{"product_id":"bram-stoker-majin-dracula-1967-chuu-ichi-bunko-no-4","title":"Dracula — Bram Stoker 1967 First ed Nakajima Kotaro. Chuu-Ichi Bunko No. 4 Gothic-Horror","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e[PRODUCT SPECIFICATIONS]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eOriginal Author:\u003c\/strong\u003e Bram Stoker\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eAdaptation :\u003c\/strong\u003e Nakajima Kotaro \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eTitle:\u003c\/strong\u003e 魔人ドラキュラ (Majin Dracula)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eSeries:\u003c\/strong\u003e (Chuu-Ichi Bunko), No. 4\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/strong\u003e Ohbunsha \u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eYear Published:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1967 (Showa 42)\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIssued as:\u003c\/strong\u003e Third supplementary booklet (第3付録) to \u003cem\u003eChuu-Ichi Jidai\u003c\/em\u003e  July 1967 issue\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eFormat:\u003c\/strong\u003e Bunkoban  approx. 64 pages. Two-color cover (red and black); black-and-white interior illustrations signed \"HID\/URA\".\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/strong\u003e Japanese\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eInclusions:\u003c\/strong\u003e Original publisher's clear protective cover (as issued), still present\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e[OVERVIEW]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIn 1967, Obunsha — one of Japan's leading educational publishers — issued this remarkable object: a pocket-sized adaptation of Bram Stoker's \u003cem\u003eDracula\u003c\/em\u003e, retold for Japanese junior high school students by Nakajima Kotaro, one of the most distinguished figures in Japanese mystery and detective fiction criticism. Distributed not through bookshops but as a free supplement tucked inside the July 1967 issue of \u003cem\u003eChuu-Ichi Jidai\u003c\/em\u003e (中一時代), a mass-circulation study magazine for first-year junior high students, this booklet was never sold commercially and never reprinted. It existed, briefly, in the hands of a generation of thirteen-year-olds — and almost none of it survived.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe cover — a stark, two-color composition of crimson and black, depicting a young woman clutching a crucifix as Dracula looms behind her — is a masterpiece of low-budget graphic design: lurid, urgent, and entirely effective. The interior illustrations, signed by the artist \"HID\/URA\", capture the gothic atmosphere of the Carpathian journey with a confident, expressionist line. Nakajima Kotaro's adaptation strips Stoker's sprawling epistolary novel to its essential terror, delivering it in clean, accessible prose that retains the dread of the original.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e[IMPORTANT NOTE FOR INTERNATIONAL BUYERS: EASY AI TRANSLATION]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhile the text is printed in Japanese, you can easily read and study this historic book using modern smartphone AI tools. By taking a photo of any page with your smartphone and using free apps like Google Lens, ChatGPT, or Google Translate, the embedded AI will instantly scan and translate the text on your screen layout. Language is no longer a barrier to owning and enjoying this rare piece of Japanese publishing history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e[WHY THIS VOLUME IS A PRIZED COLLECTOR'S ITEM]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003col\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eHistorical \u0026amp; Documentary Value:\u003c\/strong\u003e Supplementary booklets issued with Japanese study magazines of the 1960s are among the most ephemeral objects in postwar Japanese publishing. Distributed free, read once, and discarded, they survive in vanishingly small numbers. A copy in collectible condition — retaining its vivid two-color cover and complete interior — is a genuine rarity. Online bibliographic records for this specific title are almost nonexistent.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eLiterary \u0026amp; Cultural Value:\u003c\/strong\u003e Nakajima Kotaro (1917–2004) was not a hack adapter: he was a founding figure of Japanese mystery criticism, editor of landmark anthologies, and a scholar of international standing. His decision to retell \u003cem\u003eDracula\u003c\/em\u003e for junior high students in 1967 — the same year Japan's horror publishing boom was gathering force — places this booklet at the intersection of literary history and popular culture.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eVisual Value:\u003c\/strong\u003e The two-color cover design and the \"HID\/URA\" interior illustrations represent a distinct strand of Japanese commercial illustration of the mid-Showa period — bold, economical, and deeply atmospheric. As a graphic artifact, this booklet stands entirely on its own.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ol\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e[CONDITION]\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eGood Vintage Condition — Outstanding Survival for a Disposable Supplementary Booklet\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eCover:\u003c\/strong\u003e The two-color (red and black) cover retains strong graphic impact. Protected by the original publisher's clear plastic cover, which remains present — an exceptional survival detail that speaks to the care with which this copy has been kept. Light age-toning to edges consistent with nearly 60 years of natural patina. No tears, no writing.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eBinding:\u003c\/strong\u003e Secure and intact. Staple-bound, as issued.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePage Edges (Fore-edge):\u003c\/strong\u003e Minor age-spotting to the fore-edge — light and entirely consistent with the age and paper quality of the original printing.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eEndpapers:\u003c\/strong\u003e Minor age-toning to the endpapers — a natural characteristic of mid-Showa newsprint. No writing, no stamps, no ownership marks.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eInterior \u0026amp; Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e No writing, no clipping, no damage. The text and illustrations are clean and fully legible throughout.\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\u003cem\u003ePlease carefully inspect all high-resolution listing photos to verify the exceptional vintage condition.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e","brand":"shady2grove","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":65596262613341,"sku":null,"price":300.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1082\/5888\/5981\/files\/IMG_8914.jpg?v=1786933710","url":"https:\/\/shady2grove.com\/products\/bram-stoker-majin-dracula-1967-chuu-ichi-bunko-no-4","provider":"shady2grove","version":"1.0","type":"link"}