From poverty and wandering life
Kusano Shimpei was born in Ogawa, Iwaki in 1903, and he lost his mother, his oldest brother, and his sister one after the other. The oldest brother was also a poet and influenced Shimpei. He studied at Iwaki high school, Keio University and Ling nan University in China. He returned to Japan because of the Chinese riot against Japan. For a while, he was writing poems while he wandered through many places in Japan. Besides writing poetry, he was an editor, reporter, propagandist, rental book shop and bar owner although he did not have the talent in business field. He also joined the "Rekitei" (a poet magazine), which had a great status in the poetic circles, and he also introduced Miyazawa Kenji and Yagi Jukichi (a poet in Taisho period) to society. At the same time, he had a great relationship with Takamura Kotaro who was a poet and a sculptor. Finally, he became known as a poet with his works "Dai Hyaku Kaikyu" and "Teihon Kaeru".
Tenzan Bunko - A memorial library of Shimpei
Shimpei was well known as "a poet of the frog" who made poems about energy in nature and admiring life from the perspective of frogs. Therefore, he was nominated as a honorable villager in the neighboring Kawauchi village where there is a national monument for frogs, Mori-aogaeru. Shimpei often visited the village and contributed his books. The village established the "Tenzan Bunko" (Tenzan Library) in honor of Shimpei.
Tenzan Bunko(photo)
0240-38-3806 (a public hall of Kawauchi village), 0240-38-2076 (Abukuma Mingei-kan)
