China's Top Ten Unique Novel Libraries (Two Volumes in Total)

Throughout the thousands of years of Chinese book collection history, once any book becomes an orphan, it will inevitably be shelved in a high cabinet and thousands of miles away from the general public. But precisely among these few unique copies, there are many hidden connotations that make people "thirsty for solitude." Orphaned copies began in the Song Dynasty, when papermaking and printing began to be widely used. A large number of Chinese classics were reprinted and published in the Song Dynasty. A large number of bound books with special personnel collation appeared. Time, war, insect infestation, mildew, etc. Have created orphaned copies. What is an orphan novel? If there is only this one copy of the book in the domestic collection and there is no record of it in any other collection, it will be called a domestic solitary copy. Only the only complete copy existing at home and abroad can be called an solitary copy. Therefore, the most important thing to determine the original copy is the basis. The "Encyclopedia of Ancient Chinese Novels", "Novel Bookstore Record", "General Catalog of Chinese Popular Novels", "Encyclopedia of Chinese Popular Novels" and "Chinese Orphaned Books", which have a relatively large and comprehensive collection, Japan's Hidetaka Otsuka's "Supplementary Catalog of Chinese Popular Novels" and "Chinese Orphaned Books" are the basis for us to determine the original copy. It is precisely because of the high edition value, reading value, research value and collection value of orphan books that we have selected ten of the most valuable ones among the many orphan books to compile the "China's Top Ten Orphan Novel Library" for the benefit of readers.