“I usually read two books in one year. Now, I promise myself that I’ll read at least five books next year,” said Qaisar Hayat from Pakistan after attending a lecture about reading.

The lecture was given by local cultural expert Yin Changlong on Saturday at Eon Books in Shenzhen Book City CBD Store in Futian District. It attracted more than 15 expats from various countries including the U.S., South Korea, Pakistan, India, Cambodia and France.

Cultural expert Yin Changlong (2nd row, 7th R) poses for a photo with participants of Saturday’s lecture at Eon Books in Shenzhen Book City CBD Store in Futian District. Courtesy of the event organizer

Yin, director of Shenzhen Reading Association, is a published writer of several books on modern Chinese literature and cultural studies. In the first half of his lecture, Yin explained the significance of reading and suggested on how to read.

Yin said that writing prolongs an individual’s life because the man’s ideas can pass down for generations if they’re written down in a book. Reading helps us to understand life, become better people, and change the world if we can put what we have learned into practice.

Muhammad Tahir Rasheed, a Ph.D. student studying computer sciences at Shenzhen University, said that the lecture gave him a new perspective to think about the reason for reading.

“If you want to live for more than 100 years, you should write,” said Rasheed, “but if you want to write, you should read.”

In the second half of Yin’s lecture, he introduced to the audiences Shenzhen’s persistent efforts to promote reading among the public, including Shenzhen Reading Month, the growing number of libraries and bookstores in Shenzhen, and how reading changes the city.

Learning about the upcoming Shenzhen Reading Month, which annually falls in November, Hayat said that he was happy to be able to participate in the reading festival two months after he arrived in the city.

“I’ll read something during Shenzhen Reading Month to participate in the event as a Shenzhen citizen,” said Hayat.

The lecture is part of a lecture series that runs under the title “The World Reads with Shenzhen,” which invites well-known scholars and experts to share books about Shenzhen to expats.