By Charmaine Yu
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Hongkongers are likely to have already seen Steven Harrison Stratman’s videos of him exploring every library in the city on their Instagram feeds.
In his clips, Stratman – better known as @authorshstratman online – captures everyday scenes of libraries from Shau Kei Wan to Tiu Keng Leng, from children flipping through picture books to the architecture.
His narrated videos even document the journeys he takes to get there and explain the area’s history, as well as review the library itself.
It is a format that has netted him nearly 30,000 followers on Instagram. One video of the public library in Tin Shui Wai has 1.5 million views and more than 80,000 likes.
The 32-year-old from the US state of Ohio first visited Hong Kong in 2016 as an exchange student at Baptist University to study Chinese philosophy. He enjoyed his time so much that he decided to return to the city in 2019.
“I’ve been here ever since, and I’m exploring more and more every day,” he tells the Post.
Other than the Chinese subtitles provided by his wife, Stratman, now a tutor, is solely responsible for creating the videos. He usually edits 150 to 200 clips for each Instagram post, with the entire process taking six to 10 hours.
The library series began as an accident during a trip to the Hong Kong Central Library in Causeway Bay in November 2022.
“I took a shot of the tram coming by, and thought [of the library in the background], ‘Well, that looks pretty cool,’” he recalls. He later decided to edit and post a short video on the library on Instagram.
He has continued to grow his library series since, venturing from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon to the New Territories.
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A post shared by S.H. Stratman (@authorshstratman)
For Stratman, these videos feel like “a challenge to go outside and explore neighbourhoods that I’ve never been to” while documenting landmarks for the community.
But libraries are not just a collection space for books, he says; they also function as community hubs.
When comparing Hong Kong libraries to those in Ohio, he points out that “many of the libraries here are connected to sports centres or wet markets. These libraries feel like an extension of the neighbourhood, whereas in America, everything is more isolated.”
At first, Stratman assumed that most of the audience for his library series would be expats or tourists, but instead, many are locals. He adds that a lot of viewers are Hongkongers who have emigrated, and have reached out to him with heartfelt messages about the childhood libraries that they have not seen in years.
For those who have left the city, these videos are “like a time capsule”, and they instantly “draw [them] right back to that place”.
Stratman’s philosophy is to capture a moment in time in its sincerity. Libraries are a liminal space of childhood, and “they’re like a school – we spend a massive amount of our early years in these places”, he says.
“Once we leave, we never really think about them again – but it’s strange to come back to.”
For Stratman, the act of reading physical books is one filled with nostalgia. “I was lucky that my mother took education seriously. A lot of my childhood was surrounded by books.”
He has also been writing for as long as he can remember. “When I was 10 years old, I was writing The Lord of the Rings fanfiction,” he says. “Ever since I had a computer, really, I’ve spent my whole life typing things.”
His 2022 book, Blood Runs East, is a self-published novel inspired by horror, mystery and Hong Kong’s nighttime noir. Today, he is working on a new novel, 852, a romantic comedy that follows characters in their thirties trying to balance love and life in the city.
Earlier this month, he teamed up with the Changing Young Lives Foundation (CYLF), a Hong Kong-based charity serving underprivileged children. He will donate 50 per cent of the proceeds from Blood Runs East, which can be bought online. CYLF provides free education and talent development programmes for marginalised youth, including those with learning disabilities.
“Ever since I was a young kid, my grandmother always was very charitable, and she used to sponsor orphans overseas every month. My mother continued this, so it’s something I’ve always really felt very strongly about – charitable giving.”
Stratman chose CYLF for its family-based education. Apart from scholarships and academic support, the organisation also offers services to “teach the family how to teach their children at home”, designed for kids who cannot afford education centres after school.
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A post shared by S.H. Stratman (@authorshstratman)
Though the original plan was to host this initiative for a week, Stratman has vowed to continue donating his proceeds indefinitely.
“Children are like firecrackers. Sometimes, all it takes is a spark at the right time, and it can ignite a lifelong passion,” he says.
“Every child is equal, and every child deserves the same opportunities, despite their economic background. I believe this with all of my heart.”
