High demand in Bengaluru for Japanese fiction

Japanese literature is selling like hotcakes, and Korean literature isn’t far behind, city booksellers tell Metrolife. 

Currently, at most Bengaluru bookstores, one will find a display for Japanese literature. Books like ‘Convenience Store Woman’ by Sayaka Murata, ‘Days at the Morisaki Bookshop’ by Satoshi Yogisawa, ‘The Inugami Curse’ by Seishi Yokomizo, and ‘Before The Coffee Gets Cold’ series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi are commonly found. 

“Earlier we would get translations of popular authors like Haruki Murakami and Kazuo Ishiguro, which sold well. Nowadays, we also get translated works of new and first-time authors,” says Krishna Gowda, proprietor of The Bookworm. Currently, there are books by about 30 Japanese authors at his store on Church Street. He orders books in small batches based on trends. “We order in batches of 20 to 50, and sometimes 100. The stock lasts for one to two weeks,” he adds. 

One of the Blossom Book House outlets on Church Street has a similar stock. “Every month, we get at least two or three Japanese books that sell well. A minimum of 50 Japanese titles sell every month,” says Mukund Gowda, manager, adding that these books are popular among Gen Z and millennials. Krishna agrees, “Many aged 20-35 gravitate towards Japanese literature, as they can see similarities between Indian and Japanese lifestyles.”

While Japanese literature has had a stronghold in crime and thriller genres and as graphic novels for years, a large number of ‘light reads’ are entering the market. These include literary fiction books like ‘Days at the Morisaki Bookshop’ and ‘What You Are Looking for is in the Library’ by Michiko Aoyama. Domestic fiction like ‘Weasels in the Attic’ by Hiroko Oyamada and ‘Kitchen’ by Banana Yoshimoto, are other top picks.

“Like India, Japan is also a patriarchal county, so themes like patriarchy and feminism are popular. Japanese women authors are popular at our store,” says Shakti Swaminathan, library educator at Champaca on
Edward Road. There is also an increase in demand for Japanese and Korean recipe books, she adds.

THE KOREAN WAVE
Recently, Krishna Gowda set up a special display dedicated to Kim Nam-joon aka RM of South Korean boy band BTS. “He has many fans in the city, mostly girls. The display is a hit,” he says. It included translated works such as ‘The Old Woman With the Knife’ by Gu Byeong-mo, ‘Pachinko’ by Min Jin Lee, and ‘Human Acts’ by Han Kang.

“Every month, at least two Korean books become viral, but they’re yet to match the popularity of Japanese fiction. About 70% of the customers who come for these books are youngsters,” says Anand C, manager at
Higginbothams, M G Road.

The older crowd, those 40 and above, gravitate towards self-help books from Korea and Japan, he adds. ‘Almond’ by Sohn Won-pyung, ‘I Want to Die But I Want to Eat Tteokbokki’ by Baek Se-hee and ‘Kim Jiyoung,
Born 1982’ by Cho Nam-joo are some popular Korean translations.