N reasons for reading - Reflections from The Hon Andrew Yao Cho-fai, Chairman of the Council of Lingnan University

April is always a month imbued with the joys of reading. This year marks the launch of the country’s first National Reading Week, and 23 April has been designated as Hong Kong Reading for All Day”, and will be held over nine days from 18 to 26 April at New Town Plaza Phase I in Sha Tin. Organised by the Hong Kong Publishing Federation and sponsored principally by the Cultural and Creative Industries Development Agency, this year’s theme is “N reasons for reading.”

The Hon Andrew Yao Cho-fai, Chairman of the Council of Lingnan University, has been invited to participate in a series of book recommendation videos, where he shares his reflections on reading, introduces his own book Ironman, and expresses his views on the Hong Kong SAR’s reading culture.

Mr Yao began by with reading with his children

Mr Yao has three children, and when they were young, he read to them regularly so they would acquire the habit. They read a wide range of books in Chinese and English, including fiction, history, and geography, and even game guides. What mattered most to him was arousing their interest.

He believes that reading should not be seen as a chore, but rather as an enjoyable and exploratory activity. Forcing children to read books thought of as useful may undermine their pleasure in reading.

Mr Yao said “To this day, I have maintained a regular reading habit. In addition to buying books, I also borrow them from the Legislative Council Library. People often ask how I manage to find time to read despite my busy schedule, and my answer is simple: time is what you make of it. I read while commuting, before meetings, and for half an hour before going to bed. Reading does not have to be a grand undertaking; what matters most is consistency.”

Writing Ironman: Not about success, but about hitting rock bottom

Asked about his book Ironman, Mr Yao said “Many people know that I have published a book, and they often ask whether I wrote it to show other people how to succeed. My answer is no - I wrote about how I hit rock bottom.

“Once when I was running a factory on the Mainland, it was robbed. I chased after the robbers but they caught me and beat me up. Then all the machinery in the factory was stolen overnight. Yes - everything was gone in a single night. At that moment, standing in the empty factory, I felt lost and deeply distressed, and asked myself why this had happened. Was I not good enough?”

The book also describes the transformation of his family business, fluctuations in the technology stock market, and the pressures and challenges of entrepreneurship. Mr Yao explained “Every story is true, and every setback came at a cost. I share these experiences not to seek sympathy, but in the hope that young people may avoid unnecessary detours. Many failures are preventable if one can only learn from other people’s experiences.”

He added that his subsequent involvement in youth development and exchange initiatives helped him rediscover a sense of purpose in life. Rather than offering a single formula for success, the book conveys ways of thinking shaped by lived experience. Mr Yao highlighted two principles that have influenced him profoundly:

“Do every small task well, and together they form something great.”

“Without dedicating 10,000 hours to something, true success is unlikely.”

These beliefs have sustained him during his most challenging times, and he hopes that Ironman will offer strength to readers facing difficulties or uncertainty - not by encouraging them to change, but by helping them rediscover their original aspirations.

Promoting a reading culture in Hong Kong

Mr Yao also emphasised that reading is not merely personal, and that China’s 15th Five-Year Plan addresses the need to “stimulate cultural creativity and innovation across society”, explicitly calling for efforts to “encourage nationwide reading initiatives and promote the development of a reading-orientated society.”

As part of the nation, Hong Kong should align with this strategy by endeavouring to urge young people and the wider community to read, so that literacy permeates every neighbourhood.

He suggests improving libraries by expanding their range of interesting and well-written new books, and by extending opening hours through smart technologies, enabling the public to choose a book at any time.

As far as e-books are concerned, Mr Yao observed that public library expenditure on e-resources increased from HK$6 million in 2020/21 to HK$12.9 million in 2024/25, yet usage declined. Possible reasons for this include the inconvenient fragmentation of borrowing platforms and the need to use multiple applications, so he suggests that the Government should consider integrating these platforms to improve accessibility.

Mr Yao also recommends increasing library functions in primary and secondary schools, and organising more activities such as book-sharing and bookcrossing. Reading, he said, becomes more enjoyable when it leads to discussion and a shared understanding.

A city immersed in reading

This year’s Hong Kong Reading+ features three thematic reading journeys and five exhibition zones, catering to families, students, working professionals, and retirees alike.

Mr Yao concluded “I hope that Hong Kong will not confine its reading to occasions such as Reading Day, Reading Week, or the annual Book Fair, but that reading becomes an integral part of everyday life, where everyone reads and every corner of the city is filled with the joy of books. I warmly invite you to join us with your family and friends from 18 to 26 April at New Town Plaza Phase I in Sha Tin - see you there.”