In the department of English in China, it should go without doubt that the courses of literary reading ought to be the backbone of all the courses offered, but the fact is that over the past years the stress on literary reading has been on the decline. As a result, it is a familiar phenomenon that quite a few students of English major at many universities in China spend little time reading book-length English literary works. That students in the department of English are described as being poor at academic performance and critical thinking may have much to do with this phenomenon. Facing this scenario, the department of English at East China Normal University has started a reform program to change the situation. This essay makes an attempt to introduce a series of courses of literary reading offered in the reform focusing on the achievements and problems as well. It is hoped that the emphasis on the teaching of literary reading may help find a way out for the department of English for some Chinese universities.