The Perfect Guide to Sumo (in Japanese and English)

In this book, Ito Katsuharu, the 34th Shonosuke Kimura, a sumo grand champion who has been active in sumo for 50 years, explains sumo in an easy-to-understand way.

The English translation is by David Shapiro, English commentator for NHK's "Ozumo" programme.

Students of Japanese require a medium/high reading comprehension of the Kanji as only some of the more complicated Kanji have furigana. All texts are also translated into English so that the book can be read only in English as well.

Description in English provided by the publisher:

Sumo, with over 1,500 years of history, is a religious rite, a part of traditional cultural with a rich esthetic and a truly exciting combative sport. In recent years, thanks to SNS and a variety of new magazines, a whole new category of female sumo fan known as the, “sujo” (literally the, “sumo girls”) has sprung up. Due to the quality of international broadcasts and the number of foreign born rikishi performing at the highest levels, sumo’s international appeal continues to grow.

This bilingual book is the product of a combined effort by the writer, who served as the 34th Kimura Shonosuke, and a translator who is a color commentator on NHK’s bilingual sumo broadcasts. This is the perfect tool to use while talking about sumo in English. It also makes for an excellent souvenir for foreigners.

The explanations based on the author’s long career in sumo are presented in a manner that even a beginner can enjoy. After reading this book we believe that watching sumo will become even more entertaining. And the generous use of traditional woodblock prints will help to give you an even greater sense of sumo’s