Kodansha International Publishing To Close Doors By End Of April

The Japan Times Online:

Kodansha International Ltd., a leading English-language publisher of translated books on Japan, is closing down by the end of April, sources said Thursday.

Read the whole story: The Japan Times Online

Comments

[TakeSake]

08:17 AM on 03/07/2011

One of the best things about books is that once published, that copy doesn't get updated. Its physicality gives it an inherent value that tends to foster its continued existence. Eventually, it winds up in a garage sale or a used book store, to be found by someone like me. Finding an old book about something provides not only that information about the subject, but also the perspective on it from that time.

[senseandnonsense]

08:53 PM on 03/05/2011

I, too, will miss Kodansha. I loved their books of Japanese folklore and myths.

[kareemachan]

05:32 PM on 03/04/2011

This is a true bummer. It's hard to find first-class businesses like this who really fill a niche so beautifully. Dang. :-(

[Indigo1941]

04:03 PM on 03/04/2011

That's a loss that is unlikely to be replaced. Manga is not enough in the West. Finding Japanese fiction in translation is difficult enough without loosing a resource like Kodansha International.

[jayquintana]

05:14 PM on 03/04/2011

I'm hoping a digital revolution will take place. If physical publishing is too cost prohibitive, why not make books available for kindle and other formats?

[Indigo1941]

05:52 PM on 03/04/2011

That's a possibility. Even so, I have a personal taste for physical books over electronic formats but that could be the inevitable future.