Closed bookstores, libraries a challenge for publishers, readers

Although not targeted by authorities for closure requests under measures to battle the spread of COVID-19, many bookstores in major metropolitan regions of Japan have chosen to bring down the shutters or curtail opening hours, dealing a blow to book and magazine publishers alike.Meanwhile, for the public whose appetite for reading has only increased as it responds to the government's stay-at-home requests, the pain of bookshop closures has been compounded by an almost total shutdown of municipal-run libraries in urban areas.The day after Japan's state-of-emergency was first declared by Prim…READ FULL ARTICLE