National Library Selects Top ReadersAn award ceremony was held in Beijing Friday to present awards to the 12 top readers of the year, which were selected by The National Library of China.It is the second time for the library to award readers with the prestigious title. The selection depended not only on the frequency of visits to the library by readers but on their effective use of library resources. The selection process, which began in November, involved the collection of data from all branches. Wang Lingyun and other 11 readers from universities and research institutions won the prize. Besides top readers, the library also selected the top reading unit of the year. The personnel branch of the National Library of China was awarded as the winner. The selection of top readers is among the various activities organized by the library for the promotion of nationwide reading, which started at the beginning of this month. Nearly 1,000 readers came to the library to listen to lectures by well-known experts and scholars. One-hour free on-line reading of the library's 53 million-page books have attracted thousands of readers across the country. Promoted by the library, over 4,400 books have been donated to the western region. Founded in 1909 with the original name of Capital Library, the library boasts more than 22 million books, with the earliest collection dating back 700 years. The library, the largest in Asia, holds the world's fifth largest book collection. According to Zhou Heping, vice-curator of the library, the library is visited by nearly 10,000 readers everyday. Annual visits to its website, www.nlc.gov.cn, exceed 100 million. |
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