Traditional Wood Carving in Ma Jia, Yunnan

The times are changing, and the closure of a large number of physical bookstores has become commonplace for modern people and is no longer new.

Most people, after seeing the news that "another bookstore has fallen down", have no other nostalgia and practice except silently expressing their regret.

After all, physical bookstores are like candles in modern life. Although it carries light and can support the unusually "warm" part in the dark, it is always just an atmosphere, a spiritual comfort, not a necessity.

The closing tide, the closing tide, the loss of millions ... In this atmosphere, a bookstore resolutely broke through, persisted, chose the most inconspicuous rural house in Yunnan, and established a seemingly unprofitable rural bookstore.

Why?

Can idealism survive when physical bookstores move from crowded commercial centers to remote villages?

On August 15, Xianfeng Shaxi Bai Bookstore opened in Shaxi Ancient Town, Jianchuan County, Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture.

On the opening day, an old Bai man wrote a blessing in crooked words, "Welcome to the complete success of your bookstore". Not fluent but simple language makes people respect, and the desire and joy for culture seems to be stronger in these remote mountain villages far away from noise and material desires.

As pioneer bookstore always insisted, "For this moment, we walked out of the town and into the countryside. We hope that the poetry and ideals that have been precipitated in those long years will have the opportunity to infiltrate every soul that yearns for' beyond the mountain'. One day, wherever the sun shines, you can hear the sound of turning pages. "

Speaking of pioneer bookstore, people in the cultural circle should be familiar with it. This 1996 bookstore, founded in Nanjing, explores the business model of cultural and creative brand bookstores with the theme of "academic, cultural salons, coffee, art galleries, movies, music, creativity, life and fashion". From a small bookstore with only 17 square meters, it has developed into a national chain bookstore with 16 direct stores, which is quite popular among young artists.

From 20/kloc to 0/4, pioneer bookstore began to choose villages far away from downtown areas and scenic spots, and successively opened Bishan Bookstore in yi county, Anhui Province, Yunxi Library in Tonglu County, Zhejiang Province, Chenjiapu Civilian Bookstore in Songyang County, Zhejiang Province, and Xia Di Rice Bookstore in pingnan county, Fujian Province. Dali Pioneer Shaxibai Bookstore is the fifth rural bookstore opened in pioneer bookstore.

Qian Xiaohua, founder of pioneer bookstore, said, "What rural areas need most is the reconstruction of public order and public space. We feel that bookstores should be opened to the countryside, hoping to discover and explore new beauty and new value. " Pioneer wants to realize the vision of "lighting the lamp of rural reading" through the rural bookstore project and realize the revival of rural culture.

Shaxi ancient town in Dali is very famous. Since ancient times, it has been a fortress on the ancient tea-horse road in southwest China. After digging salt wells around, it became an important salt distribution center. It once witnessed the grand gathering of caravans, and it is the historical and geographical center of cultural exchange and integration in southwest China.

After the development of modern transportation in the second half of the 20th century, Shaxi ancient town, which was once noisy, was gradually closed and forgotten by the outside world with the decline of the ancient tea-horse road, people and houses.

20 1 1 16 10 In late October, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of pioneer bookstore, Qian Xiaohua came to Shaxi Ancient Town because of the poet Beidao. At that time, pioneer bookstore's plan to open ten minority rural bookstores was gradually advancing, and the outstanding plateau Bai village became the next paradise in pioneer bookstore.

Abandoning the Kuige and the stage at the core of the ancient town, Xingjiao Temple and Laomadian in Sifang Street, the key white courtyard in Sizheng Street and Guzhang Lane, and the dilapidated Chenghuang Temple to be repaired, Qian Xiaohua finally found the dilapidated grain depot in Beilong Village on the east bank of Heilian River.

Everyone is surprised, why not put the best ancient town in the same place, but take a fancy to the dilapidated rural houses that are almost completely unattended.

But Qian Xiaohua saw that the empty rammed earth old house was engraved with traces of time, and he immediately decided on the idea of the forerunner: to turn the material granary into a spiritual library!

The pioneer Shaxi White Bookstore that we see now is presented on the basis of almost completely retaining the historical features of the grain depot.

