Hoi An Bookhouse
...assed away. Their workplace was replaced by a souvenir shop. Opposite the shop is an ancient house kept in its original state. The red and brown sign in front of the house bears a line of yellow words in Chinese and Vietnamese: Hoi An Thu Quan ( Hoi An Bookhouse ). Although the bookhouse is a place selling books, guests coming here feel as if they are visiting an old friend. The books are arranged in peculiar ways, put on ancient sofas, old wooden cases and rattan baskets. In a corner of the house, where the wall is spotted with lime paint, the books lie on steps of the staircase. This bookhouse introduces just one or two copies of each title, as if the books are rare and only half-read. One interesting thing is that the books here are about history, culture and fine arts and are in Vietnamese and other languages. Among them are books about Hoi An, Da Nang, Hanoi, Sai Gon and the south’s six ancient provinves. There are also paper-backed books in English for tourists, which have been harmoniously arranged in the ancient house. Apart from books, the owner displays other selected cultural products that are traditionally Vietnamse. There may be a calendar with a set of Dong Ho folk paintings, tablets with verses, sets of Bat Trang ceramic objec...