After reading your blog, I wondered if the SF Public Library would have Japanese books. They do!! This idea would not have occurred to me except for your blog. I went today and checked out 10 Japanese kid’s picture books. Thanks!!

San Francisco

San Francisco Public Library – Western Addition Branch (http://sfpl.org/index.php?pg=0100002101)
Only this branch specializes in Japanese books. It is west of SF Japan town. There are hundreds of Japanese kids books. They have all levels from kid’s picture books to juvenile books. They also have adult level books in a different section.

McKay Used Books ( http://www.mckaybooks.com/ )
I can’t speak for their other 2 locations, but the Nashville location is an enormous used book store, with an entire bookcase of Asian books. Generally these are about 70% Japanese. I usually only find 1 or 2 children’s books per visit, but there’s always plenty of manga. Prices are incredibly cheap. Generally I pay less than $1 per book. Sometimes you can find manga and light novels in really decent condition being sold for .25 cents. Definitely a resource worth checking out.

I’ll add more as I discover them. Still a few things I really need to get off my lazy rear end and check out ;P.