Americans show growing interests in books from, about China

American readers have shown growing interests in books from China and about China, said publishers attending the BookExpo America (BEA) 2015 on Friday.

"We've already inked more than 200 copyright deals at this expo, the highest level for us ever," Zhu Lingyun, vice director of the publishing department of Shanghai Century Publishing Group, told Xinhua as the three-day expo closed on Friday in New York.

The total amount of copyrights sold by Chinese publishers in the BEA 2015 reached 1,328, showed official data.

"With the impressive growth of the Chinese economy and the increasing culture exchanges between the two countries, American readers are much more eager to learn about China than before," Zhu added.

Zhu's remarks were echoed by Liu Qinqiu, manager of the international business development department of China's Jiangsu (Province) Phoenix Publishing and Media Corporation Limited.

According to Liu, Phoenix sealed more than 50 copyright deals at the expo, a satisfactory harvest for a new comer to the BEA, the largest annual book trade fair in North America.

"Apart from books about traditional Chinese culture, children's books from China have also been well accepted by American readers in recent years," Liu said.

Publishers attributed the booming of Chinese children books in the U.S. market mainly to two factors: worldwide rising demand for children's books and growth in the number of Chinese living in the U.S.

The Tuttle Publishing Company, a U.S. publisher and seller of books rooted in Asian cultures, languages and history, is among leading global publishers who have been boosting sales of China-themed books over the past few years.

"Out of the 1,500 titles we inked at the expo, about 250 are about china," Steve Jadick, sales and rights manager of the company, told Xinhua.

"China has become such a great power in the world that everybody is interested in what it's going to say next," Jadick said.

Publishers said China's economy and technology developments have emerged as major topics attracting American readers these years.

"Stories about successful Chinese technology companies such as Tencent, Alibaba and Xiaomi are fascinating to readers in the U.S.," said Stephen Horowitz, chief editor of the Royal Collins Publishing Group, a Canada-based publisher with global distributions to 180 countries.

"The founders of those companies remind Americans of people like Steve Jobs and Bill Gates. They love to read such stories," Horowitz said.

The BEA, which dates back to 1947 and was then known as the American Booksellers Association Convention and Trade Show, is usually held in a major U.S. city in late May or early June. It offers the largest selection of English-language themes and is also the largest gathering of booksellers, librarians, retailers and book industry professionals in North America.

China has been invited as a guest of honor for the BEA 2015's Global Market Forum program, which features three full days of education sessions, exhibitions and off-site cultural events. Endi