| Abstract | As Beijing was showing off its efficient modernization by knocking down its Wangfujing Bookstore to make way for the controversial Oreintal Plaza project, many people saw it simply as an inevitable trend. Municipal officials and laymen described the closure of the largest state-owned bookstore as a necessary move in adapting to the emerging socialist market. It is taken for granted that downtown bookstores are a waste of space and, sooner or later, will all be "elbowed out of the hustle and bustle," as the official China Daily put it. |
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