The book store Japan Center in Piccadilly London was my gateway to Japan 20 years ago. With no Internets at the time, Japanese book shops like the Japan Center were our only portal to Japan for Londoners.
Today, while the Internets enable us to get info on Japan easier, Japanese book shops are still vital for those of us who like the tangible stuff - not only books but other stuff like stationery and figures too.
Today we take a look at Kinokuniya in Los Angeles - a huge store filled to the brim with Japanese books imported from Japan and Japanese learning material too.
123 Astronaut E S Onizuka Street
Los Angeles, CA 90012
(213) 687-4480
[gmap=34.05099, -118.24205]
Kinokuniya now carry Moekana - the new way of learning Japanese! Thanks to you, Moekana has just entered yet another print run - we've sold tens of thousands of packs so far ><
Kinokuniya also have heath material - which was essential for a young lad growing up in an age without Internets back then.
Although similar magazines (regardless of 3D, 2D or plastic) in Malaysia get censored the brutal way.
Light novels good for Japanese study. We used to read a load of stuff from Hoshi Shinichi when studying Japanese in university.
2D health material too.
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A load of manga - manga with furigana helped a ton when learning Japanese. Furigana is hiragana displayed next to kanji.
A load of illustration books too. These are often called "Mook" which is a Japanese compound word which comes from "M-agazine" and "b-OOK" (Mook).
Carnival Phantasm girls so cute ><
Artwork collections by various sensei.
Many items are shrink wrapped but if you ask a member of staff, they will gladly open for you to take a look inside.
Figures up for grabs too - in exchange for money.
Nendoroid, Figma and more.
They also have English language books about Japan too.
English versions of manga.
A lot of angry looking men.
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Stationery section filled with cute stuff like these erasers.
I always bump into readers at Kinokuniya! This time its Tofuprod-san.
Checkout the mags catered for local Japanese folks - there are many ways to connect with the community.
What sort of Japanese book stores are there in your neck of the woods (if any)?
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