Welcoming people to Huang-Huang
Accustomed to making decisions through a process of elimination, Susu selected as the governing principle of the bookstore that it could not cause her to lose her freedom. Secondly, she didn’t want her own personality to overwhelm the bookshop. Consequently, an unstated modus operandi became, “The bookstore can exist without me.” Once she had decided on the location, she still hadn’t yet decided on the opening date. “There was no ribbon cutting ceremony to announce its opening,” she says. “When the first customer wandered in, the store was open.”
Like its opening, the naming of the store was also serendipitous in nature. It’s named after Huang-Huang, a stray cat with an injured ear that a friend brought in one day. Inspired by seeing the cat sway as it walked, Susu named it with the Chinese word that means “swaying.” Moreover, since the character huang (晃) is composed of the character for day, ri (日) and the character for light, guang (光), it’s well suited for warm, bright and sunny Taitung. So she named the store Huang-Huang, which, as it happens, also means “to hang out.”
With books, customers and a name, Susu had a sudden inspiration: If she was letting travelers stay for a fee, why not let them bring in books to exchange against their room charges? On the one hand it would solve the problem of acquiring books in Taitung, and on the other it would let travelers rid themselves of volumes that had been lying idle on their shelves at home, extending the books’ useful lives. Every book brought by the backpackers, moreover, was enriched by their own unique perspective and life history.
Huang-Huang’s model of exchanging books for a place to stay is unique in Taiwan and has helped spread the word about the Susu Guesthouse among travelers from Taiwan and overseas. For instance, among the books that some backpack travelers from Hong Kong brought was Under Umbrella, a book documenting the Umbrella Movement there.
Since the top floor in the bookstore has been converted into an exhibition and lecture space, author Hung Zhen-yu, the Japanese photographer Kotori Kawashima and other creative types have held talks that have attracted members of the local arts community. This sort of event was rare in Taitung when Susu first arrived seven years ago.
Not only has Huang-Huang bookstore become a must-stop for creative types visiting Taitung, some of the cultural activities it sponsors have even moved out from the store to be held nearby in the communities of Luye, Chishang or Guanshan. The recently completed Yeman (“barbarity”) Film Festival, a joint effort by Huang-Huang and other Taitung independent retailers, for instance, screened ten films aimed at awakening concern for animal protection.
Point to something in the store, be it a book on the shelves, a box of local sweets, or a postcard from a distant land, and Susu can tell a story about it. Because turning a profit is tough, she treasures these items brought by visitors, regarding them all as tokens of goodwill. Before our interview ended, Susu brought us to a local restaurant, Caise Guo (“colorful fruit”). Standing at the counter was the establishment’s sprightly septuagenarian proprietress, who had once taken the newly arrived Susu under her wing. Now, seven years later, Susu’s bookstore itself has become a Taitung fixture, welcoming travelers and local booklovers alike.
Taitung transplant Susu’s Huang-Huang used book store prompts serendipitous meetings of travelers and books. Stroll into the shop and you’ll find wonderful stories of people, languidly lovable kitties, original works of art, and a collection of secondhand books.
“Let’s go!” A traveler sets off from Huang-Huang with several days’ worth of happy memories. The next stage of his journey beckons.