Last month, Song gave a lecture on the book at the International School of Tongji University in Shanghai, presenting an overview of the 16 chapters, each of which covered five books associated with a specific location.

"Professor Damrosch tried to avoid books that are either famous or popular with contemporary readers to present a collection of stories from all over the world."

Starting with Verne's Around the World in Eighty Days, Damrosch took readers to London, listing books such as Virginia Woolf's Mrs Dalloway and Arnold Bennett's Riceyman Steps, then to destinations like Krakow in Poland and Kolkata in India, as well as Beijing and Shanghai, where he covered novels old and new, from Wu Cheng'en's Journey to the West to Nobel laureate Mo Yan's Life and Death Are Wearing Me Out.

At the launch of the Chinese edition of Around the World in 80 Books on April 23, which was World Book Day, Professor Yan Feng of Fudan University said that Damrosch had drawn a nautical map for readers voyaging across the ocean of literature. "It encourages everyone to embark on their own literary adventure. Today, in a world full of strife, isolation and barriers, literature, which seems virtual and intangible, offers an initiative to rebuild connections between people."

According to Song, the Chinese edition has sold more than 20,000 copies since it came out in April. Next month, it will be a highlight of the 20th Shanghai Book Fair. The Shanghai Translation Publishing House plans to host a pavilion featuring a selection of 80 new titles from all over the world.

zhangkun@chinadaily.com.cn