Chinese PresidentXi JinpingSince assuming power, he has published over 150 books, and if foreign language versions and overseas editions are included, the total may even exceed 300 copies, a rare phenomenon for a global leader. However, recently, a blogger pointed out that although Chinese officials claim these books have sold remarkably well, bookstores are seeing them being sold at discounts of up to 90% with little interest, drawing international attention.
Comprehensive media reportsThe blogger pointed out that Xi Jinping's publishing career can be divided into two stages: before and after he came to power. In his early years as a local official, he participated in compiling a limited number of local chronicles and policy collections, most of which were merely formalistic records. The real publishing boom began after he took office in 2012, with the publication of works such as "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China," "Selected Letters," and "Xi Jinping's Diplomatic Speeches." These works were largely compiled from speeches, letters, and internal conversations, exhibiting repetitive formats and similar content.
Bloggers bluntly stated that this publishing boom actually highlights the gap between "poor content and simplistic narratives," and the lukewarm market response of general bookstores to such books is a form of "silent protest." Despite the government's forced sales promotion through the party and government system, and even designated book purchases and group readings, it is still difficult to translate into genuine reader demand.
However, he also mentioned that the general public's acceptance of such books is very limited. Even when prominently displayed in state-run bookstores, and even with discounts as low as 12%, few people are willing to buy them. Although the China Publishing & Media Business Daily once announced that Xi Jinping's books occupied more than half of the bestseller list in December 2023, there is still a gap between actual market sales and actual readership.
He further pointed out that if Xi Jinping lives to 150, at the current rate of publishing 12 books per year, another 936 books will be added, and "Xi Jinping Thought" may then occupy half of the Chinese library's contents. However, this long-running publishing model may not be able to mask the awkward disconnect between politics and reality. He bluntly stated, "The real lack of interest is not in the market, but in the rupture between this one-way narrative and civic experience."
However, some scholars have pointed out that the large-scale publication of Xi Jinping's works is significant not only for the reading of "content," but also for the construction of "discourse power" and "symbols of leadership." These works are intended to showcase Xi Jinping's governance philosophy, the Party Central Committee's narrative, and the framework of governance, rather than being purely commercial literary products.
