The Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture and Tourism has launched the initial phase of 20 new spaces throughout the city, aiming to embed diverse and high-quality children's reading services into public spaces.

The initiative plans to establish a total of 100 new spaces this year.

These new reading spaces have been designed with child-friendly concepts in mind, such as adjusted shelf, desk, and seat heights for children.

Kangjian Subdistrict Library in Shanghai's Xuhui district. [Photo/Shanghai Children's Library]

Efforts have also been made to expand the procurement of children's reading resources, both physical and digital, to cater to different age groups.

Each new space will introduce unique children's reading activities to host approximately 5,000 activities annually.

A logo is designed for the new reading spaces in Shanghai. [Photo/Shanghai Children's Library]

The initiative's logo, representing the project's aim to create a welcoming and nurturing environment for children, features symbols of books, smiley faces, and hearts.

These efforts reflect a commitment to brightening children's lives and promoting widespread access to high-quality reading materials at the community level.

 

1. Fu Lei Library

Address: No 800 East Shenmei Road, Pudong New Area

Open: Monday: 1 pm-5 pm; Tuesday-Sunday, 9 am-5 pm

This is China's sole Fu Lei (1908-66)-themed library and Shanghai's inaugural cultural celebrity library. It hosts various parent-child salons and handicraft activities, targeting families, and emphasizing cultural experiences, art appreciation, and emotional development. The library conducts diverse children's activities to boost imagination, enhance cognition, and foster appreciation.

 

2. Children's Center of the Nanmatou Road Subdistrict Library

Address: No 400 Nanmatou Road, Pudong New Area

Open: Monday to Friday, 12 am-5 pm; Saturday, Sunday, 9 am-5 pm

The library offers innovative reading programs aimed at preserving Shanghai's language and culture. These include themed reading, picture book sessions, and summer reading camps, fostering a culture of parent-child reading within the community and promoting joint growth for parents and children.

 

3. Caojiadu Subdistrict Children's Library

Address: 2F, No 56 Lane 767, Wanhangdu Road, Jing'an district

Open: Monday to Sunday; 8:30 am-8 pm

The library's independent reading space offers a tranquil yet vibrant environment, supported by knowledgeable staff, bright lighting, and an aesthetically pleasing setting. Adjacent to the "Protection Station for Minors" and "Science and Innovation House", the "Children's Council " cabin creates a diverse and integrated cultural haven for children.

 

4. Children's Reading Area of Linfen Road Subdistrict Library

Address: 3F, No 181 Baode Road, Jing'an district

Open: Monday, 12 am-8 pm

Tuesday to Sunday, 8 am-8 pm

The library features a unique collection with special shelves dedicated to parenting themes, fostering approaches to parent-child reading, and popularizing scientific knowledge. It aims to stimulate children's interest in reading, cultivate good reading habits, and promote scientific literacy through a rich collection of books, an elegant reading environment, and diverse special reading activities.

 

5. Kangjian Subdistrict Library

Address: No 988 Pubei Road, Xuhui district

Open: Monday to Sunday, 8:30 am-8:30 pm

Only magazine reading area is open on Mondays.

The children's reading area is a vibrant space adorned with cloud lights and a rainbow layout, featuring step-style bookshelves and sofa windows tailored to the active and unrestrained nature of children.

Within this space, the reading area has established unique reading activities to engage children in healthy reading habits, storytelling, and scientific exploration.

 

6. Xujiahui Subdistrict Library

Address: 1F, No 109 East Nandan Road, Xuhui district

Open: Monday, 1:30 pm-7 pm; Tuesday to Sunday, 9 am-7 pm

The children's area is designed to be bright and colorful, with a starry-sky themed ceiling and a book castle that entices exploration. It integrates elements of Shanghai-style architecture and is continually updated to maintain a natural, fresh, comfortable, and lively reading atmosphere. The space is subdivided to cater to different age groups, offering a well-proportioned selection of reading materials to enrich the reading experience for young readers.

 

7. Xinhua Road Subdistrict Library

Address: No 453 Fahuazhen Road, Changning district

Open: Monday-Friday, 8:30 am-5 pm; Saturday to Sunday, 8:30 am-11:30 am, 12:30 am-5 pm

There are two distinct children's reading areas in this venue tailored to different age groups, each equipped with child-sized tables and chairs, abundant digital resources, educational toys, and other amenities.

The setup ensures that children in the community can immerse themselves in a comfortable and enriching reading environment. Furthermore, diverse reading promotion activities are organized that align with the cognitive levels and interests of children and teenagers, fostering a love for reading through engaging and colorful initiatives.

 

8. Ganquan New Reading Space

Address: No 400 West Yanchang Road, Putuo district

Open: Tuesday to Sunday, 8:30 am-5:30 pm

There are five special zones, namely, Animation Journey, Science World, Picture Book Home, Parent-Child Reading, and Children's Exhibition Space, as well as a small robot for reading guide. With colorful signs, children may enjoy an immersive, fun reading time.

 

9. Changzheng Town Library

Address: South 1F, No 1255 Meichuan Road, Putuo district

Open: Monday to Sunday, 8:30 am-5 pm

The library boasts ample space, complete with top-notch hardware facilities and diverse functional areas, offering year-round open services. Its extensive book collection caters to children aged 3-14, providing a wide array of reading resources. With the capacity to host over 60 reading promotion activities annually, the venue serves as an excellent space for children and teenagers in the community to engage in reading and enrich their after-school lives.

 

10. Jiaxing Road Subdistrict Library

Address: 4F, No 400 Ruihong Road, Hongkou district

Open: Monday to Sunday, 8:30 am-5 pm

The child-friendly reading space at Jiaxing Road Subdistrict Library is equipped with over 10,000 children's books, including a collection of more than 200 English books, all available for borrowing from the open shelves. The library hosts regular monthly activities aimed at promoting children's reading. Additionally, a book recommendation column is featured on the subdistrict's WeChat account, where high-quality children's e-books are recommended weekly.

