Dear Sir,
I am writing to express my dissatisfaction over the sale of books at the 2012 Hong Kong Book Fair. I found many books containing sexy images and promoting violence, which is totally unacceptable and has corrupted the meaning of the book fair, which is to promote good reading habits. It is sincerely hoped that books which contain unhealthy content would not be sold at the Fair because of the following reasons.
First and foremost, the sale of such books goes against the principles of the Fair. The Book Fair should aim to promote reading habits and broaden people’s horizons of Hong Kong people. How could our reading habits be promoted by looking at sexy photos of the pseudo models? What can we learn apart from punching others from comics that promote violence? These are simply ridiculous. Only by reading ordinary and quality books like novels, biographies and informative magazines can we gain knowledge and broaden our horizons. That’s why the types of books available at the Fair are so important.
Besides going against with the principles, the sale of the undesirable items also pollutes children’s minds. According to a research, over 45% of visitors going to the Book Fair are at the age between 5-12.Books, containing unhealthy contents, are definitely harmful. They may think that it is alright to do the same in reality. A 12-year-old boy who was interviewed after queuing up and buying Chrissie Chow’s photo book in 2010 is a case of point. He claimed that Chrissie Chow was the hottest girl and he had imagined having sex with her. Is this really what we want our children to become? Moreover, a research done by the University of Hong Kong found that people who are hooked on violence comics, online games and movies would have a higher chance of engaging in violent activities like gangs and domestic violence in reality. Children are the pillars of our society in future. We should protect them from twisted moral values at all cost.
The sale of these books will even ruin Hong Kong’s image. The media from worldwide and foreigners come and visit our Book Fair every year, how would they think when the Hong Kong Book Fair seems only focusing on the teenage sexy models and comics that promote violence? Hong Kong has a name of “Cultural Desert” because people seldom read quality books and the books that we are reading are mostly gossips with little meaning. I do not think the Book Fair would like Hong Kong turning into a place where people neglect the meaning of reading. Therefore, unhealthy books should be banned at the Book Fair in order to promote a better reputation of our city.
I sincerely hope that as the organizer of Hong Kong Book Fair, you could say “NO” towards unhealthy books in the coming years. More concrete guidelines should be issued to book publishers and the stall holders. The types of books to be sold should be closely monitored. Setting up a special zone for models’ photo galleries and books that contain violent contents could also help, avoiding children to meet these kinds of books.
It is earnestly hoped that your organization would take prompt action tackling the problem of selling unhealthy books and thus, a good reading atmosphere can be promoted in the coming Book Fairs.
Yours faithfully,
Pat Lee
Pat Lee