This article investigates China's middle school and secondary school teacher expectations of student book use as an aspect of learning environments. A questionnaire was used to probe the following teacher expectations: physical accessibility of books, homework, mastery of texts and types of extra-curricular reading materials. Results showed China's teachers believed in mastering exemplary texts and the moral value of reading materials. Homework was viewed as a means to enhance student learning. The findings of the article can help educators understand better the learning environments of Chinese students and can offer a critical comparison of learning environments across cultures. (Contains 6 tables and 3 notes.)