Cultural Mavericks

Cultural Mavericks tells the lesser-known stories of a group of self-proclaimed ‘independent bookstores’ that has arisen across China over the past two decades. In the West, such retailers represent an alternative to corporations and chains. In China, by contrast, they differentiate themselves not only from the state-owned bookstore but also from other privately owned shops through an emphasis on intellectual independence, curated taste, and the free exchange of ideas.

This book was inspired by several central questions: In an age of digital reading and e-commerce, what has driven the proliferation of these establishments? Who are the individuals and organisations running or financing these businesses, and what are their motives? How do these bookstores survive, and matter, in an environment marked by shifting market conditions, evolving ideological boundaries, and changing public expectations about the social and economic role of cultural spaces? Ultimately, what do the rise and impact of independent bookstores tell us about the changing nature and shifting dynamics of China’s book industry and book culture more broadly?

Drawing on more than a decade of immersive qualitative research using interviews, observations, and extensive documentary analysis, I demonstrate how independent bookstores, as both dedicated cultural institutions and resilient business enterprises, balance economic imperatives with a commitment to cultural autonomy. I develop the concept of ‘culturally adapted strategy’ to explain how they creatively engage with political narratives, draw moral legitimacy, and harness cultural resources to carve out a unique identity, one that affords them an advantageous market position in the highly competitive industry of book retailing. 

In addition to offering an in-depth account of a hitherto largely overlooked cultural phenomenon in China’s cultural sphere, this book challenges the common assumption in anglophone scholarship that China’s cultural industries must be understood through the lens of the binary of state control and market resistance. Instead, I argue that independent bookstores engage with politics as a strategic means of differentiating themselves from competitors, primarily the state-owned Xinhua Bookstore and the usual, market-oriented privately owned bookshops. Rather than overstating their political motives and political significance, I show how their political involvement is underpinned by a critical set of cultural and economic considerations. The book thus offers a new insight into the real way in which culture, commerce, and politics intersect to shape cultural production in contemporary China.