudong

Given Shenzhen’s proximity to Hong Kong and the two cities’ cultural connections, this year’s Reading Month will launch a series of reading exchange activities between the two cities, according to the event’s organizing committee.

The opening ceremony will invite Hong Kong representatives to participate and jointly release a shared reading consensus between the two cities. During the Reading Month, activities such as exhibitions, forums, and poetry reading will be held for reading exchanges between Shenzhen and Hong Kong.

Wu Jun, deputy head of Shenzhen’s publicity department who is secretary general of the Shenzhen Reading Month Organizing Committee, said the integration of Shenzhen and Hong Kong is becoming deeper in the context of the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. At the same time, the two cities are very similar in their urban characteristics such as innovation, entrepreneurship, creativity, and striving for progress.

The series of reading exchange activities between the two cities will strengthen public reading and communication, and tell the story of the twin cities, she said.

International cultural exchange is a major highlight of this year’s Reading Month. A special event titled “Poetic Adventures and Soul Resonance — Dialogue between Chinese and French Literature Experts” will take place Nov. 20 at the Shenzhen Book City CBD Store, inviting French linguistic experts and cultural celebrities to engage in dialogue on various topics.

The Shenzhen Publishing House French Book Exhibition will be held during the Shenzhen Book Fair, showcasing over 100 excellent French books introduced and published by Shenzhen Publishing House over the past 20 years.

The Shenzhen Book Fair will be held from Nov. 10 to 19 to coincide with the annual Shenzhen Bougainvillea Show.