【 Event 】 Karoku Recycle | Karoku Reading Club 4th Reading "Somewhere, a Distant Friend: Toshimi Funashiro Poetry Collection"

The Karok Reading Club is a place for people to sit around a record of past disasters and related expressions (Movies, paintings, plays, memoirs, novels, etc.) and talk about their thoughts and feelings.
This time, I will take up "Somewhere, a Distant Friend, Funaki Toshimi's Poetry Collection" (Kashiwashobo).
Funashiro Toshimi (1923– 2003) was a poet who lived in a leprosy sanatorium as a member of a sexual minority.
From the time he entered a sanatorium at the age of 15 until the year before his death at the age of 79, he continued to write poetry throughout his life. Last year, 5 of his poems were included in the Poems of Life (Iwanami Bunko), which was republished for the first time in 70 years and became a hot topic.
The charm of Funcheng's poetry lies in the direct expression of love through bold sexual expression. Her desire to connect with others was not limited to her sick friends in the sanatorium, but also to seasonal flowers and people living in disenfranchised corners of the world.
His work stands out as both leprosy literature and queer poetry.
On the day, after the introduction of the book by the speakers, we will read the poems together with the participants, listen to them freely and talk about them.
Participants do not necessarily need to have a copy of "Somewhere, a Distant Friend: Toshimi Funashiro Poetry Collection" in advance. People who are not familiar with the leprosy problem or who have not touched poetry are welcome to participate.

*The program is subject to change.

speaker

KIMURA Tetsuya (Curator, National Hansen's Disease Museum)
NAGAI Rei (Philosopher, Author)
SEO Natsumi (Artist)

capacity

20 (first come, first served)

participation fee

1,500 yen

How to apply

Please fill out this application form and apply.

Application deadline

Sunday, November 2, 2025 23:59　Wednesday, October 29, 2025 23:59
* Application will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis. 
Due to the large number of applications received, applications will be accepted until Wednesday, October 29 and a lottery will be held (updated October 16, 2025).
The results of the lottery will be sent to the email address you filled out on the application form by Friday, October 31.
* Personal information will be strictly managed and used only for the operation and information of this project.

Credit

Sponsor

Tokyo Metropolitan Government, Tokyo Metropolitan History and Culture Foundation Arts Council Tokyo, NOOK

cooperation

Urban Renaissance Agency

Contact Us

NOOK
E-mail:karoku.nook*gmail.com (replace * with @)