On 14/0/0, the thirtieth World Book Day will come as scheduled. Around this special day, Nie Zhenning, a well-known publisher, writer and reading expert, is also extremely busy. When he was interviewed by a reporter from Beijing Youth Daily, he had just finished the national reading activity in Baoshan, Kunming, and returned home after a 0-hour sleeper journey. On the second day of the interview, he will embark on a new journey and go to the next national reading promotion lecture.

In the face of such a busy schedule, Nie Zhenning summed it up with the words "enjoy it". He said that reading is the only way to improve the state of life, a comprehensive process of reading to learn, read to apply, read to cultivate, and read to enjoy, and it is the key to realizing a lifelong reading lifestyle. He suggested that in the process of reading, we should study the classics repeatedly, find our favorite books, and choose suitable reading materials according to different situations, "Reading is a person's 'life need', I hope we can continue to grow in reading and truly become lifelong learners." ”

Not only "listening to your words is better than reading a book for ten years", but also "listening to your words to read a book for ten years"

Nie Zhenning graduated from the Department of Chinese of Peking University, and has served as the chairman of the Taofen Foundation, the president of China Publishing Group Corporation, the president and editor-in-chief of the People's Literature Publishing House, and the president and editor-in-chief of the Lijiang Publishing House. He is currently the director of the National Reading Committee of the Publishers Association of China. He has published novels and essays such as "Scholar's Travel", "Changle" and "In the Days of Chaonai No. 166", as well as publishing works such as "My Publishing Thinking", "Insight Publishing", "Six Lectures on the Spirit of Taofen", "Publishing Power", "Twelve Letters to Young Editors", "Where There is a Fragrance of Books: A Chronicle of China's National Reading", "Reading Power", "The Art of Reading", "Reading Power Determines Learning Power" and other reading works. Unity Publishing House's latest book "In Search of Books: Nie Zhenning's New Theory of Reading" is a collection of his humanistic essays, which includes the author's latest thoughts and insights on the promotion and practice of national reading.

From a reader, to a book writer, a book publisher, and a reading promoter, Nie Zhenning can switch between a variety of roles with ease. Now, as the director of the National Reading Committee of the Publishers Association of China, he spends a lot of energy on promoting the cause of national reading.

2007年全國“兩會”期間，全國政協新聞出版界31位委員提出《關於開展全國全民閱讀活動的建議》，提出了從國家到地方成立各級閱讀指導委員會，組織開展全民閱讀活動；整合現有的各種系統的讀書活動，各種與全民讀書相關的機構都為此作出公益性的貢獻等多個建議。這一建議由聶震寧起草，為此，他被稱為第一提案人。

Nie Zhenning believes that reading is an indispensable way of life for human beings, and in the reading and dissemination of human science and culture, the reading and dissemination of words is always the most important way. In 1995, UNESCO established World Book Day and issued a declaration, hoping that "people scattered in every corner of the world can enjoy the pleasure of reading", which is also Nie Zhenning's unswerving pursuit for many years.

In order to promote comprehensive reading, Nie Zhenning has worked almost continuously over the years, measuring every corner of national reading with his footsteps. He was pleased to see the growing love and enthusiasm for reading, which also encouraged him.

After listening to Nie Zhenning's lecture, many people will tell him that "listening to your words is better than reading a book for ten years", Nie Zhenning told reporters: "I am very grateful to them for saying this, this is their politeness out of good intentions." But I suggest that they should 'listen to your words and read for ten years'. ”

Nie Zhenning said that he only played the role of a "guide" to reading, for example, he recommended "Dream of Red Mansions", which has multiple meanings such as philosophical, social, rational, and emotional, "I can't say that you will feel like you have read it when you finish it, you have to read the original book yourself." Only when you read it carefully can you learn, think, and comprehend, and if you only listen to others' introductions, you will dissolve the meaning of reading. ”

