After leaving public relations, writer Wei Xiaohe finds ‘refuge from miseries of life’

Wei Xiaohe chose to become a full-time writer after publishing his first book in 2015 and quitting his job at a public relations firm. Wei, 27, who is based in Shenzhen, has been posting book reviews on his social media account on WeChat for more than four years. He also has 5,200 followers on Douban.com, a book and film rating website in China. Wei spoke to Wendy Wu about his writing and his love for books.

There is a lot of talk that Chinese people don’t read much. A survey in 2014 suggested that more than 40 per cent of Chinese read less than one book a year. What’s your take on this?

Yes, that’s also my observation. Not many people I know are fond of reading. Historically, only a few Chinese people read. It’s a great pity that modernisation and education over so many years have not cultivated the reading habit among people. With the widespread use of the internet, a lot of information can be found quickly online and there’s no need to find a book for reference. Reading is not a matter of how many books are read, but about the spiritual enjoyment they give.

I like what [the writer] W. Somerset Maugham said, “to acquire the habit of reading is to construct for yourself a refuge from almost all the miseries of life”. The more you read, the more experience will you gain. On average I read 100 to 200 books each year, but it doesn’t make sense to simply talk about the quantity.

What’s your view of the book-sharing movement in China’s big cities last year, inspired by the actress Emma Watson leaving books on the London metro system for others to read and then pass on?