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"Shanghai is a place that embraces all rivers. When I saw the Shanghai Book Fair proposing the concept of 'organizing a national book exhibition', I really appreciate it." On the morning of August 16th, 60 year old Chen Jianwei ranked at the forefront of the audience entry line on Yan'an Middle Road at the Shanghai Exhibition Center, waiting for the first time to enter the 2023 Shanghai Book Fair and "Book Fragrance China" Shanghai Week. "I want to buy more than 100 paper books a year, and the Shanghai people said to lead the market. Each Shanghai Book Fair will lead the latest market."

In the team, Yao Jinzhang, a Wuhan girl dragging a suitcase, was about to end her journey and leave Shanghai that night. "I was in Zhejiang a few days ago and have been in Shanghai for the past two days. When arranging my itinerary, I planned to come to the Shanghai Book Fair." Although it was my first time attending the Shanghai Book Fair, Yao Jinzhang had already heard that "you can see the latest trends in the publishing industry here.". As a third year student, she carried a canvas bag from a detective themed bookstore called Mysterious Cloud Pavilion near University Road. "The unique bookstores and libraries are important destinations for me to come to Shanghai, and I can't miss the Shanghai Book Fair," she said

After two summers, the Shanghai Book Fair has returned to its old time and place, bringing new and old readers back into this pioneering "sea of books".

Expanding the circle of academic books

"The Shanghai Book Fair is a popular book fair and an opportunity for academic books to expand their circle." In the exhibition area of Guangxi Normal University Press, Wei Dong, a senior editor and editor in chief of the "Literary Monument," guides readers in front of the bookshelf.

During his 18 years of employment, Wei Dong delved deeply into the field of Soviet literature and edited the "Literary Monument" series, which has released more than 60 varieties, including memoirs, diaries, and letters of many writers such as Dostoevsky, Mandelstam, Pasternak, and Zwitaeva. These are all works of considerable volume and difficulty. Under the introduction of Wei Dong, a young reader immediately took away over 1000 pages of "Dostoevsky: The Peak of Literature, 1871-1881", which is the final volume of Joseph Frank's five volume "Dostoevsky", an authoritative researcher of Dostoevsky. "The fifth volume focuses on the establishment of Dostoevsky's ultimate position in the Russian literary world, and readers are interested in" The Karamazov Brothers ", requiring editors to make recommendations that are 'crucial'."

As one of the national key publishing groups invited by the organizers, Guangxi Normal University Press has expanded its booth area by nearly half compared to previous editions, in order to meet people and books. The theme phrase on the lintel highlights the significance of the book exhibition. "The user profile of Guangxi Normal University Press is relatively clear: traditional readers, enthusiasts of literature, history, and philosophy. Shanghai and the Yangtze River Delta region are the core areas of our brand's audience. We require editors to be on duty at the Shanghai Book Fair because it is an opportunity for editors to interact with readers and receive the most intuitive and first-hand feedback." Liu Guanghan, Vice President of Guangxi Normal University Press Group, said that this year's Shanghai Book Fair, more than 20 companies and brands under the group have all mobilized, making it the largest in history. Editors have formed a group to conduct "field research" at the Shanghai Book Fair. "As a well-known brand in the national book industry, the industry's recognition of the Shanghai Book Fair not only comes from professional organizers, but also from Shanghai readers." "The recognition of readers' quality reflects the quality of the city."

"This professional medical book was first released at the Shanghai Book Fair, and it may be the first time it has been presented to the general public," sighed Zhou Xin, director of the Respiratory Department of the First People's Hospital affiliated with Shanghai Jiao Tong University School of Medicine. As a new book under the high-level medical academic publishing brand "Boji" of Shanghai Jiao Tong University Press, "Integrated Medical Publishing Engineering · Complex Disease Series" has been supported by the International Publishing Fund project and selected as a national key book publishing planning project for the 14th Five Year Plan. The first release of the new book gathered multiple frontline medical experts and academicians, "Through the Shanghai Book Fair platform, the public can get closer to the forefront of medical technology, which is actually a topic closely related to the people."

Revitalize time-honored brands

China First Pencil Co., Ltd., which owns the time-honored brand "Zhonghua Brand" pencils, made its debut at the Shanghai Book Fair this year. At the booth located in the "Cross border Reading" area, one product has gone crazy - not pencils, but refrigerator stickers. "Do you still have the Tiananmen Square pattern?" a young man asked as he raised the selected one in his hand. The staff flipped through the shelves and said, "This sample is the only one left. The 'Tiananmen Square' and 'Shanghai' patterns sell the best."

