Beijing Metro Trains Become E-Book Libraries

Beijing commuters spend their time similarly to us — their faces are firmly planted in their phone screen. Instead of catching up on the day’s verbal vomit from various social media sites however, Beijing Metro Transportation Railway (MTR) and the National Library have enabled people to read esteemed novels on the go. By scanning QR-codes placed in the trains, the public can borrow e-books and read them on their devices.

Lee Honglin, China’s deputy director of the National Library told CNTV that he expects the program to help support culture in public spaces inspiring people to read more which will hopefully lead to reading getting the resurgence it deserves.

Each month, one new title will become available and alongside it, the National Library will also be organizing activities regarding topics related to the books. The first activity, that was launched on January 12th, is called ‘Our Characters’ which is being supported through websites plus physical exhibitions, and according to PSFK, this activity focuses on the history, inheritance and cultural meaning of 30-plus ethnic characters in China. Deep!