ON BOOK OFF

In my last post I mentioned Kinokuniya which is a great place to find Japanese art books, magazines, and stationary. But right near-by is the holy grail of used Japanese books and manga - Book Off. Books can be found in English and Japanese for dirt cheap - about $1 to $5. There is apparently a strange shame in Japan for purchasing used or old books - as documented in this NY times article. However, there's no shame in the U.S. for folks who love to dig for the bizarre and fascinating. Like this reader, who discovered Osamu Tezuka's (best known for Astro Boy) comic version of Crime and Punishment.