Rural library opens new vistas for villagers in southwest China canyon

Gan Wenyong arranges books at the "Banshan Huayu" library in Qiunatong Village of Bingzhongluo Township in Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County, Lisu Autonomous Prefecture of Nujiang, southwest China's Yunnan Province, July 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Fei Maohua)

KUNMING, April 23 (Xinhua) -- Gan Wenyong's first-ever exposure to extracurricular reading occurred at the age of nine, when he encountered the book "The Little Prince" by French author Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

The experience served as a motivation for Gan to step out of the mountains and explore a different world. Also inspired by the book, he returned to his hometown in southwest China's Yunnan Province over a decade later and built a rural library to nurture the dreams of the local children.

"Books lighted my way forward, and I think children in the mountains need the same passion to explore the world," he said.

Gan, 29, is the founder of the library called "Banshan Huayu" (half hill flower talks) and a legal aid services provider. He was born and raised in Qiunatong, a village nestled at the northernmost tip of the Nujiang River canyon in the province's Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County.

Qiunatong was once entrenched in absolute poverty. Due to the financial difficulties of his family, Gan missed out on educational opportunities in his early years. Instead, he spent his childhood collecting herbs, fetching water from mountains, and tending to livestock.

"I didn't have shoes until I was six years old," he recalled, adding that back then, there was no electricity in the village, and candles were used to illuminate his home after sunset.

In the summer of 2005, a tourist met Gan and gave him "The Little Prince" as a gift. The adventures of the little prince and the vivid words in the book, which were read out to Gan by his brother, inspired him to explore the outside world. "I wanted to go to school and read more books," he said.

Positive changes unfolded in 2006 as the revised Compulsory Education Law took effect, with the objective of providing nine years of free compulsory education to rural as well as urban children.

In 2007, at the age of 13, Gan commenced his studies in the fourth grade at a primary school. In 2016, he was accepted into a university in the provincial capital Kunming, where he majored in law.

Children read books at the "Banshan Huayu" library in Qiunatong Village of Bingzhongluo Township in Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County, Lisu Autonomous Prefecture of Nujiang, southwest China's Yunnan Province, July 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Fei Maohua)

After the annual national college entrance exam, known as the gaokao, was over, Gan returned home with the 400 extracurricular books he had collected in high school. Upon learning of this, children from the village flocked to borrow books, with some even spending entire days seated in front of his house engrossed in reading.

This evoked memories of Gan's encounter with "The Little Prince" a few years ago, sparking the idea of building a library and he resolved to pursue it.

In 2016, Gan converted the two rooms his family vacated into a library. He crafted bookshelves from wood and affixed a door plate, marking the humble beginnings of the village's first library.

While Gan attended university, his parents and brother assisted in maintaining the library, organizing bookshelves and ensuring its cleanliness. During winter and summer breaks, he would return home with new additions to the library's collection, engaging with the children in shared reading sessions.

In 2020, Gongshan was lifted out of poverty. "My education journey would not be possible without the support of the state and society, so I should do something for my hometown to repay," he said.

To improve the reading environment for villagers, Gan borrowed 80,000 yuan (about 11,260 U.S. dollars) in loans to expand and decorate the library, which now covers around 400 square meters.

In 2020, he returned to his hometown to take charge of the library. He invested in new bookshelves and desks, adorning the space with decorations crafted from pine cones, corn and light strips. He also planted a variety of flowers, including roses, around the library grounds.

Thanks to government aid and the support of individuals from all walks of life, the library now has a collection of more than 40,000 books, ranging from astronomy and geography to history and literature.

"Growing up in the mountainous areas, some of the children become introverted due to the lack of parental companionship, but books can offer them a spiritual experience," he said, adding that last year, eight children from the village were admitted to university.

Gan Wenyong arranges books at the "Banshan Huayu" library in Qiunatong Village of Bingzhongluo Township in Gongshan Dulong and Nu Autonomous County, Lisu Autonomous Prefecture of Nujiang, southwest China's Yunnan Province, July 5, 2023. (Xinhua/Fei Maohua)

But Gan felt there was more to be done. To create more diversified experiences for the children, Gan and volunteers from Shenzhen University in south China's Guangdong Province launched a program in 2020, offering painting, photography and English courses during vacations.

In 2023, he set up a new multi-purpose classroom in the library. This summer, the library will expand its offerings to include dance and music classes, making it a window to the world for the children in the canyon, according to Gan.

Moreover, many villagers come to the library to read books on agricultural technology. "Villagers who come to borrow books do not need to register, and there is no deadline for returning. As long as they are willing to read, the place is open 24 hours a day," he said.

Currently, Gan works at the justice bureau of Gongshan county, where he offers legal aid services during weekdays. During weekends, he returns to the village to oversee the operations of his library.

Speaking about his future aspirations, he said he hopes that the fragrance of books can continue to accompany the children to farther places.