A receipt for 198 books totaling VND 27 million is just a small milestone in the enduring journey of customer Phuong Hien: nearly 20 years of sowing seeds of knowledge for children and bringing books to remote villages.
On August 13, at FAHASA Nguyen Hue Bookstore (Ho Chi Minh City), a customer personally selected and purchased 198 books of various genres. The receipt stretched over 1.7 meters long, with a total value exceeding VND 27 million. The owner of this special order is Ms. Phuong Hien, a resident of Ho Chi Minh City. During this shopping trip, with the support of bookstore staff, she sought out collections of religious and literary books to donate to a pagoda, along with children’s books, comics, and skill-building titles for the children of friends and relatives, as well as children in the countryside.
Speaking with Tri Thuc – ZNews, she shared that she has been a loyal customer of the bookstore for nearly 20 years. She joked: “No gift is better than the gift of books.” To her, each book is not just a present, but also a bridge of knowledge and love.
Ms. Phuong Hien recounted that when her nephews and nieces were little, just learning to crawl and walk, her house was always filled with books for them to hold, flip through, and play with, even before they could read. Growing up surrounded by books, the children naturally nurtured a love for reading without needing encouragement from parents or grandparents. She often took them to bookstores, where they could freely browse and choose books on their own.
In the 2000s, during summer holidays, her family often hosted friends’ children from Ninh Hoa, Rach Gia, and Phu Yen who came to Ho Chi Minh City to visit. “All the children loved going to FAHASA Nguyen Hue. Those who already loved books became even more passionate, while those who didn’t were intrigued and began exploring,” she said.
The second floor of the bookstore was a “paradise” for children. “There are more and more children’s books with diverse content and attractive designs, quite different from our time,” she shared. Alongside books were crayons, erasers, school supplies for the new year, as well as souvenirs and toys. “In such an environment, the love for books blossoms naturally,” she observed.
The children who once enjoyed these visits during their primary school years have since graduated from university, entered the workforce, or gone abroad to study. Yet they still keep in touch with Ms. Phuong Hien, cherishing the bookstore memories of their summers together. Later, she even mentored students from rural areas and Ho Chi Minh City who were studying at universities, continuing her routine visits to bookstores.
Bringing Good Books to Rural Children
Bringing Good Books to Rural Children
Over the past decade, she has shifted her focus: instead of waiting for children to come to her, she proactively brings books directly to them. Every August, she organizes gift-giving for underprivileged elementary school students in Ninh Hoa (Khanh Hoa Province).
In addition to essential gifts like backpacks, notebooks, and textbooks, she prepares extra supplies such as colored pencils purchased from the U.S. at reasonable prices, carrying the message “study hard, dream big” to inspire children’s curiosity and drive to explore the world. “For the free-choice gift section, where children can pick between books and toys, I am always surprised that books are chosen first. Even those who long for toys often end up picking books. When I see this, I give them the toys too, as a reward for their love of learning,” she said.
From her experience, sparking a love for books in children starts with attractive designs—colorful covers and illustrations. Over time, as reading becomes a habit, they will naturally gravitate toward text-heavy books. But if children are forced to start with books filled only with words, many will quickly lose interest.
Alongside this, she also donates books to a pagoda in Ninh Hoa. The abbot was once her classmate, who deeply admired Thich Nhat Hanh and the Tu Luc Literary Group. Though he has passed away after the Covid-19 pandemic, she continues to send books to the pagoda as a way of remembering her friend.
Why Bookstores Still Matter
Why, in an era where a single click delivers books to one’s doorstep, do many readers still prefer visiting bookstores? For Ms. Phuong Hien, the answer is simple: “Buying physical books online takes away much of the joy. At a bookstore, while searching for one title, you often discover many more. It’s both a form of relaxation and a way to cultivate a love of reading in yourself and the next generation.”
Source: Znews.vn
