Bishan Bookstore in Anhui province opened in 2014 by Qian Xiaohua, who is best known for founding Librairie Avant-Garde in Nanjing. [PHOTO BY DIUDIU/HOU BOWEN/FOR CHINA DAILY]

Other popular products include postcards and notebooks that carry beautiful photos or paintings of the local landscape and architecture, and bags and other products created and produced by villagers.

Wang Shouchang, a villager who has been researching and compiling local historical and cultural material for years, has been recruited to tell the village's stories to visitors. His paintings are also popular among tourists.

In four years Bishan Bookstore has attracted hundreds of thousands of visitors to the village and the number of accommodation establishments has mushroomed, from two in 2014 to 33 now.