In the era of the “experience economy”, a large number of literary works have been adapted into films, television shows, and games, presented through audiovisual or interactive media. Reading is no longer the only way to engage with literary content. Faced with the impact of digital media, visualized information, and fragmented reading, we are slowly losing the capacity to imagine the “real text on real paper” as tangible forms and colors during literary reading. To address the dramatic changes in the reading audience and environment, how to create diverse reading experience for readers and help them rediscover the joy of reading is a problem that we need to deeply consider and attempt to solve. From the perspective of enhancing the reading experience, the designer launched a book design practice based on the classic science-fiction novel, Cloud Atlas.

Cloud Atlas consists of six seemingly independent yet intertwined stories, spanning different eras and regions: the South Pacific in1850, Zedelghem in 1931, California in 1975, Harel in the early 21 st century, the dystopian Neo Seoul, and Hawaii after the collapse of civilization. Each part also features distinct writing styles, from diary entries and letters to autobiographies and interviews. Inspired by the novel's complex narrative timeline and shifting writing styles, the designer constructs a reading system with varied rhythms and rich experiences on paper media. Readers can freely choose their reading paths, immerse themselves in reading contexts closely connected to the story text, and experience interactive methods beyond page-turning. They can also follow the designer's preset reading framework, guided by visual information to more easily perceive the novel's narrative structure, capture key clues in the plot, and reduce the difficulty of reading long texts to a certain extent, also enhances the reading experience and brings back the joy of reading.