Factbook

A Dynamic Compendium of Interesting Japanese Literary and Publishing Facts
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    Japanese folk tales contain stories of time travel & shape-shifting animals[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Japanese folk tales contain stories of time travel, shape-shifting animals – sometimes a Crane considered a National Treasure in Japan but more often foxes – as well as many different types of supernatural creatures. Some claim that a least one of these stories is the… Read more »
    Japanese folk tales contain stories of time travel & shape-shifting animals Posted by Richard Nathan
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    The number of bookstores in Japan is 60% higher than the typical print run of a newly published title[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    For newly published titles to be stocked at all book retailing outlets in Japan, initial print runs of  16,000 are often said to be required. However, most new books have print runs of less than 10,000. The number of stores as well as the size… Read more »
    The number of bookstores in Japan is 60% higher than the typical print run of a newly published title Posted by Koji Chikatani
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    The Path, by the founder of Panasonic, has outsold Harry Potter in Japan[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Japan’s second bestselling book is The Path, by Konosuke Matsushita, the founder of Panasonic. The Path has sold more than 5.2 million copies in Japan since it was first published in March 1981 by PHP Research. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone, the first title… Read more »
    The Path, by the founder of Panasonic, has outsold Harry Potter in Japan Posted by Koji Chikatani
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    Limited consolidation within Japan’s publishing industry[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Mergers and acquisitions (M&A) amongst Japanese publishers is very rare, unlike in the United States and the United Kingdom where the big story is consolidation. The vast majority of Japan’s publishing houses are small or medium sized. 60% of publishers in Japan employ less than… Read more »
    Limited consolidation within Japan’s publishing industry Posted by Richard Nathan
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    The two best-known living Japanese authors[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Outside Japan, in most of the world, the two best-known living Japanese authors are probably currently Haruki Murakami and Banana Yoshimoto.Haruki Murakami published his first novel, Hear the Wind Sing, in 1979, in the June issue of Gunzo, a Japanese literary magazine. Banana Yoshimoto’s first… Read more »
    The two best-known living Japanese authors Posted by Richard Nathan
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    Japanese libraries still major book buyers[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Despite falling budgets as in most countries, Japanese libraries are still major book buyers, but their purchasing now represents less than 2% of publisher sales. Nevertheless, libraries have been cleverly expanding their lending schemes using the Internet to highlight book availability and increase book borrowing… Read more »
    Japanese libraries still major book buyers Posted by Koji Chikatani
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    Japan has 14,000 bookshops, and more bookshops per capita than the United States[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    At pixel time Japan had 14,000 bookshops, according to the Japan Book Publishers Association (JPA), of which 4,000 belong to the Japan Booksellers Federation. However, in the 1990s there were more than 20,000 bookstores in Japan. The number of bookstores – especially independent stores –… Read more »
    Japan has 14,000 bookshops, and more bookshops per capita than the United States Posted by Koji Chikatani
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    76,000 new books published in Japan every year[UPDATED: 2-12-2018]

    Around 76,000 new books are published in Japan every year. This compares to 470,000 in China, 340,000 in the United States and 170,000 in the United Kingdom, the top three nations, according to the International Publishers Association (IPA). Japan is ranked 8th behind Russia, France,… Read more »
    76,000 new books published in Japan every year Posted by Richard Nathan