The 1840-2019 National Memory Public-benefit Exhibition kicked off on September 24 in Beiwang Bookstore. The exhibition demonstrates the development of China through historical books and images. Many readers shown bringing their children to this "patriotism educational base" . [Photo by Xia Lianghong]

Located in an old factory building at the intersection of Changjiang Road and Dongjiang Road in East District, Beiwang Bookstore is the first 24-hour public-benefit bookstore in Zhongshan. It was founded in January last year by Jie, a "post-95" young man who likes historical literature.

"The public-benefit exhibition is primarily held to celebrate the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. This way, more people will be able to understand the history of our nation and feel its splendor," said Jie, adding that he prepared the exhibition along with his high school desk-mate for more than two months. They have collected and made available history books to the public free of charge.

Nearly 700 historical books recording the historical events from 1840 to 2019 are neatly arranged in the special history area and the National Day public exhibition area in Beiwang Bookstore, making a sharp contrast between the old China and the new China.

In addition to history books, the exhibition also sorts out historical events since 1840, such as the Opium War, the Sino-Japanese War, the founding of new China as well as reform and opening-up, based on audio-visual materials, pictures, cultural relics and text.