Saying Farewell: The Bookworm's Most Faithful Share Their Memories
Since news broke on Nov 5 that The Bookworm would be closing due to what management described as the "ongoing cleanup of 'illegal structures,'" there has been a near-constant outpouring of sorrow and regret from the Beijing community, on both public and private WeChat groups, Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Instagram, and more. It's difficult to exaggerate the number of fond recollections and well wishes that have found their way online, not only from current Beijing inhabitants but also from those who have since left the capital.
Since first opening as a small lending library on Sanlitun Beilu way back in 2002, The Bookworm has acted as the city's brightest hub for many a literary, musical, or market event... as well as the odd wine-driven brainstorming session and judging by the comments below, a great hookup spot. In that sense, it has served as the heart of Beijing's public sphere – an increasingly rare concept in a country where the free expression of ideas is quite actively discouraged.
While we may never know the true reason behind The Bookworm's demise (as one commenter pointed out, their outlets in Chengdu and Suzhou have recently met with similar fates, but to link them would be to dabble in conjecture), we can say that whatever replaces it is unlikely to have the same warm, rickety charm or knack for stirring the city's creative spirit. One day, we may even (dare I say it) come to miss the truculent bar staff.
For now, we wait in hope that The Bookworm finds a new home in Beijing, but in the meantime, we invite you to join us in reading what made it so special to many of you.
Despite initially announcing that their last day would be Monday, Nov 11, word on the grapevine has it that The Bookworm may have been granted time to hold a final farewell party next weekend – watch this space for more details. Until then, much of the stock is discounted 10-30 percent, with additional deals on "bargain books": three for RMB 200, two RMB 150, or one for RMB 80.
Fond farewells from The Bookworm faithfuls
Deva Eveland, Spittoon Monthly Fiction Editor
The Bookworm is where I met with friends to dissect a Murakami story over coffee and a Bulkagov novel over beer, where Chinese writers spoke freely, where Poornima explained eroticism in ancient Sri Lankan poetry, where I hung out with an Israeli novelist who loved that Chinese people don’t give a damn about the Middle East, where Avtar delivered a full-throated defense of Indian democracy to a raucous crowd, where a historian told me: history is written not by the winners but by those who are free to do so.
Julia Lobyntseva, The Bookworm events and marketing manager, 2014-2017
I have so many memories of The Bookworm! I truly loved that place, and I always had the impression that whenever I returned to Beijing, I would go to The Bookworm and have this amazing feeling of belonging and unconditional love and gratitude. I think that’s exactly what I felt when I began to work at The Bookworm in mid-December of 2014. There was a Christmas carol singing event with lots of familiar faces and the smell of mulled wine permeated throughout. The memory itself is kind of vague, but I still have this very visceral feeling from it. The other memory I have is from when I was coordinating one of the Literary Festival events and Richard Blanco was reading a poem of his about his going on family vacations as a child. He said that as an adult it was impossible for him to recreate the feeling of absolute happiness that he had during those vacations, even though he revisited the same exact place in Florida as an adult. That leads me to think that it will never be possible for me to feel the same things that I experienced at The Bookworm again.
Amy Daml, co-founder of Loreli (WeChat ID: loreli)
The Bookworm always felt like a place where you could try out your ideas but yet somehow add credibility to them because of the venue’s reputation. I don’t know where I got the courage to ask the manager (who did not know me at all) to let me start a storytelling night but I did and he surprisingly said yes. Then I was like, “Oh, f*#%, now I have to actually do this!” We had some weird, wandering, and inappropriate stories for sure, but it was also really cool to get some long-time expats up there to make us cry or laugh. I never thought I was cool or established enough to organize any events, but I’m so grateful to The Bookworm for giving me the chance. It’s also where I met the lovely ladies that I went on to form Loreli with!
