こどもの森　中の島

“Nakanoshima Children’s Book Forest in Osaka”

This library was built by Tadao Ando to signify his wish that children spread their creativity and curiosity and as a thank you to his hometown.

Standing beside historic monuments and a restored hall between two wide rivers, the appearance is so simple that you might pass by it. You’ll come across a blue apple as a symbol of youth filled with a challenging spirit at the terraced entrance.

When you go inside, you’ll recognize that this isn’t such a large space, and you’ll notice lots of children and adults sitting on each step of the main stairs and children sitting in narrow spaces as if they were playing hide-and-seek.

You’ll see bookshelves reaching to the ceiling and will be impressed by the books displayed in such a way that their covers can be seen. You’ll want to find your own space as soon as possible to read books you’ve already read along with new books among the shelves divided into 12 themes.

There’s no system for borrowing books from here, so the fixed time and space is all the more valuable to delve into a book and freely feel its imagery without anything to disturb you.