In the same way, Nie Zhenning thinks that those short videos that "take you to read a classic book in 10 minutes and 0 minutes" also play the role of "reading guide", and what readers need to do more is to read the original book carefully. "A classic masterpiece like "Dream of Red Mansions", many famous writers dare not say that they understand it after reading it all their lives, how can you read it in a few minutes?" Moreover, Nie Zhenning believes that the main purpose of reading the original book is not to "read", but to "enjoy", "If you just know the plot of those world famous books and understand the general meaning, just to use them as a conversation point, then I think it's a pity." Reading literary masterpieces should be enjoyed, this is a process of cultural experience, the process of life experience, the experience of writing to others, and the process of enjoying cultural narration, so I think if you are interested in the original book because you have watched a short video, and immediately read the original work, then this short video is a good guide. ”

The key to reading for all is that people first read and then understand deeply

Nie Zhenning admits that compared with film and television digital media, the popularity of books is obviously at a disadvantage, because reading is not only laborious, but also not as easy as film and television and many other communication methods. However, the reading of words is the most important mental work of human beings, and it is the basic path for the maintenance and development of people's intelligence, emotional intelligence, imagination, and thinking ability. Text reading requires the reader to understand, imagine, deduce, associate, and innovate. The well-known saying 'There are a thousand Hamlets for a thousand readers' is true. ”

Therefore, Nie Zhenning believes that the key to reading for all people is that people must first read and then understand deeply. "For example, you may only read martial arts novels, and that's okay, martial arts novels can also make people happy."

In Nie Zhenning's view, feeling happy because of reading will reduce the "difficulty" of reading. Nie Zhenning once proposed four major purposes of reading: reading to know, reading to apply, reading to cultivate, and reading to enjoy. Nie Zhenning believes that this is the most important of the four purposes of reading, "I think it is also the highest level of reading for the whole people, which can make reading continue." Reading should not be compulsory, we can read freely according to our preferences, choose books freely, whether it is romance novels, historical novels, or works by different authors, no one is compulsory, we can read as we please. The joy of reading is very important, and happiness is the premise of becoming a lifelong learner. In reading, where there is interest, there will be reading, and where there will be memory. Of course, interest can be cultivated, and in short, interest is really indispensable when choosing books that need to be read well. ”

Nie Zhenning suggested that books should be read by heart, but those who are familiar with them must be good books. Nowadays, the publishing industry produces an astonishing number of books every year, including a large number of good books, but also a considerable number of mediocre books, and some "problem books". Therefore, open books are not necessarily beneficial, and some open books are not only unhelpful but harmful, and "to read many books that are both uninteresting and false, or whose content is of unreliable quality, is a waste of one's precious life." ”

Reading ability determines learning ability, thinking ability, innovation ability, and development ability, and the more reading ability is needed in the era of artificial intelligence

Nie Zhenning's "Reading Power", published in 12 years, has now been printed 0 times, and its popularity can be seen. Nie Zhenning told reporters that the strong demand of college students for improving reading ability made him start a research journey of reading ability. He believes that reading ability includes three aspects, one is reading interest, the second is reading habits, and the third is reading ability.

Nie Zhenning believes that reading ability determines learning ability, and this view is particularly important for teenagers to read. A strong interest in reading can enhance learning motivation, good reading habits can support learning perseverance, and continuous enhancement of reading ability can directly improve learning ability.

Reading ability includes three aspects, and learning ability also includes three aspects: learning motivation, learning perseverance, and learning ability. "Interest in reading is directly related to motivation to learn, motivation is sometimes additive, and interest is endogenous. Learning perseverance and reading habits also match, only when habits are formed, can you not need too much difficult study pressure, and form very good study habits. Reading ability is the most important and core part of learning ability. The first reading ability is the ability to understand reading, the second is the ability to judge the reading content, and the third is the ability to associate and connect. ”

