HÀ NỘI — Around 6,000 books are being offered free to citizens in public spaces in HCM City, Hà Nội and Đà Nẵng, in order to encourage people to read.

People will be able to pick up books from pedestrian zones, parks and some colleges in the three cities’ universities.

The initiative, themed Spreading Reading Culture With Tiki, has been launched by Tiki, a Vietnamese online retailer. 

As per statistics from the publishing department, under the Ministry of Information and Communications, a Vietnamese spends an average of US$2 on books a year; the figure is around $200 per person in developed countries. This translates to a Vietnamese reading 1.2 to 2.5 books a year compared to a person in a developed country who reads 20 books.

“If you find surprises in the form of books carefully wrapped and left on benches in parks, in flower vases on streets, or in a class, they are books that Tiki is giving you,” said Tiki’s CEO Trần Ngọc Thái Sơn.

“Tiki hopes that once you pick up the surprise, you will help spread the habit of reading among your friends and other people,” said Sơn.

In Hà Nội, you can find books at the pedestrian zone, St Joseph’s Cathedral, West Lake area. In HCM City, people can find books in public places, including Nguyễn Huệ pedestrian street and Đức Bà cathedral. In Đà Nẵng, books can be found at Dragon Bridge, Love Bridge, Phạm Văn Đồng Park.

To encourage the culture of reading and to help a friend get a book from Tiki, take your own photo with a Tiki book that you have found and post it on Facebook with #Tikilantoavanhoadoc, tag Tiki.vn. Lucky winners will get a book. — VNS