Chinese author Ba Jin (center) visits Librairie le Phenix in Paris in 1979. The bookstore has hosted generations of Chinese writers over the past few decades. [Photo provided to China Daily]

In the years between 1960 and 1980, the China Books and Periodicals couldn't sell as many Chinese books as it wanted because of commercial problems with the US.

But the business kept going thanks to Noyes and a group of Chinese publishers.

The Librairie le Phenix in Paris was similar.

Regis Bergeron opened the store in 1965, a year after France established diplomatic ties with China. In 1959, when ties between China and the former Soviet Union broke down, Bergeron and three other French experts came to China to help the country become more self-sufficient.

But in 1980, right-wing activists in France burned down the bookstore and one of the staff members was severely injured.

The owners rebuilt on the original site and expanded the space from 50 square meters to 200 square meters as it is today.

The Librairie le Phenix is known to Chinese writers as a gateway to the world. And for many French readers, it gives them their first glimpses of China.

Founded by Pan Lihui, a Cambodian of Chinese origin, in 1976, the Librairie You Feng in Paris has become an important place for foreigners who read about Chinese culture.