The Three Great Writers of Kanazawa are the three great writers from Kanazawa: Izumi Kyoka, Tokuda Shusei, and Muro Saisei. Why not visit the memorial museum to learn about the history and personalities of these great writers who grew up in Kanazawa?

#Tokuda Shusei Memorial Museum

The Tokuda Shusei Memorial Museum is located just a few minutes' walk from Higashi Chaya District, a popular tourist spot that preserves the history and atmosphere of Kanazawa.

Famous as a representative writer of nature literature, Akise was born near the Asano River and moved to Tokyo with the aim of becoming a writer, where he became a pupil of Ozaki Koyo. He left behind many works, including his signature piece "Mold," "Machi no Odoriba" (The Town's Dance Floor) and "Shukuzu" (Miniature Figure). The permanent exhibition room displays many valuable materials, including numerous personal effects, handwritten manuscripts, handwriting and first editions. There are also areas where you can experience the world of his works and Kanazawa using all five senses, such as a washi puppet theatre and an experience corner. Akise's house is still in Hongo, Tokyo, and is designated as a historic site by the capital, but his study has been recreated in the memorial museum, where his favorite items such as reading glasses, inkstones and cigarettes are on display.

#Izumi Kyoka Memorial Museum

The Izumi Kyoka Memorial Museum was built on the site where the Izumi family once lived. It is located in an area that still retains the look of the streetscape from when Kyoka was born and raised, adjacent to the Asano River and Kazuemachi Higashi Chaya District. Kyoka, who lost his mother at a young age, spun a world of romance and fantasy based on his longing for his mother throughout the Meiji, Taisho, and Showa periods. Kyoka, who produced many novels and plays, was eventually called a master of romanticism, and his masterpieces such as "Giketsukyoketsu," "Kumano Hijiri," and "Tenshu Monogatari" were expressed in the form of stage plays, films, and manga, and are loved not only in Japan but all over the world. When you step into this memorial museum, you are drawn in by a mysterious atmosphere. There is an indescribably eerie feeling in the corner that introduces a scene from "Kumano Hijiri," a forest where leeches fall like rain, where a traveling monk passed, and "Haruhiru," a mysterious love story with sound and dioramas. The permanent exhibition room displays handwritten documents and first editions of his beloved belongings under the themes of "His life and works," "His final home - Banchou House," "The vein of beauty and fantasy," and "The world of Kyokabon." In "The world of Kyokabon," you can see the intricately crafted bindings of his books, as well as beautiful covers and frontispieces, which cannot be reproduced today.

#Muro Saisei Memorial Museum

The Muro Saisei Memorial Museum stands behind his birthplace. Muro Saisei, known for his poem "Furusato wa toki ni arite omou mono" ("Jokei Ijo Sono Ni"), was born here and grew up in nearby Uhoin Temple. You can explore the original landscapes of Saisei's literature in the surrounding area, including Uhoin Temple where Saisei grew up and Saisei-michi, where there is a monument to Saigawa, a poem he loved. Saisei worked in a wide range of genres, including poetry, haiku, novels, essays, and children's stories, and left behind a large number of works. Inside the museum, on the atrium wall, first edition book covers made with graphics are displayed from bottom to top by chronology, with about 160 books in total, from "Ai no Shishu" (Poetry of Love) to "Koshoku" (Love). The corner entitled "Landscapes of the Heart" features a "Courtyard" modelled on the gardens Saisei loved, with modern garden stones from Saisei's beloved garden, two ponds modelled on the flow of the Saigawa River, and the Tsukubai and stone tower are from Saisei's garden. You can also watch a video interview with his daughter, the late essayist Asako Muroo. There is also a special exhibition corner and an audio corner introducing his works, where you can listen to her read them aloud. Among them are school songs, for which Saisei wrote the lyrics for 26 schools, not only in Kanazawa but also in Tokyo.

What did you think? After touring the lively tourist spots of Kanazawa, the birthplace of three great writers who are indispensable to modern Japanese literature, why not take a moment to reminisce about these three great writers while wearing a kimono? If you are considering renting a kimono, we recommend Kimono Rental VASARA.

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