April 23 this year is the 30th World Book Day.

"I have a lot of hobbies, and my biggest hobby is reading. Reading has become a way of life for me." In March 2013, General Secretary Xi Jinping said this in an interview with the media.

On many occasions, General Secretary Xi Jinping mentioned many classic works and listed a rich list of reading books. From classic Marxist-Leninist works such as "The Communist Manifesto" and "Das Kapital", to classic ancient poetry and prose such as "Interpretation of the Analects of Confucius", "The Source of Analects of Confucius", "The Book of Songs", and "The King of War", to foreign classics such as "War and Peace", "The Old Man and the Sea", and "Resurrection"... Through this list of books, it can be seen that he has read a lot of books and has extensive knowledge.

General Secretary Xi Jinping has repeatedly emphasized the importance of reading, hoping that the whole society will participate in reading and create a strong atmosphere of loving reading, reading good books, and being good at reading. Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, the Party Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping as the core has attached great importance to national reading. Since 2014, "National Reading" has been written into the "Government Work Report" for 12 consecutive years; in 2016, the first national reading plan, "National Reading Development Plan for the 13th Five-Year Plan Period", was issued; in 2021, the "14th Five-Year Plan" outline clearly stated that "deeply promote national reading and build a 'Book-flavored China'"... National reading has been elevated to a national development strategy.

Data shows that in 2024, my country published 24.9 billion newspapers of various types, 1.8 billion books of various types, 11.8 billion books (sheets), and 8.39 books per capita (sheets). As of the end of 2024, there were 3,248 public libraries nationwide, with a total circulation of 1341.97 million people.

As new technologies and new models emerge one after another, the wave of national reading continues to surge.

"In the digital age, society is fast, so it is not easy to calm down and read this book patiently." "Digital reading should be combined with traditional reading to maintain our core and literacy." At this year's National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, General Secretary Xi Jinping expressed his thoughts on reading when he visited members of the Democratic League, Democratic Progressive Party, and education who attended the CPPCC meeting and attended the joint group meeting. From the past family of books to the advocacy of building a bookish campus and a bookish society, General Secretary Xi Jinping is full of expectations: "The fragrance of books is an atmosphere."