Kikuwansha no hanashi [Talking about Locomotives].

First edition. Numerous photographic illustrations. Japanese text. Large oblong 8vo. Original strong flexible boards, minor wear to spine, but overall a very good copy. Unpaginated. Tokyo, Kokusai Hodo, dated: Showa 19 [i.e.

This photobook is a typical example of the photo-reportage (hodo shashin) style that was popular during the first half of the 1940s. It explains the production and working of the newly developed electric locomotives as opposed to steam engines. This beautifully designed children's book was produced during the final years of the war. According to the imprint 20,000 copies of this work were printed, however this is very likely to be an act of wilful disinformation in order to hide the enormous problems with paper supplies at the time. One double-page showing a railway map of Japan and the occupied areas has purposely been glued together, clearly for political reasons. We have seen a number of other copies similarly afflicted. The book was published by Kokusai Hodo, led by Natori Yonosuke and the editor-in-chief Harada Mitsuo. Book-design by Hara Hiromu. Rare. 

Stock Code: 212123