A strange old book
This is the plain transcript. Open the interactive version → furigana, audio, word-by-word gloss, grammar notes, and take over a role by typing.You come out of Ueno Station in Tokyo. In a dark arcade there’s a shop with a massive collection of used books, some of them art books. Two older men sit behind the counter. You approach.
古い本ですか？なにか、北斎がありますか？
Are these old books? Do you have anything by Hokusai?
あ、えーと…すみません、英語はちょっと…
Ah, um... sorry, our English isn't very good...
大丈夫、大丈夫！日本語で！北斎の本、ありますか？
It's okay, it's okay! We can speak Japanese! Do you have any books by Hokusai?
北斎？北斎をご存知なんですか？ちょっと待ってください…
Hokusai? You know Hokusai? Just a moment...
The shopkeepers murmur to each other behind the counter, just barely audible.
あの一冊ですか…？外国のお客さんに大丈夫でしょうか…
That book...? Is it okay to show a foreign customer...?
せっかく聞かれたんだから、お持ちしますね。
Since she asked, I'll bring it out.
The older shopkeeper returns from behind the curtain carrying a large cloth-wrapped book. He seems embarrassed. He puts it down carefully and opens it. Inside are prints of a... different kind than you typically see in a museum shop.
えっ！それは北斎の本ですか？？ほんとうに？？
What?! Is that a Hokusai book? Really?
はい、これも北斎なんです。実は北斎は春画でも有名なんですよ。これは本物の木版画です。江戸時代のものです。美術館では見られないですよ。うちだから見せられるんです。
Yes, this is also by Hokusai. Actually, Hokusai is famous for shunga, too. This is a genuine woodblock print from the Edo period. You won't see these in a museum. We can show it because of the kind of shop we are.
驚きました…いいけど。ええ！買います。
I'm surprised... but I like it. Yes, I'll buy it!
ありがとうございます。大切にしてくださいね。
Thank you. Please take good care of it.