Old book street revived in Japan

Many international tourists come to Hankyu Used Book Town to “hunt for cultural treasures”. Photo: NIKKEI ASIA

Hidden among the hustle and bustle of bustling Osaka, there is a "used book street" that the Japanese call Hankyu Used Book Town, where dozens of small bookstores specialize in selling rare books, old comics, old magazines and especially art publications such as ukiyo-e paintings...

According to Nikkei Asia, this street near the bustling Umeda district is attracting both domestic and international tourists with its rustic wooden bookshelves filled with books printed decades ago, next to ukiyo-e paintings, ancient maps, or handmade publications preserved with respect by many generations. Domestic tourists, especially young people, come to the book street to find a feeling of “analog nostalgia” in the midst of digital life. Holding an old book in your hand, smelling the yellowed paper…, becomes a different experience - a “spiritual medicine” that is hard to replace.

For many foreign visitors, this is a place to hunt for cultural treasures. They patiently spend hours and hours, sometimes all day, looking for a book printed in the 1960s, a map of Japan from the Meiji period, or even a woodblock print reproduction of an old ukiyo-e. These items are not just mere objects, but also contain memories and the unique artistic imprint of Japan. In particular, prints and small handicrafts are the “medicine” that helps shop owners maintain their shops. A reasonably priced ukiyo-e can be more attractive to Western visitors than a difficult Japanese novel. This approach shows flexibility, preserving tradition while adapting to the flow of modernity.

For Osaka, the old book street is both a testament to memory and a soft strategy to connect the city with international friends through reading culture. Along the street, rustic wooden bookshelves are filled with books printed decades ago, next to ukiyo-e paintings, ancient maps, or handmade publications preserved with respect by many generations. What makes the street special is not only the value of each book, but also its own atmosphere.

According to The Japan Times, Osaka's old book street is becoming a familiar stop for both collectors, researchers and adventurous tourists. The shops, though small, still maintain their operations by both preserving old values and experimenting with unique products such as ukiyo-e woodblock prints or rare copies, breathing new life into the traditional profession.

From a tourism perspective, these streets have become cultural highlights on the map of Japanese experiences. Not only Osaka quietly maintains its ancient atmosphere, the trend of restoring and promoting old book streets also appears in Jimbocho Street in Tokyo - known as the "book sanctuary" of Japan, gathering hundreds of old bookstores of all genres, or Teramachi-dori Street in Kyoto with a quiet space, traditional images connected with the present.

This reflects the rise of a cultural trend of returning to old, handmade, traditional objects…, as a natural reaction to the hustle and bustle of the digital age. Here, slowness, materiality, the feeling of being held… become a precious experience. And that is why Osaka’s old book street is reviving thanks to its quiet and enduring vitality.

HAPPINESS

Source: https://www.sggp.org.vn/pho-sach-cu-hoi-sinh-o-nhat-ban-post812929.html