A book by former premier Wen Jiabao, containing many previously unseen notes and photographs, was published nationwide on Saturday.

The book, Wen Jiabao's Geological Notes, features more than 160 of Wen's handwritten notes, diary entries and photos from between 1968 and 1985, when he was working in the country's geological sector.

Wen has a professional background in geology and engineering. After he earned a postgraduate degree from the Beijing Institute of Geology in 1968, he was sent to Gansu province for geological work.

Over the following 17 years, he worked in the geological sector before becoming deputy director of the General Office of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in 1985.

His book, published by Geology Press, has four chapters recording geology field trips, management experiences, investigations and studies. It also reveals many details of Wen's life during this period.

In a diary entry from May 1970, Wen wrote that his colleagues were playing cards at night to relax after spending a whole day walking across the mountains.

"I don't want to waste my time on playing cards. The work of a diligent fool doubles that of a lazy wit. I should spend all my time on study and contribute all I learn to help people in my limited lifetime," he said in the diary.

Wen loves reading books, especially classic works, the memoir revealed. One of his favorite Chinese writers is Lu Xun, a leading figure of modern Chinese literature, and he wrote that he had read Call to Arms three or four times.

In addition to reading, Wen spent much of his spare time running. In two of his working notes in the book, Wen records getting up at 5:30 am to run, a routine that was not even interrupted on weekends.

He also had a determination to learn English. In a diary entry from April 1981, Wen said he would study hard and aim to speak and understand English reasonably well before the age of 45.

The memoir offers a rare insight into the historical changes in China's geological sector and its achievements in the early period of the country's reform and opening-up.

In a recent interview with China News Service, an editor from Geology Press said Wen sent many of his diaries and notes to the press in March 2014, adding that the former premier wanted to publish the book to express his feelings of nostalgia for the past.

Wen sent 15 letters amending the manuscript and also participated in designing the book's cover, according to the editor who remains anonymous.

(China Daily 03/28/2016 page4)