Reading Rainbow

Nothing too eventful lately. Thursday was Thanksgiving, of course – or was it really on Friday? – so we observed it by going out for duck again. In the spirit of Thanksgiving excess we ordered not one bird but two, and there were no leftovers.

Twice over the weekend I went to Beijing International Book City, the largest book warehouse in Asia and possibly the world. Fortunately it’s nearby, just a 30-kuai cab ride outside my already very suburban neighborhood. Despite offering books from more than 800 domestic and international publishers, the place was curiously empty. Brian observed that the Chinese government might be less concerned with turning a profit on the world’s largest book center than with advertising the fact that it’s in China. It only opened on November 8, however, so maybe more customers are on the way.


The English-language section included literary classics, popular fiction, political memoirs, textbooks, SparkNotes and Far Side collections. The selection of children’s books – including the Berenstain Bears, the Magic School Bus, Beatrix Potter and Goosebumps – was more extensive than what I’ve seen in most bookstores here or at home. Other books on the shelves: The Art of War, The Wealth of Nations, Gossip Girl – sharp drop in cultural value there, I know – Shopaholic, Harry Potter and the very thick Chinese-English Dictionary for Mechanical Engineering. You get the idea. Where we really cleaned up, though, was in the DVD section. I walked away with Casablanca, Woman of the Year, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington and three Looney Tunes volumes, while Niall bought a Hitchcock box set – 34 films for $25.

China Fun Fact: Not so much fun as depressing - Mongolia's street children fight for survival.