Bookstores often evoke a sense of peace and quietness where book-lovers can freely roam between shelves. Would the same be true in a pitch-black bookstore though?
A recent post on Reddit shows a Taiwan bookstore immersed in the darkness where lights only illuminate books, tables and other merchandise, leaving many foreigners bewildered.
▲The Wuguan Bookstore in Kaohsiung. (Photo courtesy of @u/JoeyKaotykGWC貼文中陰暗的照片引來外國網友質疑，其中有人表示「這一切看起來都很不錯…直到有人跌倒，臉直接撞上桌腳。」
The dimly lit picture evoked numerous responses from the members and friends of the foreign community who questioned the bookstore’s real intentions, with one commenting “It’s all fun and games until someone falls over and slams their face on the table.”
其實，這間書店為高雄駁二區的「無關實驗書店」。
The bookstore is actually the “Wuguan Bookstore” (無關實驗書店) located in Kaohsiung, Pier 2.
▲Photo courtesy of 無關實驗書店/Facebook而伸手不見五指的燈光設計是因為老闆希望讀者可以專注在書本身上，心無旁騖的忘記周遭環境。
In fact, the reasoning behind the pitch-black bookstore lies in the owner’s goal of letting readers focus on the books and forget about their surroundings.
據報導，書店背後的理念著重在讓顧客回顧小時候那一本讓人放不下的書。
According to various media reports, the concept behind the store is for customers to remember their childhood, when there was a book that they just couldn’t put down.
當晚上熄燈後，躲到被窩下開啟手電筒，只為了「再看一頁就好」的感覺是無關書店希望重建的氛圍。
If parents turned off the lights, most kids would duck under their bedsheets and shine a flashlight to continue reading. With this observation in mind, a similar “ambiance” was replicated in the Wuguan Bookstore.
此書店也引來外國網友關切，許多人在貼文下表示一旦有機會，必定前往好好享受漆黑的書香氣息。
我是廣告 請繼續往下閱讀
The bookstore has since received much attention among the foreign community with many promising to go soak in the eclectic bookstore as soon as they get the chance.
▲The exterior of the Wuguan Bookstore. (Photo courtesy of 無關實驗書店/Facebook)原文自 《The China Post》