The Chinese community is one of many ethnic communities in Edmonton. The learning and speaking of the Chinese language is prominent around the world, and its popularity in Edmonton is evidenced by the Chinese sections in public and specialized libraries. The children of Chinese families are often enrolled in Chinese school, and many places hold proficiency exams for those who wish to pursue the language even further. Yet, Chinese is not the dominate language in Edmonton. Chinese reading material is not as accessible or available as material written in English, so researching these communities requires some creativity and patience.

Investigating ethnic reading practices has its challenges. It is difficult to define "popular print," especially in relation to an "ethnic community," which itself is open to interpretation. To confine my research within reasonable boundaries, I define "the Chinese community" as anyone who identifies as Chinese and who is able to or is learning to read and write Chinese.

Prior to starting this research, I believed that "popular" texts included those being turned into movies and "Heather's Picks" at Chapters. Growing up in a Chinese community myself, I also made assumptions about reading practices based on my own observations and experience. For example, I thought that newcomers are the main demographic who access Chinese reading material, as I hardly see my parents read a book these days.

Thankfully, my research helped me clear up these assumptions. Chinese might not be the dominant language in Edmonton, but there are numerous places where one can get Chinese reading material. The places I visited for this narrative include Edmonton Public Libraries, the University of Alberta, The Confucius Institute in Edmonton, The Edmonton China town Library, as well as everyday places such as supermarkets, corner shops, and restaurants. Much of the research is empirical; the first and foremost goal is to get first-hand observations of reading practices in the Chinese community. Background research was done to find contacts, then interviews were set-up with interviewees via email. I also relied on digital research, including Google forms and chat functions on library webpages to help supplement my research when I didn't get the information I needed during interviews.

The scope of this investigation might be limited, but my research includes the analysis of the materials at specialized libraries, an exploration of the multicultural center, and interviews with librarians and readers. Materials from a variety of genres and forums--anything from fiction novels to practical literature on legal rights and language instruction--are considered. This investigation also serves as inspiration for future research on other ethnic communities in the city, where reading practices can play a part in the further understanding of Edmonton's print culture.

• Everyday Reading in Chinese
• Periodicals and More at Asia Books
• Chinese Print at Stanley A. Milner Library
• Confucius Institute
• China Town Library
• Reading in Chinese

Although I was able to come up with several conclusions about reading practices in the Chinese community, I couldn't find many concrete patterns. After visiting a handful of locations and analyzing the material, I realized that individual preferences play an enormous role in determining what is read. Each location serves a different purpose for different readers, and finding one single place that houses all the genres and topics is rare.

A few conclusions can be reached: newcomers are only part of the demographic reading Chinese texts, and they are certainly not the majority. Newspapers and magazines are quite popular, but independent book chains are not. Younger readers are likely to read online novels, while parents want their children to re-connect with their culture through print reading and writing.

One of the challenges of researching this ethnic communities is defining the community. A librarian who responded to my questions via a Google forum reminded me that I can't think of the Chinese community as a "homogeneous one." She prompted me to consider questions such as "Do you count folks who are illiterate, or illiterate in Chinese?" and "Do you mean people who identify as Chinese, or people who read in the Chinese language?" Answering questions like these produces new angles for future research. Furthermore, other avenues for research include exploring religious texts in Chinese churches and temples, community centers, associations, and interviewing Chinese families to analyze how reading practices have transformed over generations.

Reading practices are highly versatile. If the research in this community is continued, I cannot guarantee that the outcomes will be the same. Defining the community in different ways will yield different conclusions, and this will be true for every ethnic community. The research done on this topic might never be completely finished, but hopefully it provides a guideline for the initiation of investigation into the reading practices of this and other ethnic communities in Edmonton.

Last Updated: Dec 22, 2016

The Chinese community is one of many ethnic communities in Edmonton. The learning and speaking of the Chinese language is...