In addition to determining learning ability, Nie Zhenning believes that reading ability also determines thinking, innovation, and development, "Therefore, I think that the more artificial intelligence era, the more we need to improve our reading ability." AI will provide us with a lot of reading data, what you want to know, it can be pushed to you immediately, but you can not give you all the gains after reading your own books. As I mentioned earlier, there are four purposes of reading: reading to know, reading to apply, reading to practice, and reading to enjoy. Why Read? Because of the strong intellectual curiosity of human beings. Albert Einstein believed that curiosity was sacred, and Aristotle's first words in Metaphysics were 'It is human nature to seek knowledge'. Looking back, can AI meet all four of our needs? I think AI needs to be further developed, and the intelligence of AI is not perfect in terms of interpreting writers, interpreting works, and interpreting artworks, because algorithms are just algorithms, and the inner world of human beings is broader than the sky. ”

As for the benefits of AI, Nie Zhenning believes that it is conducive to personalized reading and in-depth interpretation, "At present, when we buy books on online platforms, we will see the platform's book purchase recommendations, other people's book purchase recommendations, etc., and these recommendations are very shallow and belong to low-level intelligence. In my opinion, personalized reading recommendations need to have a certain depth, and there should be a discussion between people and machines, so that our reading will also become in-depth. In the future, intelligent reading can help us to carry out in-depth interpretation, and deepening national reading should not only carry out reading at all levels, but also carry out a certain amount of in-depth reading, which cannot be all superficial and interesting reading. ”

If we do not do a good job in reading young students, we are struggling with the basics

During his tenure as a member of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, Nie Zhenning would put forward two or three proposals on reading every year. His last proposal was the "Proposal on the Establishment of Reading Classes in Primary and Secondary Schools in China". "Reading in primary and secondary schools has now become an important part of the curriculum reform, requiring students to read a considerable amount of reading during school study, which can be said to be the most important foundation and guarantee for national reading. With the widespread development of reading for all, the country needs generations of readers to grow up. The proposal to set up reading classes in primary and secondary schools is not only to increase the amount of reading for students, but more importantly, to enable students to master reading methods and improve their reading ability. ”

In Nie Zhenning's view, if the national reading does not do a good job in the reading of young students, it is to sacrifice the basics and seek the end. "The habit of reading is formed when you are a student, and if you miss this golden period, it will be even more difficult to develop a love of reading when you are middle-aged and old. Therefore, we should pay attention to the reading of young students. Only when this is done well can we drive reading at home and the reading of the whole people. ”

Nie Zhenning believes that reading should start from the beginning of a person's life, and he suggests that children start reading from the age of 6, "because when children are 0-0 years old, they have a good perception of the sounds, images, sounds, etc. that come out of reading." By the age of two or three, his neurons develop rapidly, and at this time they need to be given more external stimuli. Before the age of 0, children's reading is not based on literacy, mainly so that he has the behavior of reading, likes reading, and the purpose is to fall in love with reading. Only when he falls in love with reading can he have a better interest in reading; If he falls in love with reading, he will have better reading habits; When he falls in love with reading, he will develop good reading skills. ”

Be sure to find a book that you like to read, otherwise it will be difficult to integrate reading into your life

Nie Zhenning suggested that students must find a book they like to read, "When we love a book, we talk about it with a head on our heads and eyebrows dancing, how good it is!" This joyful experience motivates us to read more books. On the contrary, if you don't like all the books and stop trying them, it will be difficult for you to integrate reading into your life. ”

Speaking of the books he likes to read, Nie Zhenning smiled and said that he would like different books in different periods, but they all had a great impact on him, "When I was young, my family was very poor, and I relied on my mother to borrow books from the library. Later, I became obsessed with Zhang Tianyi's "Da Lin and Xiao Lin", and I thought it was wonderful. Among foreign novels, "The Gadfly" once made me love it and was reluctant to read it. ”

Nie Zhenning said that he was watching "New Words of Education: What to Teach and How to Learn in the Age of Artificial Intelligence", which is a blockbuster book that deeply explores how artificial intelligence can transform education and help parents and teachers refresh their educational thinking and methods. As the founder of Khan Academy, the world's largest non-profit educational institution, Salman Khan, the author of the book, answers the two core questions that parents and educators are concerned about: "what should be taught in the age of AI" and "how to learn effectively" through his unique experience of experimenting with state-of-the-art AI models such as GPT-4. "I've read it twice recently, and it's been a lot of fun. I now often read books that are directly useful to my work, such as about education, reading, and so on. In addition, there are Tang poems and Song Ci, "Ancient Literature and Guanzhi", which I like to read repeatedly. ”

