[Image] Bookstores and publishers gather from all over Japan! KOBE” at Rokko Island

On March 22, “KOBE BOOK FAIR & MARKET” will be held at Atrium Plaza on the 1st floor of “Kobe Fashion Mart” on Rokko Island.

The event is a large-scale book-related event that will bring together about 60 diverse bookstores, booksellers, publishers, individual creators, and restaurants from the Kyoto-Osaka-Kobe area and other parts of Japan.

While the number of bookstores and publishers is decreasing nationwide and people are becoming less interested in reading, the City of Kobe, in cooperation with bookstores and publishers, is working on the “Kobe Book Culture Promotion Project” to promote interest in books among citizens and to develop a new readership. As one of these efforts, “KOBE BOOK FAIR & MARKET” will be held for the first time, bringing together many unique bookstores, bookshops, antiquarian bookstores, and publishers from the city and beyond.

On the day of the event, bookstores and publishers will have booths where visitors can pick up and choose from a wide selection of new and used books, zines, and other items. Food and beverage booths will serve coffee and baked goods, which can be enjoyed with books at the venue’s rest area.

In addition, a talk event by bookstore owners and bookstore staff will be held on a stage set up in the venue, and volunteer staff from the RIC Community Library and Yuyake Bunko, a local library located on Rokko Island, will read picture books and conduct coloring workshops. For more details and the latest information, please refer to the following website.

Details and updates of the event will be posted on Instagram.

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The storytelling and workshops will be held on artificial grass so that visitors can relax and enjoy themselves without taking off their shoes. We look forward to seeing you and your children at the event.

Details

Date of the event

Saturday, March 22, 2025

Place

Kobe Fashion Mart 1F Atrium Plaza
(6-9, Koyo-cho Naka, Higashinada-ku, Kobe)
Google Map

Hours

11:00-18:00

Stage Event

(1) 12:30-13:30, (2) 14:00-15:00, (3) 15:30-16:30, (4) 17:00-18:00

Storytime

Storytelling and panel theater
①13:30-14:00/ ②15:00-15:30
*Staff will read picture books to visitors who wish to attend other times than those listed above.

• KOBE BOOK FAIR & MARKET Official Instagram https://www.instagram.com/kobe_book_fair_and_market/?hl=ja