Mo Yan's Nobel prize boosts thirst for literature

"The exam-oriented education reduces the reading time of Chinese students a lot. The books they read are mostly for the purpose of gaining higher scores," said a high middle school teacher surnamed Ding in southwestern Sichuan Province.

"Reading should not be regarded just as the means to acquire knowledge and skills. Currently the awareness of reading literature is not as strong as before," said the teacher.

Results of a national reading survey conducted by China Publishing Science Research Institute in 2010 showed the number of books read by each Chinese person annually was 4.5, much lower than 11 in the Republic of Korea, 20 in France and 40 in Japan. Experts said textbooks and training books were much more popular than literature.

"In today's society of hustle and bustle, we should encourage reading to purify our souls instead of only choosing practical books," said Zhao Xiaohong, a young mother in Beijing.

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She went to Wangfujing bookstore to buy Mo's books for her son, as her son likes reading printed books. She said her family will try to renew traditional and thoughtful reading of printed books.

Wang Erbo, a professor of literature in Guangxi University of Nationalities in south China, said electric reading has had a deep impact on the traditional way of reading.

"Mo's purely literary books may arouse the awareness of inner souls and push more Chinese people to read books in a deep way, fully exerting the role of literature in the progress of society," Wang told Xinhua.

In an exclusive interview with Xinhua, Mo said because of the various ways people can amuse themselves today a lot of people have little time to read.

"But I believe when you go out for fun and return, perhaps someday you will take a book and experience the pleasure in the traditional way of reading. This delight will make you feel rather comfortable," Mo said.

Publishers have a different view as to the impact of Mo's prize. Chen Liming, president of Beijing Classic & Wise Culture Development Co. LTD, one of Mo's publishers, said the prize will have some effect on people's reading choice and boost the confidence of mainstream writers.

However, publisher Shen Haobo said the status quo of Chinese reading habits will not change dramatically, nor will literature books gain special attention of the public all of a sudden.

The quality of books, including serious literature like Mo's books, will have the final say in the market, he said.

Editor: Shi Liwei