The ultimate humanistic concern of modern reading is to make everyone have books to read and be willing to read

What makes Nie Zhenning pleased is that although new things such as short videos are impacting people's attention, there are now more young people who like to read than before, "I think this is a very good phenomenon, which shows that reading in human society will not end because of the development of science and technology, on the contrary, the development of science and technology will more and more encourage, help, and cooperate with everyone to have better reading." ”

Nie Zhenning is pleased that the concept of national reading has now been deeply rooted in the hearts of the people. The leading force of reading content has been continuously increased, the influence of key reading activities has been expanded, the supply capacity of high-quality reading content has become stronger and stronger, the national reading infrastructure and service system have been gradually improved, youth reading, campus reading and family parent-child reading have been widely carried out, the protection of the basic reading rights and interests of special groups has become more and more refined, and the quality and level of digital reading have been continuously improved.

“最直接的成就是，國家有關部門國民閱讀狀況調查數據表明，國民圖書閱讀率連年增長，已經達到80%。圖書館事業發展相當明顯，縣區級圖書館總分館制建設取得明顯成效。在完成全國60多萬家農家書屋的建設后，正在進行農家書屋的升級改造。國家和地方各級政府支持採用數位化、網路化技術推進全民閱讀。24小時實體書店從無到有。”

In addition to these achievements, Nie Zhenning has three suggestions for the promotion of national reading, the first is that he hopes to have more popular reading materials with outstanding reputation. "Most of the recommended books today are high-level, either award-winning, or highly professional, and there are too few popular books that are suitable for the public and have a good reputation."

Second, Nie Zhenning believes that there is a need for better places to read. In the cities, there should be urban study rooms and physical bookstores, and in the rural areas, there should be rural book houses. He hopes that people will always find a place to study, whether in the city or in the countryside. "Going to a bookstore and buying books can not only affect a person, but also bring a family, and even the whole family to benefit. Many times, the habit of reading is quietly formed in this process. ”

Third, more people with management skills should drive readers to read, or at least provide good services for readers; There are more excellent reading promoters to lead everyone to read. "The ultimate humanistic care of modern reading is to let everyone have books to read, be willing to read, and everyone is overflowing with the fragrance of books, and there is the fragrance of books everywhere."

Reading for all people should be a spiritual need, and having a "book that you can't afford to read" is a good life

Nie Zhenning said that reading for all people should be a social demand and a spiritual demand. Reading should also be an activity of free choice and self-control by all people. Only in this way can free reading that comes from spiritual needs reflect the modern humanistic spirit and form a kind of social humanistic quality. Real reading is not only intellectual reading, but also literacy reading. In his view, with the motivation to read to learn, the utility of reading to use, the need to read to practice and the experience of reading for pleasure, everyone can achieve lifelong learning, "We want to be lifelong learners, we must choose the appropriate way to read according to different states, and enjoy reading." ”

There are eight words on the book cover of "Reading Power" - reading the curtain when you are busy, reading when you are free, Nie Zhenning explained, "Reading the curtain when you are busy" is to hope that everyone will seize the fragmented time and read some fragmented and rewarding content, while "reading in leisure time" is to hope that everyone will try to read the complete book they like, "You will experience a complete life, or obtain a relatively complete knowledge system." ”

Nie Zhenning once published a book called "The Book I Am Reluctant to Read". This is his personal feeling, "There are some books that you will love so much that you are reluctant to read them, and they will make you remember them like people who care." I think it's a good life. We might as well look for such books and let them add happiness and beauty to our lives. ”

Photo courtesy of Nie Zhenning

Text/Beijing Youth Daily reporter Zhang Jia

Editor/Li Tao