Xi'an has a dense reading culture built on its universities and on a long publishing tradition in the city, and the bookshops reflect it. The large chains occupy whole floors of commercial buildings on the main avenues and stock everything from school textbooks to art monographs; the independents cluster near the campuses, combining books with coffee, seats, and a stubborn refusal to specialise in bestsellers. Several of the best-known shops stay open until ten or eleven at night, which makes them a reasonable way to end an evening in a city whose main sights close much earlier.
What the shops are like
The big shops are as much cultural centres as retail: they hold readings and signings, run small exhibitions, and include a cafe, a stationery department and a children's floor. The independents are smaller and more opinionated, with a curated shelf of poetry, translated fiction, art and design, and local-interest titles on Shaanxi history and archaeology. Almost everything is in Chinese, but translated foreign fiction and art books are common enough that a visitor can browse, and the design and typography of Chinese editions is interesting in itself. A few shops carry English-language titles on Chinese history and art, especially near the museums.
Reading rooms and cafes
The model that has spread fastest is the bookshop with a reading room: you buy a book or a drink, take a seat at a long table under a lamp, and stay as long as you like. These places are quiet, used by students and remote workers, and often have power sockets and wifi, which makes them a practical place to spend a hot afternoon or a rainy morning. Some are inside converted courtyards or old buildings, with the original brick and timber left visible.
Practical notes
The shops near the universities are liveliest in term time; the large chain stores on the main avenues are busy at weekends and after seven in the evening. Prices for coffee are close to Western levels while the books are cheap, so it is worth treating the cafe charge as the price of a seat rather than resenting it. Many shops do not take foreign cards, so have mobile payment set up. If you are looking for a guidebook, a map or an English-language history of the Terracotta Army, the shops closest to the Shaanxi History Museum are the best bet.