Why do pencil makers sell refrigerator stickers? Zhang Bingyang, the general manager of First Pencil, told reporters that the elements on the refrigerator are all derived from the redevelopment of "Zhonghua Brand". For example, the 101 series, which is familiar to readers, is a green pole pencil. The "101" and the bamboo knot pattern on the pen holder have undergone secondary creation, registered copyright, and become the foundation of cultural and creative development.

The small refrigerator sticker is actually a "copyrighted product". One morning, over 100 items of refrigerator stickers priced at 6.5 yuan were almost sold out in stock, and urgent restocking was needed the next day. On site, there are stationery such as pencil shaped erasers, 101 stamp element sticky notes, and even jewelry with pencil tips and pencil flowers as elements. With a cultural and creative orientation, readers can see the renewed power of "time-honored brands" at the book fair.

"Zhonghua Brand 101 Pencil is a product presented as a gift for the National Day on October 1, 1954. It is also the first domestically produced graphite drawing pencil in a full series. As a technological innovation, it replaced the imported goods that monopolized the market at that time. We hope to let more people know the story behind the 'Zhonghua Brand' through cross-border cultural and creative development. Zhang Bingyang introduced that in 2021, the first pencil intended to participate in the Shanghai Book Fair. This year, the Shanghai Book Fair established a 'Cross border Reading' area, and the first pencil's book exhibition journey finally came to fruition." In the new consumer trend, it is even more important to go out and let consumers rediscover a 'time-honored brand' and 'new domestic products'. At the book fair, there are elderly people with grandchildren, and parents with grandchildren. "Children, there are also young people who come together, and we have actually encountered three generations. Everyone has a common sentiment towards the' Zhonghua brand 'and has their own preferences for derivative products. Facing consumers directly at the book fair has given us the confidence and market direction to develop more cultural and creative products with independent copyrights

Make traditional culture fans

"With so many publishers, so many readers gathered together, and so many people moving around, it's very happy and excited to see such a scene again." On the first day of the book fair, "Chinese Classic General Knowledge" edited by Chen Yinchi, the director of the Fudan University Library and director of the Center for International Studies of Chinese Civilization, was almost the earliest sharing event. At noon, the sharing meeting for the new book "Su Dongpo and His World" by Wang Shuizhao, a senior professor of humanities at Fudan University, had not yet begun. Readers had already queued up to buy books, and Chen Yinchi, who witnessed the scene, expressed his heartfelt words.

Jia Xuefei, the publisher of two new books and the deputy general manager of Zhonghua Book Company in Shanghai, remembers that 10 years ago, Zhonghua Book Company returned to its "birthplace" and opened a branch in Shanghai. "The company was established in January, and the Shanghai Book Fair was the most important opportunity for its debut. After six months of intensive editing, it coincided with the launch of the first batch of new books at the Shanghai Book Fair." From the debut of the newly commissioned book to the debut of the first best-selling new book at the Shanghai Book Fair, from the launch of the first volume of "Chinese Classic General Education" at the most special Shanghai Book Fair in November last year, to the second volume of "Chinese Classic General Education" meeting readers this summer, Jia Xuefei sighed, "Shanghai Book Fair" The drumbeats of the exhibition inspire publishers' rhythm, record the growth of editors like me, and witness a vibrant cultural China

Promoting excellent traditional Chinese culture is the distinctive melody of this year's Shanghai Book Fair. Century Publishing Group has allocated nearly half of its exhibition area to set up the Century National Studies Museum, led by the "Century Fine Exhibition of Chinese Classic Literature". The reporter met Dong Yifei and his younger brother, who were in fifth grade at the National Studies Museum. The two boys stayed for a long time in front of a thick book called "Dai Dunbang's Painting of 108 Generals". "I have read various versions many times, and they know this story very well." The mother beside patiently flipped through the pages of the book. "Every year, coming to the Shanghai Book Fair is a place for children to read and advance."

"At the Shanghai Book Fair, I reunited with readers and truly felt that our nation is a nation that loves reading. I hope that in our era, there will be more seeds of reading, and more people will absorb nutrients and wisdom from books, becoming knowledgeable, visionary, and morally noble people." said Wang Zhenfu, a professor at the Chinese Department of Fudan University who wrote the "General Knowledge of the Book of Changes".