Xinhua Bookstore launches makeover in Shanghai

As reading habits undergo a transformation, bookstores in China have set out to find new appeal for the current readership.

Xinhua Bookstore, the state-owned largest bookstore chain in China, celebrated its 80th anniversary with a signature makeover launched in one of its Shanghai outlets on Dec 17.

The new store, named "Space of Light", was designed by prestigious Japanese architect Tadao Ando who once won the Pritzker Prize, known as the Nobel Prize of architecture.

Covering around 1,600 square meters with over 70 percent as book display areas, it features publications in humanities, arts, aesthetics and lifestyle.

"I hope 'Space of Light' can serve as a station for people to reconnect with books," Ando said. "May reading shed light into people's heart as light illuminates a room."