Jimbocho, the world's largest "book town," has drawn crowds since last weekend. The 63rd Kanda Used Book Festival, a Tokyo institution, opened on the 27th, and book lovers have gathered for what is said to number more than a million used volumes. Readers come from across Japan and from overseas for this major event, and for a week through November 3 Jimbocho will be filled with books and people.
The annual event has been held since 1960 to coincide with Reading Week. Wagons lined with books along the sidewalks of Yasukuni-dori around the Jimbocho crossing make a spectacular sight, and the "book corridor" of shops and shelves stretches some 500 meters.
Jimbocho's used-book district is said to have formed in the early Meiji era, when booksellers clustered as schools sprang up around Kanda-Surugadai. The area is also known as a "curry town," and on November 4 and 5 the 11th Kanda Curry Grand Prix 2023 will decide the top shop.