Bookstores of Jimbo-cho

Bookstores of Jimbo-cho Review

For the ultimate browse through art books, catalogs, scholarly monographs, secondhand paperbacks, and dictionaries in almost any language, the bookstores of Jimbo-cho are the place to go. A number of the antiquarian booksellers here carry rare typeset editions, wood-block-printed books of the Edo period, and individual prints. At shops like Isseido and Ohya Shobo, both open Monday-Saturday 10-6, it's still possible to find genuine 19th- and 20th-century prints—not always in the best condition—at affordable prices. Many of Japan's most prestigious publishing houses make their home in this area as well. The bookstores run for ½ km (¼ mi) on Yasukuni-dori beginning at the Surugadai-shita intersection.