Taking old school approach to old books

The studio where old books are repaired at the Oak Street Library Facility at the University of Illinois.

Books at the Oak Street Library Facility are divided into general and special collections. The books in the general collection can be borrowed by the public after repairs by the librarian. To mend a general collection book, a librarian usually spends 15 minutes to two hours on it, depending on the extent of damage. And after one night of stoving, the books are returned to the stacks.

However, for the special collections, the repair time takes up to two hours. Sun is working with the general collection’s old covers, or spines. She said she is looking forward to repairing older books.

Sun works in the library 10 hours a week, and usually more than two hours at a sitting.

“I really enjoy repairing old books, especially those which were heavily damaged,” Sun said. “I feel a great achievement when an old book looks good after hours of work from my hands.”

Born Sun Weina in Zhenjiang, a small city in Jiangsu province on the east coast of China, Sun came to the United States at 18 to attend the university. She said that living in America on her own has helped her make more friends and grow.

She also said she doesn’t feel as homesick as other foreign students her age might.

“One of the reasons is my life is enriched after I took the job as a librarian,” she said. “One will not feel homesick when surrounded by interesting jobs and friends.”

Sun posted about her experience on Chinese social networks, and suddenly it became a trending topic. On WeChat and Salonwith.com, more than 20,000 read about Sun’s work and left more than 100 comments. Some of them had just learned about working in a library and requested more pictures of her workspace.

A librarian job in China is usually a low-paying one. Sun said she hopes that more Chinese people, especially youngsters, can be introduced to the job.

“Because repairing old books does not only mean a lot to the library, but to the whole country as well,” she said.

One netizen shared those sentiments: “Although I haven’t thought out any questions, I still wanna click the LIKE button for Sun. After all, [those] who made human history and culture pass from generations to generations [are] those who read books and treasure books.”

renqi@chinadaily.com.cn