The unique feature of the series is a combination of the adventure of reading with the interplay of games. The main characters, three friends Luk, Biggi and Patrick, are engaged in adventures and the reader participates. The interactive riddle-mystery stories have integrated young readers into the story as the fourth member of the tiger team. When a new 10-volume Tiger Team Special Edition was launched on December 20, 2004, it quickly sold out in bookstores. To meet market demand, the 10 books were reprinted four times over half a month, reaching an accumulated total of 1 million copies. After the sales of the first 10 days, the 10 books occupied every spot in the top 10 books chart for that month.

According to the first best-selling children's books' ranking of Beijing Open Book Market Consulting Center in 2005, two volumes of the Tiger Team series occupied first and third place.

Another 10-volume Tiger Team Special Edition was launched earlier this year in China, and was embraced with an even more enthusiastic market response.

"Apart from the content of the books, which satisfies children's appetites for scientific exploration, the success of Tiger Team lies in well-designed marketing strategies," said Chen Chunyue, Publisher and Editor-in-Chief of Zhejiang Juvenile and Children's Publishing House, which introduced the worldwide hit to China.

In recent years, the marketing schemes behind bestsellers like the Harry Potter series have become objects of study and discussion for the Chinese publishing industry. For a long time China's publishing industry was handicapped by insufficient distribution networks, which planted barriers to nationwide marketing campaigns. One reform, introduced by Zhejiang Juvenile and Children's Publishing House, was to rename its "distribution department" a "marketing department" so as to emphasize the strategic importance of marketing.

Chen said his publishing house has highlighted the suspense and interactivity of the story in its marketing and ensured that every book has a detective kit with gadgets that help to solve the questions and a decoder to check whether your answers are true or false.

The action-packed short stories proved mesmerizing to Chinese readers. "As the plots unfolded we went on expeditions with the protagonists while admiring the exotic scenery and customs. These are truly mind-opening experiences," said Tang Ping, a grade-three student in Beijing.

To cater for young readers, a new Tiger Team book always features more involved stories and more sophisticated mystery-solving tools.

"The fact that Tiger Team has been able to cast a spell on Chinese children is due to the series' well-planned content and design which accurately suits children's psyche," said Yuan Min, a senior editor with Beijing-based Writers Publishing House. Yuan is a master at understanding young people's psychological demands and had a sharp enough eye to realize the literary talent of Han Han, a high school student who had failed seven courses. Despite his failure in education, Han wrote the successful novel Sanchongmen, or Three Successive Gates, which has sold more than 1 million copies.

Reading for grades

Some parents and teachers have forbidden their children or students from reading Harry Potter, in the belief that reading them is no help to scoring higher examination grades. Under the high pressure of Chinese school and university entrance exams, parents have refused to yield on the stand that reading should be confined to educational books. In a recent reading survey of primary and secondary school students, more than 30 respondents said educational books were recommended to or forced on them by their parents.

The celebrated children's storywriter Qin Wenjun recited one unforgettable experience. After giving a speech in a high school Qin had one student burst into tears in front of her. The student said, "I was never told that reading could be so interesting. Teachers always told us that books unrelated to school courses are useless and we should only read books useful for achieving a higher score in exams."

Qin has met with some parents who showed gratitude to her. They said, "After reading your books my children have achieved a higher mark in writing." Hearing that, Qin felt pitiful that some parents only focus on the direct educational value of reading while ignoring its other joys.

"This 'pragmatic' reading guideline could affect children's reading habits. The excessive emphasis on higher scores from teachers and parents tends to kill original ideas in children's hearts. Nurturing children under these circumstances, we cannot expect them to have a strong imagination or curiosity, " said the worried Qin.