Takatsuki City Announces Results of 'Favorite Book' Popularity Vote at Local Bookstores

To protect and connect bookstore culture—where one can 'drop by a bookstore and encounter a life-changing book'—and to add color to the city through intellectual spaces, Takatsuki City held the 'BOTTO Books Campaign' from December of the 7th year of Reiwa to March 15th (Sunday) of the 8th year of Reiwa, inviting popular votes for books recommended by local bookstores. Four winning books, including the novel 'Gin Nikan' which is set in Takatsuki, have been selected. Under the theme 'If you go to Takatsuki, you can immerse yourself in what you love,' the city has been developing the 'BOTTO Takatsuki' tourism promotion, which focuses on specific genres like gourmet food and history to deeply engage enthusiasts. Since the city is a 'City of Books' with multiple large bookstores in its center, 'books' were chosen as the theme for immersion. The campaign featured corners with 'recommended books' and unique POP displays from participating bookstores, where customers could vote via QR codes. The novel 'Gin Nikan,' a human drama about a boy who loses his father in a vendetta and grows as a merchant after being saved by a kanten (agar) wholesaler, was awarded the 'BOTTO Books Grand Prize.' All winning works have stories connected to Takatsuki, offering readers a chance to discover new charms of the city. Corners will be set up sequentially at participating bookstores, so please check them out. Additionally, archive videos of the 'BOTTO Book Talk' event are now available. The event featured writer Yataro Matsuura, former editor-in-chief of 'Kurashi no Techo' who also manages his own bookstore, and model/essayist Miyako Takayama, who is popular for her lifestyle essays and has about 290,000 Instagram followers. Together with Mayor Takeshi Hamada and bookstore staff, they passionately discussed the charm of books. Please take a look.