Anthony Tao, writer and Bookworm Literary Festival coordinator
The Bookworm is a Beijing institution, and it’s going to be hard for me to accept that it’s gone. I worked there for a year and a half, coordinating two literary festivals, and will always remember the way it came alive every March, as hundreds of authors/journalists/performers/speakers — and thousands of attendees over the two-and-a-half-week festival — would transform this humble spot into the nexus of the city’s intellectual and cultural life. I’ll always cherish those quieter moments, during the festival, on evenings after everyone had left, when only Peter (the owner), Julia (the events manger), myself, and maybe a close friend or two of the Bookworm would remain, unwinding over song and drink until we lost track of the time, taking for granted that the process would begin again the next day, and for days to come.
David Jacobs, manager of Comedy Club China
There is no place like it in Beijing. Every other street corner has a microbrewery serving a bad burger with a quiz night. The Bookworm also has microbrews, serves a bad burger, and has a quiz night, but it also had the best events in the city: the Literary Festival, classical music open mics, and the comedy... oh the sweet, sweet comedy. The Bookworm was the best room in Beijing (and perhaps all of Asia) for comedy. The crowds were always amazingly supportive, as was David [Cantalupo, general manager of The Bookworm] and all the other Bookworm staff. I will fondly (and fuzzily) remember watching and performing with pro comedians I looked up to like Joe Machi, Dwayne Perkins, Kyle Kinane, Paul Ogata, and Mark Normand, riding a high that often lasted until deep into the next morning.
I look back at one moment in particular: during the Literary Festival last year, an amazing comedian from Miami named Kyle Grooms had one of the best sets I had ever seen. I was alone in the bar area waiting for him to finish, and something happened: he came out, saw me, and immediately said, "Damn bro, you farted." He was right. I had. I wish I hadn't done that, but there is nothing I can do about it. And I really wish The Bookworm wasn't closing, but alas, there is nothing I can do about it. I am proud of what we did at The Bookworm, and my last message would be to Kyle Grooms: he who smelt it, dealt it.
Luise Guest, author of 'Half the Sky: Conversations with Women Artists in China'
Oh no! I loved every visit to The Bookworm over the last ten years, and will feel forever privileged that I was able to give a talk about my book Half the Sky there in April 2016.
Esther Tan Wanjing, via Facebook
Hello! My favorite memory of The Bookworm was the collection of books, decor, and warmth you got at this cozy iconic store. Sad to see it go... it will certainly be in my memory!
Zia, long-time Bookworm patron
I had attended The Bookworm's Literary Festival the past few years, and they have provided me some of my best memories in Beijing. I am really grateful to the people who came to exchange their thoughts. It was always a really diverse group, and I remember there used to be a time when even North Korean writers could come and speak.
Reed Russel, long-time Bookworm patron
I've been coming here since I came to Beijing, almost eight years ago. It's been like a constant watering hole where everyone could gather. It's like an institution. I think they'll bounce back. Here's hoping they find a new location within the year.
Crystal, Bookworm shopper
The Bookworm was actually where I went to my first event in Beijing in 2016. It made me realize that there is a place outside of where I come from that is warm and welcoming – it was this place. A bookstore that's comfortable, with people to get together with.
Abby Wight, via Facebook
The Bookworm was my second date with my now-husband. It was also his birthday, a fact I didn’t know until after I’d agreed to the date. Half of my friends were going to an Improv Everywhere show, and we ended up there as well. He wasn’t aware I knew half the audience until the end of the show!
John O' Donnell, via Facebook
I first walked into The Bookworm in 2015, still new to the city and still coming to terms with it. Beyond how beautiful I found the atmosphere to be, warm and welcoming and full of charm as it is, it very swiftly became a place of comfort and belonging. I fell in love with it on that first night. There was a jazz duet playing that night in the back and the whole experience was surreal. The low light and the rain outside. After a year or two, I finished my first book in there, along with several short stories. Creativity thrived in The Bookworm, it was so conducive to art and connection and culture. I went on dates there, bought books off the shelves that deeply changed me, sang during the Christmas get-togethers. It's no exaggeration to say that The Bookworm constituted a great deal of my contentment at that time, and it gave me some of the best memories I have.
No city can afford to lose such a cultural landmark. The Bookworm is like a cultural barometer for Beijing, a focal point for art and artists, a quiet place in a constantly moving city, and a place where everyone belongs.
