[coffee Culture] Coffee Reading Shop-A coffee shop with good reading materials all over the wall

Cover photo_Terry Chang

Text _ Miki Wei; photo_ Miki Wei, Hope Chao

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"tell me what you like to eat, and I'll know what kind of person you are," said Suvaran, a famous statesman and gourmet in the 19th century. If you change it to: "tell me which coffee shops you go to, and I'll know what kind of person you are." it also seems to be applicable in contemporary society. Today, coffee consumption defines the size of a city, and the definition of cafes becomes more and more blurred with the popularity of coffee; cafes in clothing stores, mobile coffee cars, bookstores that serve coffee. Coffee becomes a symbol, making the boundaries of space ambiguous, allowing different ideas to collide, and allowing people to meet each other in their favorite coffee shop, or immerse themselves in reading and enter their own world.

People who like to read magazines must have encountered such troubles, and finally look forward to the publication every month. I really want to find a place to have fun at once. Usually you can only go to the bookstore counter to unpack and read quickly, or go to the bookstore with a coffee shop to read, but in such a place there is either a time limit or a large number of people who simply eat and chat, in fact, there is no reading atmosphere. "Dream of a place with plenty of magazines, regular updates, bright light, comfortable atmosphere, and coffee and food! There you can read well and leisurely, order food to fill your stomach when you are hungry, and occasionally bring your laptop to work. "I have made the above wish. Later, luckily, I really met the two places mentioned above, one in Tainan and the other in Taipei.

Hold on to perch cafe

As long as you pass by the alley where you are nestled, you are bound to be attracted by a whole wall of books near the door. The thickness of a piece of glass, just separated from the hustle and bustle of the outside city, so that the bookish and quiet inside become the envy of passers-by. Ryan, the boss, said that from the books on the shelves in one place, you can probably judge whether the book collector fits him or not. Because of its rich collection of books and periodically updated magazines, many bosom friends who like to read often come here to "nest".

At the beginning of every month, there are about 10 new books here. In addition to Ryan's selfish likes, he also regularly buys books on life, travel, light fiction and translated literature. The selection of books is mainly based on sketches that allow people to relax, so there are no difficult theories or books that are too partial; and the reason why there are so many books is that they are not afraid of guests sitting for a long time. Ryan said that when he opened his nest 10 years ago, there was no coffee shop like this. At that time, most of the books in coffee shops were decorative and were not usually updated. Because I love reading, I always go to the coffee shop to see what books are on the shelves, or bring my own books to read. "at that time, I thought, if I open a shop, I must put a lot of books so that everyone can read comfortably while drinking coffee. Wouldn't it be better to buy it and share it with you anyway? "

Because Ryan likes books, he has created a cafe with a rich collection of books. as a result, he has met people who can resonate with people, and has met friends in the media and publishing industry. Apart from having participated in the relevant projects of "Shopping Design", he has also been invited by the Chinese Reading Festival to link up the city's cafes with "reading" and hold a series of activities. From a simple love of coffee and reading, because of the desire to share, it has been promoted to another level that can influence more people, with the help of the power of a coffee shop.

On the day of the interview, Ryan recommended several books for us. One is Huang Chongkai's new book, the Spring and Autumn of Literature and Art, which is a series of 10 short chapters about writers, and the other is a series of books written by Matsuura. "Matsuura's things are approachable and span many categories. I quite appreciate his stories about his early adventures in the United States because he doesn't understand the language. The things he does are very interesting, such as opening a shop, driving a reading car, and like he doesn't let his employees work overtime. He has to leave work at 6: 00 to enrich and expand his life, requiring everyone to maintain other levels of nutrients. He also likes his selection books and explains in detail why every good thing is worth it. "

Room A

Room An is the private place of many magazine readers. The pace of Tainan is not in a hurry. For travelers who love coffee and reading, they certainly have to find a place to drink coffee and read magazines leisurely. The books selected by Room An are mainly magazines and books related to diet, life, space design and utensils, and small book fairs on themes are held irregularly, and books are on the shelves almost every week. Hope, the store manager, said that through the selection of books here, he hopes to give people who come to Room A more imagination about life. Other books, such as picture books, photo albums, zine, comics, and topics, are selected according to the preferences of the work partners here; they usually follow their favorite authors and publishers, and often visit bookstores of all sizes to find good books worth sharing for more people to see.

In addition to magazines and books, rich picture books are also important soul elements of Room A. Several picture books I read when I was a child will still be reexposed when I grow up, such as a "small house" that unwittingly affects my imagination and preferences for living life. To me, picture books are not just children's books. There are many picture books that transcend time and age regardless of language. The picture books placed by Room An are all based on this core. I once heard an adult point to a foreign language picture book and say, "that child can't understand it." Who knows, maybe kids see more from it than we do. "Hope's answer was like a clear light, breaking away my eyes clouded by being used to the adult world.

For Xiao Wu, the owner of Room A, who used to run a second-hand bookstore, reading is daily, so there is also a large book wall with a collection of books in another store he started earlier, "a Room Room Coffee." Because of his strong love of furniture and craftsmanship, after running Room An and roomy, he began to design tables and chairs and transform old objects, and reading was his source of inspiration.

Hope also recommended two magazines for our interview: one is to combine coffee with travel culture, and each issue explores a city's "DRIFT" through coffee culture, and the other "Science of the Secondary" is planned by Singapore's independent design studio HOKO, which focuses on studying objects in daily life, breaking the mindset of taking for granted, and advocating an unknown attitude towards everything. In order to arouse the openness of people's thinking.

Knowing that coffee and reading are both indispensable parts of life, people stay in coffee shops with reading materials and create more possibilities for creativity to ferment. Room An is using its own efforts to promote the reading movement in the city.

Hold on to perch cafe

Address: No. 20, Lane 30, Section 4, Xinyi Road, Da'an District, Taipei City

Business hours: 14VOUR 00MUT2300

Room A

Address: 3 / F, 21 Kangle Street, Central and Western District, Tainan City

Business hours: 10: 00: 00: 22: 22: 30 Tuesdays off