 

11. Xinjiangwancheng Subdistrict Library

Address: No 700 Guoxiu Road, Yangpu district

Open: Monday, 1:30 pm-5:30 pm; Tuesday to Friday, 1:30 pm-8 pm; Saturday, Sunday, 9 am-8 pm

The functional layout of this venue is designed to cater to the age-specific needs of young readers. This includes a picture book zone and dedicated shelves for specialized English reading materials. The initiative aims to cultivate a brand of children's reading activities, such as English reading, Shanghai dialect and culture, and science popularization. By doing so, it seeks to enrich the cultural lives of children and youth groups, broadening their cultural horizons and fostering a love for reading and learning.

 

12. Miaohang Town Library

Address: 2F No 2697 West Changjiang Road, Baoshan district

Open: Monday, 11 am-7 pm; Tuesday to Sunday, 8:30 am-7 pm

Shanghai's first Chen Bochui (1906–97) Children's Library is thoughtfully divided into a children's picture book area and a young people's reading area in this venue, housing an extensive collection of over 100 volumes of Chen Bochui Children's Literature Award-winning works.

To engage parents and children, the library has established a unique set of activities under the banner of "Chen Bochui Children's Reading Club".

Furthermore, the library has plans to host a series of special exhibitions focused on children's reading, enhancing the cultural and educational experiences of its visitors.

 

13. Meilan Lake- Dayin Bookstore, Baoshan district

(Chen Bochui Children's Literature Museum)

Address: Block D of Meilan Lake town (280 meters southwest of the intersection of Meilanhu Road and Luoying Road)

Open: Monday to Sunday, 10 am-10 pm

Being the inaugural children's literature theme cultural venue in China, it features a thematic exhibition area dedicated to the Chen Bochui International Children's Literature Award, an exclusive space showcasing Chen Bochui's writings, an area highlighting previous winners of the aforementioned awards, and a section honoring recipients of the global outstanding children's literature awards. The pavilion also regularly hosts events such as the children's literature reading club, children's storytelling club, and children's literature creation workshop, offering engaging and educational opportunities for children to explore and create within the realm of literature.

 

14. Xinhong Library

Address: No 1122 Ninghong Road, Minhang district

Open: Tuesday to Sunday, 8:30 am-8 pm

Leveraging its location within the Hongqiao International Open Hub, the library has designed a series of activities centered around the theme of "linking the world and embracing the future". This initiative aims to establish the library as the primary destination for aesthetic education within the hub. Through reading, children are provided with the opportunity to witness the development of the Hongqiao International Open Hub and Xinhong subdistrict, fostering a sense of cultural self-assurance and serving as a catalyst for shaping their future life visions.

 

15. Jinhe Branch of Jiangqiao Town Library

Address: 4F, Block B, No 1398 Jinyuan Road Number One, Jiading district

Open: Monday, 1 pm-8 pm; Tuesday to Sunday, 8:30 am-8 pm

The Jinhe Branch Library boasts a diverse collection of children's books and digital reading equipment, harnessing top-tier platform resources to establish a premium children's reading service brand. Additionally, the library collaborates with Jiangqiao Elementary School, utilizing its library as a "weekend study" location. Through this partnership, the library offers school time-sharing services to the public, effectively extending its service space and providing readers with an enhanced and convenient experience.

 

16. East Community Branch of Nanxiang Town Library

Address: No 168 Zhongqiu Road, Nanxiang town, Jiading district

Open: Monday, 1 pm-5 pm; Tuesday to Sunday, 9 am-5 pm

The library carries out children's reading promotion activities such as "Entering the Library" and "Big Hands Pulling Little Hands" by setting up special areas such as parent-child reading area for younger children and outdoor reading space. At the same time, it provides high-quality reading services for many neighboring schools and kindergartens, creating an all-round reading service platform for children and teenagers.

 

17. Fengjing Library

Address: No 127 Fengli Road, Jinshan district

Open: Monday, Tuesday, 8:30 am-4:30 pm; Wednesday to Sunday, 8:30 am-4:30 pm

Fengjing Library, as a key custodian of cultural heritage, prominently showcases the unique cultural brands of Fengjing, namely Fengjing stories and farmers' paintings. Emphasizing the distinctive style of farmers' paintings in its ambiance, the library has established dedicated areas for children's reading and parent-child picture book reading. Moreover, it organizes a variety of annual activities, including parent-child reading sessions, storytelling training, and visits to exhibitions featuring farmers' paintings.

 

18. Qingxi Bookstore - Zhaoxiang Park

Address: Lane 259 Xiangye Road, Qingpu district

Open: Tuesday to Sunday, 9 am-4:30 pm

Qingxi Bookstore in Zhaoxiang Park plays a vital role in Qingpu district's initiative to establish "15-minute public reading spaces". As part of this endeavor, the bookstore has introduced a relay reading camp in collaboration with Relay Publishing House, facilitating the sharing of resources among publishers, readers, and authors. This partnership enables the organization of diverse activities such as reading camps, picture book sharing, and author meetings.

 

19. Yingpu Subdistrict Library

Address: No 48 Haiying Road, Qingpu district

Open: Monday to Sunday, 9 am-7 pm

The modernized public space integrates book lending, art, and diverse reading club events.

 

20. Chenjia Town Community Library

Address: No 69 Chenpang Highway, Chongming district

Open: Monday to Sunday, 8:30 am-4:30 pm

The reading space offers children's books, newspapers, and magazines, aligning with children's needs through regular engaging reading activities, aiming to be an enjoyable learning space.

 

Source: Shanghai Children's Library