The Bookworm, hailed as one of the "world's greatest bookshops" by travel publisher Lonely Planet, is going to close in Beijing due to its failure to get a lease extension amid ongoing cleanup of illegal buildings.

"It is with heavy hearts that we are forced to announce the impending closure of The Bookworm Beijing..." the bookshop announced on its official WeChat account. "While we attempt to reorganize and find a new location, we wish to say what an honor and a pleasure it has been to have played a small part in fostering cultural exchange, promoting literature and an appreciation of the arts during an incredibly-exciting era in Beijing, and indeed for China as a whole."

Read more: The owner of the Bookworm tells you how a small book club in Beijing has developed into a major event across the country

The closure of the bookshop prompted a flood of reaction on social media as many shared their warm stories and emotional moments with The Bookworm, and recommended possible future locations for the shop, hoping it can reopen as soon as possible.

Duan Linlin, a book lover, came by the shop the night of the announced pending closure, and took many pictures for future memory.

"I planned to go to Taofen Bookstore, but was attracted by the warm light inside The Bookworm when I passed by, so I walked inside. It was just unexpected. There was an ongoing mini clarinet concert, and I bought a ticket," Duan told CGTN.

Physical bookshops are struggling

At a time when most independent bookshops around the world have struggled due to the advent of e-books and online retailing, The Bookworm has survived in the most bustling corner of Beijing: Sanlitun. Like many brick-and-mortar bookstores, selling books is barely enough to support the shop. It's the activities, coffee and food that has kept it running.

"The Bookworm is not just a bookshop, but a home away home for many. The shop is the first one in Beijing to put reading, drinking and eating together. When the store was first established in 2005, there were no food and drink services, and one day, our boss said, 'What if I'm hungry when I'm reading?' So we began to provide food and coffee," Wang Gang, the bookshop manager, told CGTN.

Beyond the coffee, comfy couches, rooftop terrace and nostalgic retro-style fitment, the success of the bookshop lies in its creative approach: a year-round event program, including readings, discussions, theater, comedy, live music and screenings.

"Our patrons and friends love to hold activities here. Besides the literature activities, we've also had other types of activities, like live music. There is a concert tonight in the Forbidden City Concert Hall by Les Violins du Roy. And they made their rehearsal and debut in our bookshop last night after the Canadian Embassy in China contacted us," Wang said.

The bibliophile owner of this lending library and bookshop also arranges an annual Bookworm International Literary Festival, which invites both local and international authors to discuss a wide range of topics and issues. About 4,000 authors have spoken in the bookshop, including 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature winner, Mo Yan, 2009 American National Book Award winner, Colum McCann and Israeli author David Grossman.

Over the years, the bookshop, with a collection of some 15,000 books, including 8,000 English language books and magazines, has established a mutual bond with patrons and customers.

Birthplace of China's early stand-up comedy

As an exchange of Western and Chinese cultures, The Bookworm is encouraging people to be closer, to listen to each other and to better understand each other through literature, music, movies, talk shows and discussions.

"As the birthplace of the Humor Section Comedy Club, I have a lot of affection for The Bookworm. In the past six years, I've witnessed more and more Chinese visiting this bookshop and the atmosphere here is getting better and better," Tony Chou, a bilingual stand-up comedian, told CGTN.

The bookshop is the birthplace of popular offline talk show Humor Section Comedy Club, which was founded by Chou and Irish comedian Des Bishop in 2014. Chou said The Bookworm was the first place to host the stand-up talk show and can even be considered the birthplace of "China's high-quality stand-up comedy".

"The owner of the bookshop, Peter, and Des Bishop are friends, so we held three English stand-up talk shows in The Bookworm when Peter intended to introduce this in his bookshop. At that time, few people came and most visitors were expats. But things changed when we began to perform the show in Chinese. And more and more Chinese are coming by," Chou said.

The bookshop was initially established by Peter Goff, a journalist from Dublin, who worked for various newspapers and moved to Hong Kong in 2000. Inspired by the frenetic change of the Chinese mainland, he moved to Beijing soon after and witnessed the rapid development of China on every level and its emergence as a global country with massive impact.

"The place is very Western and you know, it's built by Irish, and mostly visited by expats. But with its development, the place has been more and more international. It's a place for expats to learn about China and for Chinese to watch the West," Chou said, adding that one time, when he went to Chicago to perform, he was recognized by an American who frequented the bookshop.

And for Duan, she was impressed by the bookshop's atmosphere after witnessing Chinese and foreign students discussing Chinese history in Mandarin.

"It's really touching. In such a bustling city, there are foreign people who are interested in Chinese history," Duan said. There was a debate about the relative merits of the Ming-vs.-Qing dynasties (1368-1911) in the bookshop that night.

The Bookworm is the epitome of a global village, and its closure is a sign of Beijing's gentrification and reconstruction. Its neighborhood has seen waves of these, with many buildings being torn down and rebuilt. Wang told CGTN with regret that it may cost them at least 1 million yuan to renovate and decorate the next place, and it's hard to make it with the same feeling as what it is. Talking about Tony's comedy club, Wang said they will stick together. "When we move, they move."

"I hope they can find the next place as soon as possible. And while it's closed, we will play our shows in different places. But we will be together again," Chou said.