The famous poet Borges, who once served as director of the National Library of Argentina, said, "If there is a paradise, it should be like a library." The Tsubaki Book Garden, located in the downtown area of Beijing, is probably very much in line with Borges's imagination.
Children's reading room
This is a standard old Beijing erjin quadrangle, covering an area of 365 square meters, which was built in the early years of the Republic of China. From 1914 to 1926, the famous newspaperman Mr. Lin Baishui once lived here, shouldering morality with an iron shoulder and a brilliant hand with a Chinese chapter.
This quaint compound has been renovated and rebuilt and has been reborn in recent years. In accordance with the standards of the revitalization and utilization of ancient cultural relics, the Chunshu Street Office has expanded this place that has recorded the vicissitudes of history into the country's first "community library and museum" civic cultural activity space, so that the wisdom here is full and infused with the fragrance of books.
Walking through the crowded alleys, you pick up the steps, you gently open the vermilion courtyard door, step into the courtyard corridor, and you are greeted by vermilion beams and columns and vermilion dark green doors and windows. The whole building is green brick tiles, paintings and carved beams. The paint on the beams is full of color and the painting process is vivid. Most of these paintings are themed on the beautiful, rich and auspicious landscapes and flowers and birds, which contain people's expectations for cultural prosperity and well-being. Looking around the courtyard, the harmonious traditional tones, exquisite traditional craftsmanship, the overall layout and every detail reflect the deep meaning and dignified atmosphere of Chinese architecture.
In this antique courtyard, the fragrance of kumquats, bamboo shadows, butterflies and insects chirping, the sound of natural sounds are endless, and birds and magpies are regular visitors here. The bronze statue of Mr. Lin Baishui in the flowers is firmly gazed and stares into the distance.
The environment in the reading room is quiet, and the time in the courtyard is also quiet. In this exquisite and simple space and quiet solitude time, reading a masterpiece that travels through ancient and modern China and foreign countries and is full of ideological wisdom, you will experience the shock of the soul and the peace of the spirit.
reading room
Tired of reading, you can sit on a rattan chair in the courtyard, look up at the blue sky, enjoy a rare purity, and taste a faint fragrance of books.
The main room of the north courtyard of this courtyard is the Mr. Lin Baishui Memorial Hall, and the rest of the places are used for reading and cultural activities. In addition to book reading, photography, movie viewing, painting, recitation, calligraphy, puzzle guessing and other colorful public welfare activities are often held here. In this exquisite bookstore in this metropolis, every participant can feel the beautiful chanting in their own hearts.
Statue of Mr. Lin Baishui
This is the small and beautiful Tsubaki Book Garden, to read, to photograph, to write, to listen to lectures, to feel the fragrance of books, to appreciate the paradise of the library.
Photography: Xia Yang
Edited by Jiani Liu