Chongqing Zhongshuge Bookstore, Chongqing

Chongqing Zhongshuge Bookstore, Chongqing
重庆钟书阁

Address: Level 3, Zhongdi Plaza, 68 Yangjiaping Zheng Street, Jiulongpo district, Chongqing
Opening hours: 10- am-9:20 pm
Tel: (86-23) 68520067

Covering 1,400 square meters, the Chongqing Zhongshuge Bookstore has two floors housing a reading area, a children’s reading room, and a leisure area.

Why it’s special
As Chongqing is a mountainous city, the bookstore features mountain-shaped staircases and mirrored ceilings, reflecting the staggered terrain of Chongqing and creating a magical realistic ambience. The most obvious visual element of the bookstore is the scattered towering bookshelves resembling lamp covers, which make people feel that they are in a cozy private study under warm light projected from inside the lampshades.

Coupled with a retro European style, the reading area adopts an arch-shaped design, presenting the mountainous topography of Chongqing as well. Bookshelves fully loaded with books are even hung from the ceiling! The books are displayed according to author and publisher, so that the readers can find their preferred books easily and quickly.

The children’s reading room looks charming and dreamy. The designer has decorated this area with the unique mountainous scenery and cityscape of Chongqing. It engages the little readers with rich colors and exaggerated abstract shapes.

What’s more, there is a particular area for the books about Chongqing to help readers gain a deeper understanding of its history.