Nguyen Anh Tuan – A journey of spreading knowledge to all rural areas.
When a friend heard I was looking for someone to write about for my "People of Nghe An Around the World" column, he messaged me: "Why don't you look for Tuan the bookworm?" The way he called me Tuan the bookworm piqued my curiosity and immediately endeared me to him, as I am also a book lover. But after meeting him, I realized his love for books was far greater than mine. He is the founder of the "House of Wisdom" and "Compassionate Bookcase" projects nationwide, spreading the love of books and knowledge to many people.
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Cherry Blossom /Technique:Hong ToaiSeptember 22, 2025
When a friend heard I was looking for someone to write about for my "People of Nghe An Around the World" column, he messaged me: "Why don't you look for Tuan the bookworm?" The way he called me Tuan the bookworm piqued my curiosity and immediately endeared me to him, as I am also a book lover. But after meeting him, I realized his love for books was far greater than mine. He is the founder of the "House of Wisdom" and "Compassionate Bookcase" projects nationwide, spreading the love of books and knowledge to many people.
Thanh Tien commune, formerly Thanh Chuong district, now Tam Dong commune, Nghe An province, was still a poor rural area about 40 years ago. When he told me about his childhood, he didn't mention the lack of rice or the craving for sweet potatoes, but instead said: "Back then, we were 'hungry' for books." There were so many things he wanted to know and explore about astronomy, science, history, art… but he didn't know where to find them or who to ask. The knowledge in those old textbooks didn't satisfy the eager young student.
Driven by a desire to explore new horizons of knowledge, Nguyen Anh Tuan went to the South to attend university and then started working. With his first earnings, he bought books. Sitting with us amidst the overflowing bookshelves of the Humanitarian Bookcase social enterprise in Ho Chi Minh City, he recounted:After graduating and earning some money, I started thinking about doing something, something I dreamed of 20 years ago. A place that had a library with thousands of books, teachers to teach me everything, and like-minded friends to learn from each other.”
With a touch of the eccentricity typical of Nghe An province, he was determined to realize his seemingly far-fetched dream. Initially, he used his own money to buy books and donate them to his old school, Thanh Tien Secondary School. When he had more, he continued to donate to other schools, agencies, and organizations he knew. In this way, the first "Compassionate Bookcases" gradually formed. But over time, he realized that working alone was too lonely, and the journey wouldn't last long. Therefore, he began talking to and persuading others to contribute.
I studied for my master's degree abroad. While I was there, I realized that my knowledge gained from reading was far inferior to that of my international peers. That's why when I met Mr. Tuan and the "Compassionate Book Shelf" program, I immediately liked it. I saw the development of a reading culture for children and Vietnamese people as something very valuable, and it perfectly aligned with my aspirations. So, I joined Tuan from the very beginning."
Nguyen Quoc Huy, a close associate of Tuan, shared:
Since the first bookshelves were donated in 2016, many more book-carrying trips have followed, bringing knowledge to many places across the country. The success of the "Compassionate Bookshelves" has motivated him to take another step closer to his dream. It's not simply a library, but a learning space where every question is answered, where knowledge and wisdom are integrated into life. The first "House of Wisdom" was established in 2018, right in his family's old house in Tam Dong commune. The first class was an English class for young children in the village. Recalling that class, Mr. Tuan is still very emotional.
In the first few classes, the children came in large numbers, about 50-60 of them. The teachers volunteered for free, from local teachers to teachers from Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi. Later, we connected with young foreign teachers. And the children loved it. Some of them had been troublemakers, but after a summer with the teachers, they changed completely. On the day of farewell, they went up the hill and picked a bouquet of purple flowers as a parting gift. When they got back and saw the door closed, thinking the teachers had left, they put the flowers on the lock and cried. The teachers took pictures of those moments and sent them to me, and I will never forget them.
Nguyen Anh Tuan
The success of the first model inspired the creation of many other "Houses of Wisdom" across the country. For example, the House of Wisdom in Thien Tan commune, formerly Vinh Cuu district (now Trang Dai ward, Dong Nai province), features fun English classes, a library with over 1,000 books, and a multi-purpose sports area that attracts many young people and residents. Another example is the House of Wisdom at Dong Hoa B Primary School, Dong Hoa ward, Ho Chi Minh City, where for over seven years, teachers have persistently cultivated reading habits among students by encouraging them to write reading journals and share their feelings about books. Regular group activities, games, and book-related gifts are organized, fostering a love of books and the beauty of knowledge in the children from a young age. The youngest intellectual center was launched in August 2025 at Dai Dinh Secondary School, Dai Dinh commune, Phu Tho province, with a library containing thousands of books, numerous clubs, free classes, and unlimited opportunities for interaction with leading experts from Vietnam and abroad.
After nearly 10 years, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan and his colleagues have built a widespread "House of Wisdom" ecosystem with thousands of members participating in its operation. Each locality has its own unique character. This could include language classes, soft skills training such as swimming, electrical safety, financial skills, and personal development… It could also be a platform for exchanging knowledge, skills, and experiences from experts both domestically and internationally in various fields. It could be a mini eco-hotel for teachers from distant areas to live and teach, or a miniature museum to preserve the local cultural and historical heritage… All are aimed at connecting and sharing knowledge with everyone.
To date, Mr. Nguyen Anh Tuan and his colleagues have built more than 30,000 bookshelves (with over 2 million books) in more than 3,300 schools and communities across all 34 provinces and cities of Vietnam and some provinces in Laos, along with 350 "Houses of Wisdom" - 350 completely free lifelong learning spaces in Vietnam and 5 other countries: Malaysia, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and the United States. In 2023, the Houses of Wisdom and the Compassionate Bookshelves were awarded the Literacy and Knowledge Dissemination Award by the Library of Congress, in the "Outstanding Practice" category.
Since our first meeting, Mr. Tuan and I have met many times. It's not because I frequently visit Ho Chi Minh City, but because he often returns to Nghe An. On his personal Facebook page, I see him in a new rural area every few days. He travels a lot, sometimes donating books, sometimes attending the launch of a "House of Wisdom." I recall Lu Xun's quote:There are no roads on the ground; roads are formed when people walk on them repeatedly."The journey of Mr. Tuan and his colleagues is similar; they keep going to create a path, so that more and more people can access the newest, best, and most refined sources of knowledge from humanity."
