Academic bookstore remains a bastion o fidealism

In a narrow lane behind the bright and bustling Eslite Bookstore (誠品書店) opposite National Taiwan University (台灣大學), in the basement of nondescript building, down a narrow dimly lit stairway papered with posters and flyers touting alternative cultural and academic activities, is the Tonshan Book-store (唐山書店). The subterranean den has the comfortable atmosphere of a place that has not changed over many years.

The Tonshan Bookstore has been a pivotal site for college students, intellectuals and social activists over the last 25 years. It is a place were they can immerse themselves in the sea of books and periodicals covering humane studies, social science, philo-sophy, literary, gender and Taiwan studies, poetry, art, film and theater. Owner Chen Long-hao (陳隆昊) is an amiable and bookish man who still carries with him the passions and dreams of a youth.

Chen, who graduated in Social Science from National Taiwan University and received his masters in ethnology from National Chengchi University (政治大學), opened the Tonshan bookshop and publishing house in 1981. His choice at that time was directed by his love of books, but his career was largely determined by the student protests and social movements which flourished during this period, and which opened up the country's path to democratization.

"The Kaohsiung Incident (美麗島事件) took place in 1979, and society was like a pressure cooker waiting to explode. Social movements were rolling forward with full force. Books on social science, particularly those of Marxism, neo-Marxism and left-wing writings became the mainstream in academic circles," Chen said, "Those books were in high demand. I think the reason behind this was that people needed to find theories to serve as the basis of their movements."

In the early 1980s, there was no other local publishers for works on social science and political theory, so Tonshan quickly became a symbol of the revolutionary trend of that era.

However, even as the publishing and bookstore sector has enjoyed a great revival in the last decade, Tonshan's business has suffered. He remains high-spirited and an inspiration to those around him, but admits that he feels the financial pressure.

"The Eslite (bookstore chain) has moved into the neighbor-hood, as well as other specialist independent bookstores like Fembooks (女書店) and Gin Gin Bookstore (晶晶書店), (which caters to the gay community.) The (discount) Shuizhun Bookstore (水準書店) and Chengda Book City (政大書城) nearby also add to the competition," Chen said.

The surge of publications from China has also hurt business. "China has always been strong in social sciences and humanities, and translated titles have been released in a steady stream," Chen pointed out.

Several years ago, these pressures brought Tonshan to the brink of closure. But once news got out, scholars and students spoke out to help keep the store in business. Chen said when he realized how much Tonshan had become an integral part of cherished memories and a symbol to younger generations, he was determined to keep the business going.

Some have suggested taking advantage of developments in digital technology. But Chen pointed to the buyup of the local online bookstore Books.com.tw (博客來) by Uni-President Group (統一集團) as an example of how corporate backing is necessary to make such operations commercially viable.