When distance matters little

[Photo provided to China Daily]

The first film's commercial success has not only sparked a boom in similar-genre Chinese films in recent years, it has also lured a number of affluent Chinese to purchase houses in Seattle, according to media reports.

Many directors avoid making films similar to the ones they've previously made, and Xue likewise has resisted picking up her new film's plot from where the last one ends.

While in the first film, a pregnant woman traveling from Beijing to Seattle falls in love with a divorced father, the sequel tells the tale of a casino worker in Macao and a property agent in Los Angeles.

Herein lies the connection with the book 84, Charing Cross Road.

The sequel's main characters establish a correspondence. The two experience many ups and downs in their respective lives and gain courage from the letters they write to each other.

Unlike many romance dramas that let their protagonists meet early in the movie, Book of Love makes them meet toward the end.

"The tale is not only about love but also about the destinations, family connections and the struggles of elderly Chinese immigrants to find cultural familiarity abroad," Xue tells China Daily.

The director recently appeared for an event to promote the film at Beijing's Tsinghua University.