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Kodansha USA Donates Manga, Books to Libraries in NY (Updated)

Kumi Shimizu, the general manager of Kodansha USA Publishing, has donated 200 books published by Kodansha USA Group, including some manga titles like Sailor Moon and Akira, to help restock the shelves of libraries in Queens, New York that were damaged by Hurricane Sandy in October. In addition, Mitsuhiko Kawai, president of the JCC Fund and president and CEO of Mitsui & Co. (USA), Inc., and Motohiro Satoh, executive director of the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry of New York (JCCI), donated US$10,000 toward rebuilding the libraries.

Shimizu said regarding the donation, "We, the Kodansha USA Group, are delighted to donate our books to help local libraries recover from the damage suffered during Hurricane Sandy. The Japanese people will never forget all the help that the United States provided when Japan was devastated by the Great Tohoku earthquake and tsunami which took place on March 11, 2011, and we'd like to take this opportunity to repay your generosity. The books are our silent ambassadors. And we hope everything is restored as soon as possible, and that the people of Queens enjoy our books."

Since the storm, four Queens Library locations have been operating out of temporary spaces due to heavy damages. More than 146,000 books, movies, and other library items were lost in the storm.

Thanks to Dessa for the news tip.

Source: Queens Gazette

Update: The donations came from three divisions of the Kodansha USA group: Kodansha Comics, Kodansha America, and Vertical, Inc. Vertical contributed 20 titles, including Zero Over Berlin, A Rabbit's Eyes and May in the Valley.