On the surface, Japan appears to be a relatively crime-free and comparatively safe society. One crime, though, is on the rise — shoplifting. A recent survey by the Japan Book Publishers Association for Information Infrastructure Development found that nearly ¥4 billion in books are stolen every year, a figure that has nearly doubled since 2003. Countries with higher rates of more serious crimes may find these figures and the type of crime inconsequential or even slightly amusing. Taken as an indication of a shift in Japanese social values, however, shoplifting is cause for concern.

Particularly worrisome is the fact that most of the shoplifting is being done by young people. Minors commit the majority of the thefts (40 percent), though housewives (15 percent) and, increasingly, people over 65 (the most common crime for that age group) are lifting their share as well. These reported figures do not reflect the actual percentages, though, since many of the incidents are never reported or go unrecorded after the suspects write a letter of apology. The extent of the problem is startling.

The seriousness of shoplifting lies somewhere between "borrowing" an umbrella from a public rack and bicycle theft, one of Japan's most common crimes. The main reason given by those caught in the act of stealing books are not laziness, drunkenness or selfishness, but rather an intention to resell the books for cash. The romantic image of the starving student who truly wants to read an overpriced classic is far from the case. The main object is money. Books, like other objects left unattended, are easy targets.