Unexpectedly, Pioneer Shaxibai Bookstore has been in operation for three years and has become the longest-lasting project in pioneer bookstore.

In the past three years, pioneer bookstore has opened four new bookstores in Zhejiang, Nanjing and Fujian-Pioneer Chenjiapu Civilian Bookstore, Pioneer Poetry Bookstore, Pioneer Bug Bookstore and Pioneer Xia Di Rice Bookstore, and won the honors of "China's Most Beautiful Bookstore of the Year" and "China's Theme Bookstore of the Year" successively.

Let's go back to the bookstore itself.

Pioneer Shaxibai Bookstore, as always, highlights the poetry counter, and selects more than 1000 kinds of representative poems of Chinese and foreign poets, surpassing all other branches in pioneer bookstore, among which there are many rare books. There are two social science and "Republic" brand book walls in front of the bookstore, both of which are excellent humanities books. The nine-story bookshelves in the bookstore stand upright and are arranged in an orderly way, and thousands of books are carefully placed, which makes people feel at ease and happy.

On the north wall of the core of the bookstore, the shelves that are rising step by step stand upright. On this most impactful stepped book wall, the pioneer team created the most localized and spiritual Shaxi cultural landscape.

After admiring, if you walk up the stairs and browse carefully in the scattered space, you will find three key categories, such as Yunnan, Tea-Horse Ancient Road, Dali, Ma Jia and Bai Nationality 13, and professional books introducing Yunnan's history, geography, archaeology, education, culture, local chronicles, folk customs and scenery can be seen everywhere.

In addition, the bookstore has specially set up a book area with the theme of "National The National SouthWest Associated University" and "They are in Yunnan", which concentrates the most representative landscape of Yunnan's humanistic creation and can appreciate the Yunnan literary world of famous poets and writers such as Yu Jian, Lei Pingyang and Zhu Ling. Considering the multi-ethnic situation in Yunnan, the bookstore has also set up a national language area, displaying a large number of selected books in Dongba, Tibetan and other languages, and the Tibetan versions of Little Prince and Wolf Totem are impressively listed.

Fully respecting the local history and culture, Pioneer's team has also made special trips to collect materials and dig up materials for many times, fully combining the unique local folk customs and vicissitudes of human history in Shaxi, and customized hundreds of Shaxi characteristic cultural and creative products for Shaxi Baishu House.

For example, eighteen strange tapes made according to Yunnan's unique folk customs, canvas bags, postcards and notebooks designed with the image of Ma Jia, a typical representative of Shaxi folk art, and handmade ceramic ornaments, brooches and refrigerator stickers designed with Wamao, the auspicious mascot of Ling nationality. Taking the ancient and touching love story "Five Golden Flowers" as the topic, the luggage is listed, as well as the traditional handmade fabrics of Yunnan and the video products of Yunnan scenery.

The bookstore is located in Baicun. In addition to foreign tourists who come here to punch in, the villagers who come to the store to read books are the most touching.

The old gentleman with crutches or hands behind his back stepped into the bookstore step by step. Although he couldn't stand up straight, he browsed all the bookshelves one by one, quiet and serious, which made people respect him. Calling a friend, a student in the village and students in the second half of the class came one after another, as if they had found a new classroom and were very happy to know that all the books in the bookstore could be opened. Uncle's soles are still stained with the dirt from the ground in the morning, and he cleans the dirt again and again outside the bookstore for fear of coming in and soiling the ground. ......

Go back to the question at the beginning of the article.

The closing tide, the closing tide, and the loss of millions of people ... A bookstore resolutely broke through and persisted in this situation, choosing the most inconspicuous rural adobe house in Yunnan and building a seemingly unprofitable rural bookstore.

Why?

Can idealism survive when physical bookstores move from crowded commercial centers to remote villages?

I cannot give a standard answer.

Reading is sometimes more than just a cup of coffee. The so-called elegance of a pot of fragrant tea can actually be the dedication of two feet of soil and a basket of pig grass.

And this bookstore is like a disseminator and liaison of culture. Through his love of books and culture, he connected people from different regions and classes. I can't answer the question of whether the enterprise is profitable, but I hope more people can know what they are doing because of the cultural mission behind it.