Each bookstore will serve as a concierge, recommending "the book you should read now" to FASHION HEADLINE readers. Every Saturday, a book will be featured at Shelf (3-7-4 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo), a Harajuku bookstore specializing in foreign books.

■ "Daido Moriyama: Dazai" Daido Moriyama, Osamu Dazai, Ralph McCarthy (translator)

Daido Moriyama has selected his own photographs inspired by Dazai Osamu's novel "Villon's Wife," which is set from Christmas just after the end of the war to the end of the year. Art director Satoru Machiguchi has included an English translation of "Villon's Wife" by Ralph McCarthy, and the book is housed in an elaborately bound book. With a cover made of soft, translucent, layered washi-style paper, pages made of three types of paper, multiple title pages and separate pages, and elaborate typesetting, this beautiful book is a must-have for photography and literature fans, and as the first English translation of "Villon's Wife," it would make a great gift for an acquaintance abroad.

In addition, to commemorate the publication of this book, a photo exhibition titled "Dazai" will be held at the art space "AM" in Harajuku, showcasing approximately 50 monochrome works from the 1970s to the present, selected by Moriyama as an homage to Dazai. The exhibition will run from December 20th to February 23rd, 2015.

[Book information]
"Daido Moriyama: Dazai"
Authors: Daido Moriyama, Osamu Dazai, Ralph McCarthy (translator)
Publisher: match and company
Language: English
Softcover / 160 x 230 mm
Published: 2014
Price: 5,000 yen