Seattle-based Japanophiles have been having a very active couple of weeks. We had Roland Kelts in town and on the radio last week, promoting his new book, Japanamerica. Then translator extraordinaire Jay Rubin yesterday at Elliott Bay. And there's more to come:

Tomorrow, Sakura Con opens. This is the Pacific Northwest's biggest conference for anime and manga fans, and coordinator Elmira Utz says a record crowd of 10,000 or so is expected over the weekend. They're coming from all over, and many ("Thousands," says Elmira) will be dressed as their favorite anime characters. (Roland noted last week that fans in Japan are discouraged from showing up at comic conventions in costume, so this is really an American phenomenon).

Then, author Natsuo Kirino will be reading at two events. On Sunday at 6 pm, she'll be at the Panama Cafe in the International District. The following evening she'll be at Elliott Bay Book Co. at 7:30 pm. She'll be reading from her latest novel, Grotesque.