The 8-year-old Liu Zhen reads with his mother at Sanlian Taofen Bookstore,the bookstore tries to open 24 hours a day starting from April 8,2014.[Photo/Xinhua]

Premier Li Keqiang wrote to Sanlian Taofen Bookstore on April 22 to compliment the store’s "Midnight Reading Room", saying that the initiative is highly creative. Li also expressed his hope of making the 24/7 bookstore a spiritual landmark of the city. “Reading can progress people’s thinking,” he said.

On April 18, the General Manager of Sanlian Bookstore, Fan Xi’an, wrote to the Premier informing him about the operation of Beijing’s first 24/7 bookstore. He wrote that the trial run from April 8 to 16 went as well as expected, and that all the book purchasers during the night hours were young people.

Fan heard back from Premier Li four days after the letter had been mailed out. Li replied by saying that providing readers with a "Midnight Reading Room" was truly innovative, and was a vivid implementation of the idea of “nationwide reading”.

Actually, this is the second time Premier Li has written to Sanlian Bookstore. In June, 2012, when the store celebrated its 80th anniversary, Li wrote to Sanlian saying that: “For many years, I have been a loyal reader at Sanlian Bookstore. I used to linger around the bookshelves and purchase books there. Life can’t do without reading, as reading enables us to gain new insights. Even by reviewing the old, you can acquire new knowledge,” Li added.

Related: World Book Day 2014