【推荐1】All her life, Carole-Ann Warburton kept a little hope shining at the back of her mind. Her dream was to work in a bookshop.

Warburton has always loved books. As a child, any spare sixpence went on Enid Blyton’s Mary Mouse. Every Saturday morning, she and her parents would “do a gentle shop, then go to the library   in Ashby-de-la-Zouch.   However   many   books   we   got   out,   we   read.” At   university   in Cambridge, she began to buy books—a habit that, in adult life, resulted in a large collection.

In 2010, she retired after having worked for 40 years in an administrative post. She sold her house, bought a shop and, a few weeks after her 65th birthday, The Book Rest opened. Warburton had   8,000   to   9,000   books   with   which   to   fill   it.   But   although   she   dreamed   of working   in   a bookshop,   she   hadn’t   thought   of selling   her   own   books.   “That   took   a   bit   of psychological talking-to,” she says.

Her first sale was hard. “It feels, when a special book goes out, as if some little part of me has been taken away. And then I make common sense come back to me and say: ‘Let someone else learn from it. ’ It’s a growing up, if you like, an acceptance.”

This year, The Book Rest celebrates its 12th   anniversary. While the shop makes neither profit nor loss, it brings other rewards, including friendship. “There are lots of people who stick their head round the door and say: ‘Are you all right, Carole-Ann?’”

If the days are quiet, no matter. “I am so happy standing here in the middle of a pile of books. I can walk around the shop, pick up a book and sit down and read it. I would like to keep doing this until I no longer can. It’s a wonderful feeling. ”

So while Warburton’s dream came true, what about those of others? “All the dreams are in the books,” she says. “They are all there waiting to be picked up.”

【推荐3】Born in Ryazan, Russia, the hometown of Russian poet Sergei Yesenin, Anastasia Podareva seems to be destined for a similar career.

Podareva, 28, has loved poetry since she was a girl, when her father would introduce her to works by great Russian poets such as Alexander Pushkin and, of course, Yesenin. Growing up, she wrote many poems in both Russian and English. After she came to China to study in 2013, the world of Chinese poetry opened up before her.

She soon gave herself a poetic Chinese name, Tang Xilan, with “tang” referring to the Tang Dynasty (618-907), when Chinese poetry entered a golden age, and both “xi” and “lan” are characters taken from The Book of Songs, the earliest collection of Chinese poetry. Her name means an orchid (兰花) that blooms in the morning.

“One thing that strikes me in reading and writing Chinese poetry is the power of the language-it’s melodious (悦耳的) and rhythmic,” says Podareva in My China Surprise, a video series produced by 21^st Century.

Over the past decade, Podareva has won awards in multiple poetry writing competitions, published her own Chinese poetry collections, and participated in Chinese Poetry Conference, one of the leading poetry-themed TV programs in China. On top of that, her most unforgettable memory is that one of her poems was turned into a song. And even better: She sang it herself. The poem, titled If, was written in early of 2020 at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.

After witnessing China’s unity as it faced the pandemic, Podareva felt as one with the Chinese people. “I wanted to create something positive to help inspire and encourage people in times of difficulty,” she says. “Some people may praise China in a very straightforward way, but I prefer to express my feelings about the country through different styles of poems.”

【推荐3】Mary had struggled to find the right words to convey her thoughts and feelings ever since she was a child. She was often told that she was “too quiet” or “too shy”, and as she grew older, she became increasingly self-conscious about her inability to articulate herself. It wasn’t that she didn’t have anything to say—far from it. Mary’s mind was constantly racing with ideas and observations, but no matter how hard she tried, she just couldn’t seem to get the words out.

“Mary, I need to talk to you,” Mr. Thompson, the boss of Mary’s new company, said one day, his voice serious. Mary’s heart sank. “Don’t worry,” Mr. Thompson said, noticing Mary’s panic. “It’s not that kind of conversation. I just wanted to talk to you about something that’s been on my mind lately.”

He paused for a moment, collecting his thoughts. “I’ve noticed that you’ve been struggling a bit lately. It seems like you’re having a tough time communicating with customers. I hear that you’re proficient at writing. So why not join our Advertising Department? Besides, I have another suggestion…”

Mary kept nodding, unable to find the words to express her gratitude.

Following Mr. Thompson’s suggestion, Mary joined a writing competition. She had always been a talented writer, and she knew that she had the potential to create something truly special. So she set to work, pouring her heart and soul into her essay. The words started flowing, and Mary found herself writing with a newfound sense of clarity and purpose.

The judges of the competition were amazed by Mary’s essay, and they selected it as the winner. Mary was thrilled, and she was grateful to have finally found the right way to do a good job.