Kumamoto Children's Book Forest (こども本の森 熊本)

The Kumamoto Children's Book Forest (こども本の森 熊本) is a library that the architect Tadao Ando (安藤忠雄) gave to the children of the prefecture, out of a wish to support recovery from the 2016 Kumamoto earthquake (熊本地震). On 14 and 16 April 2016, two shocks of intensity 7 on the Japanese scale struck within 28 hours; the earthquake killed 272 people according to the March 2020 count. The architects of the firm say the idea grew out of a long relationship with the prefecture's governor and a desire to support that recovery.

On 23 August 2022, the prefecture and Ando's office (安藤忠雄建築研究所) signed an agreement for this children's library, under a provisional name. In February 2023, the prefectural assembly voted to accept the gift and to set up a fund; the prefecture called on residents to contribute, as part of a management in which they take part. Construction began on 10 May 2023. In June and August, book drives held across the prefecture brought in more than 24,000 volumes. The name, the logo and the honorary director were announced on 28 November 2023: the actress Yoshiko Miyazaki (宮崎美子), a native of the prefecture, was formally given the title on 5 December. The opening ceremony took place on 7 April 2024 and the library opened to the public on the 8th.

Its logo, by Kundō Koyama (小山薫堂) and 橋本美穂 (Designphil), turns the letter B into a butterfly shaped like a book; three butterflies together form the character 森 (forest).

The building is reinforced concrete with some timber, on two storeys, with about 460 m² of floor area. It stands south of the prefectural library (熊本県立図書館), of which it is an extension, and is reached by an outdoor passage. Its form is long and gently curved, to fit the neighbouring park.

The ground floor holds the entrance, reading rooms, the staircase and, at one end, a wooden terrace; the upper floor has a reading room and a terrace. The double-height atrium is lined with shelves and dominated by a large central staircase, its distinctive feature. Oval and circular rooms follow one another up to the terrace, which looks over the park to the west.

The ceiling is a lattice of Japanese cypress, from the prefecture's own timber: it reflects local people's wish to use local materials.

Ando sees the whole site as a reading room: you pick any book, read it anywhere, and may even carry it outside. He notes that Kumamoto offered good conditions, since the library can be run together with the prefectural library and a fine natural park adjoins the site: he was able to express that freedom ideally there.

Visitors settle in and read freely, among shelves arranged in ten themes numbered on the plan, from the ground floor to the upper floor: from first books under the staircase to books about Kumamoto along the upper corridor, by way of classics that rise through both levels of the void. The round room holds books about life, and a letterbox of Kumamon (くまモン), a character of the prefecture, from which you can send a letter.

Seats are reserved first for children; the library is not a place for revision or laptop work. Each visitor may take one book outside to read (except when it rains), to be handed back to staff at least five minutes before closing. From the balcony, you can also take your book to read in the former garden next door (旧砂取細川庭園), part of the park 水前寺江津湖公園. The library runs on gifts: the prefecture receives contributions from individuals and companies.

Admission is free, from 9:30 to 17:00. The library is closed every Tuesday, on the last Friday of each month, during special stock-keeping periods and over the New Year holidays.

On weekdays you can walk in without a reservation. At weekends, on public holidays and in the long school holidays, such as the summer, entry is by time slot with the whole audience changing each time: 9:30 to 11:10, 11:30 to 13:10, 13:30 to 15:10 and 15:30 to 17:00. Each slot admits 50 people, 30 of them by online reservation (opened 14 days ahead, up to 15 minutes before the slot) and 20 without a reservation; only one reservation per day. Reception opens ten minutes before the slot. Groups are received on weekdays only, on request made between six months and one month ahead.

Photography is allowed inside, without selfie sticks, monopods or tripods, and without other visitors appearing in the pictures; video and live streaming are not allowed, and it is forbidden to photograph from the steps of the staircase (other than the central landing) or over the upper-floor railing.

From the Shiritsutaiikukan-mae tram stop (市立体育館前) it is about a five-minute walk. There is a shared car park of 50 spaces behind the municipal gymnasium (熊本市総合体育館), but the library asks visitors to come by public transport.