One of the things my grandmother and I have in common is that we both love to read.  Although the language each of us reads in primarily is different—my grandmother is Japanese and speaks no English, my own Japanese has certain gaps in it—at the heart of it, we both love stories.  My grandmother will read just about anything, from novels recommended by my aunt, to manga about pirates, to crime and suspense stories.  In Japanese, I tend to stick to manga, mostly because there are so many pictures. Not only do the pictures help enormously with comprehension, they also make reading more enjoyable and less frustrating for a painstakingly slow reader like me.

Image credit: genjipress.com

So it was a perfect idea for the both of us to check out some of English-Japanese bookstores in Manhattan.  We started at Book-Off, on 45^th Street.  Book-Off is a used bookstore, and customers can sell back books here as well.  The main floor contains English books, and although the selection isn’t endless—particularly being a medium-sized used bookstore—there is still a substantial amount of books in various categories.  There are also plenty of shelves that carry books for only a dollar!  This floor also has used CDs, primarily J-Pop and K-Pop, for any enthusiasts that are looking for a deal.

The basement floor mainly carries manga, as well as some instructional books.  There are both manga in English and Japanese, with English copies generally running for about six or seven dollars a volume. Price depends fairly heavily on the series, and this is especially apparent with the Japanese volumes.  Again, there are several shelves of books that are only a dollar, some series running for three, but the more popular series or the newer volumes cost about five or six dollars a volume.  I was however, able to find the first few volumes of a series I’d been meaning to start on the dollar shelves, and it’s finds like this that make Book-Off worth a visit.  The second floor carries Japanese novels, which I don’t know a lot about personally, but my grandmother seemed pleased with the selection!

Image credit: pwpbooks.blogspot.com

Books in hand, my grandmother and I then headed towards Kinokuniya Bookstore, which is located by Bryant Park.  Although a little more expensive, Kinokuniya has a generally wider selection than Book-Off.  The main floor and basement carry novels, textbooks, and other similar books, both in English and Japanese. Kinokuniya also sells Japanese stationary, T-shirts, figurines and other knick-knacks, many of which make great gifts for those who are interested in Japanese culture.  The second floor of Kinokuniya carries manga and anime, and the selection in both languages is impressive.  There is also a café facing the window on this floor that sells lunch foods and desserts.  The café is great, but on the small side, and quickly becomes crowded around lunch time.  My grandmother and I were there at around 4:30, though, and were able to find a table easily; I’d definitely recommend going at an hour between meals.  At times like this it’s totally acceptable to take your time with a book, which is part of what makes it so enjoyable.  Although it’s the great deals at Book-Off that make it one of my favorite bookstores, the café, the selection, and the other fun items at Kinokuniya make it definitely worth a look as well!

Anais DiCroce

My personal blog can be found here.

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