This fall, there are many events and festivals being held all over Tokyo. Most of them are accompanied by the phrase “for the first time in three years,” which reminds us of the many things we have had to endure over the past three years because of this.
Yes, “Used book festival 2022 in Kanda” was held for the first time in three years. I thought myself must go to the event at the end of October, with a little bit ulterior motive to find a bargain on the first day of the festival.
The camera I took out was the LUMIX GF10, which is not a pain to hold when I “might take a photo along the way”.
Small and lightweight GF10 is convenient for carrying around, but it is also a weakness that makes it difficult to compose a composition for a snapshot for me, middle-aged and elderly people with deteriorating eyesight. In the photo above, it would have been better if I could have captured the feet of the man walking away to the right, one step further down in the angle of view. It would have been better to include the lantern at the top or not include it at all….
Well, let me not worry about the little things.
I was just in the neighborhood where the officials were cutting the ribbon for the start of the festival. I wondered what was so eye-catching about this kind of ceremony, so I became one of the onlookers and approached the event, but as you can see, only the backs of the old men’s heads were visible.
Then I understood that a crowd of people came to see the ribbon cutting guest, well known Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike. Unfortunately, even after careful searching, this photo does not capture even a shadow of her.
I was able to spend a couple of hours at the festival. It was crowded even on a weekday morning, with many wagons set up at each storefront and in the back alleys.
As is typical of Kanda Jimbo-cho, which has deep pockets, there are books in a wide variety of genres. I couldn’t possibly look at all of them, so I’ll just take a snapshot of the shelves that I peeked at with some care.
I think it’s a railfan related shelf. I was impressed that the person next to me quickly picked up one of the many “monthly timetables” books without hesitation and started to check the contents. I wonder what kind of special contents in it.
Catalogs of art and photo exhibitions. I am very patient because I can’t stop my desire to see them when I start to take them in my hand.
The cover of the 1970s issue of the professional wrestling “Gong” magazine. Almost of super stars in the cover already went heaven.
This shelf reminds me of the days when mystery and science fiction were part of the subculture. I miss “The Age of Science Fiction” by Takashi Ishikawa.
Yes, this is the first time I have seen the actual “BOOK HOTEL” that some are talking about. I took this shot while asking myself if I still have the energy and curiosity left in me to take advantage of such a place.
I only pay attention to books and places that interest me, but the used book festival itself was on a scale dozens of times larger, covering every genre of literature, history, politics, economics, geography, science, art, and manners and customs from all ages and countries, showing the world-class power of Kanda used bookstore district.
I am hopelessly out of touch with these shelves of specialized science books, but I’m sure there are some great books there if you look hard enough.
The antiquarian bookstore is also putting up a good fight for the first time in three years. Sawaguchi Bookstore made original tote bags and even a “Autumn Book Festival” sticker, which is questionable from an intellectual property standpoint:-)
That’s all I have to say about the festival. By the way, my modest results of the day were two railroad mooks and two out-of-print paperbacks for a total of 1,000 yen.
Thank you very much for reading to the end.
Equipment used: LUMIX GF10, LUMIX G12-32mm