I sincerely hope it survives in some iteration so that new memories and friendships can be made there, and books written in it, and many more coffees had in good company.
@lisajcorbett, via Instagram
I bought a Scrabble board game from The Bookworm (which I still have in Australia) and used to take my 4-year-old son there as our weekend treat. We both just loved the vibe. I’ve returned to live in Beijing this year and it’s the first place I headed back to. It felt like home. I’ll come in for the last time this Saturday. So sad The Bookworm is closing its doors. It really is the end of a beautiful era.
@aeffervescent, via Instagram
Oh no! I went there every week during my year in Beijing in 2017, it was such a haven for a western book worm like me. The staff was always so friendly and kind, and I loved singing Christmas carols there.
Cynthia Sierra, via Instagram
I had the best first date here, in 2015. I should mention we had never met before. We had been chatting for some time, and for our first date I chose The Bookworm. It was my "safe place," cozy, near my home and if I didn't like him I could pretend I was there to buy a book. I was on time, he was late (I am Mexican and he is British by the way, so the stereotypes don't work for us). In the end, we were there until closing time, because we couldn't stop talking. We are now married and no longer live in China, sadly. But The Bookworm will always be a special place for us.
Tara Power, via Facebook
The Bookworm was the place we ran into when the chaos of surrounding Sanlitun was too much, when we needed shelter from the torrential rain and a friendly face to chat too. We saw comedy, poetry, music, and rooftop films there. When one of our expat friends was heading home, we gathered at The Bookworm to say goodbye. The Bookworm was one of the best parts of our time living in Beijing and I’m sad to hear it’s going.
Matt Turner, author of 'Not Moving'
I had lived in Beijing for a year by the time I was invited to an English-language poetry reading at The Bookworm, in 2005. Until then I'd known only a few foreigners, and it helped open up that world to me – and, little did I expect at the time, but I would be reading there along with a favorite local writer just five years later! The Bookworm served as one of the few regular forums for independent bilingual intellectuals in Beijing, and it's very sad to see it go.
Pat Brown, via Facebook
Trying to find it when I arrived in 2004-2005 was not easy. We lived in China World Apartments, my hubby went to work every day and I walked the mall, went to the gym and read so I was really needing a friend and The Bookworm was the haven I was looking for. Later in 2005-2009, we lived in the Chaoyang Park area and I could walk or bike. I helped with a few events. It was a warm welcoming place, my corner of contentment while living in Beijing.
Danny Verheij, via Facebook
This used to be my go-to place for good coffee, foreign books, and my monthly shot of the Beijinger magazine. We've seen many places go in the past few years... But this one hurts!
Mirjam Thieme, via Facebook
Sad to see The Bookworm going, but I’m sure they’ll find a new place and will be back better than ever with the same vibe as when the first The Bookworm opened in what is now the Village (was that about 20 years ago?). A haven in ever-hectic Beijing.
John F. Kwiatkowski, via Facebook
The first time I approached those wooden stairs with the names of all those great writers six years ago, I knew I had come to the right place.
@parislord, via Twitter
Vale Bookworm. Huge loss. I used to visit when a Beijinger in '07-08. I hated that it allowed smoking, but loved that I could find all sorts of books, some banned, that Wangfujing’s stores lacked. Got to hear writers like James Fallows share his "China-Japan A Way vs. The Way" insight.
@cindymariej, via Twitter
It was the first place I entered in Beijing that felt like a home, a place I could take my kids or write alone. We had a series of NaNoWriMo write-ins there this past month. I will miss their selection and welcoming atmosphere.
@claudiamaydeme, via Twitter
Bookworm was still small when I left Beijing in '04. They accepted my book collection donation which made me so happy. English books at the time were hard to find there. Knowing the BW was putting my collection to good use made leaving a bit easier. Sad they are closing.
@PaulHaire, via Twitter
In 2006 it meant a decent supply of good books in English, sorry to hear it's closing. Beijing will be the lesser for it.
READ: The Bookworm Bookstore to Close
Photos courtesy of the commenters
