I made an “under-the-table deal” and got my hands on a Russian Pallas’s cat picture book.

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Maeko Ushiro

21 hours ago • translated from Japanese, show original

Two months ago, helga ingvar introduced a Russian Pallas’s cat picture book.

https://manulization.jp/manulover/helga%20ingvar/posts/pocemu-serdit-manul-ekcg9aqdiveu9mcj.html

Apparently, it was a book that could basically only be obtained through marketplaces within Russia, but I really wanted to get hold of it.

As an option for me living outside Russia, helga suggested a Chinese marketplace.

However, when I tried accessing the marketplace site, it seemed rather difficult to use, so I gave up on buying it there.

Then I came up with an idea.

Ms. Hasegawa, the chair of the Sapporo Novosibirsk Association, has a route for trading goods with Russia despite the current international situation.

I had exchanged messages with her on social media several times, so I decided to take the plunge and ask,

“There is this Pallas’s cat picture book—would you be able to procure it for us?”

That was what I decided to ask.

However, if I alone were to buy just one copy, Ms. Hasegawa might be reluctant.

So, wanting to make it a “group purchase of several copies,” I put out a call to my followers on X, and three people responded.

Thinking it would be better to purchase as many copies as possible, I thought,

“Why not donate picture books to Japanese zoos that keep Pallas’s cats and have libraries that visitors can enter?”

That was my idea.

The six facilities that met the criteria were Asahiyama Zoo, Saitama Children’s Zoo, Nogeyama Zoo, Higashiyama Zoo, Gokatsuraike Animal Park, and Oji Zoo.

At first, I had planned to donate on my own to Oji Zoo and Gokatsuraike Animal Park, which are relatively close to where I live. But the members who joined the group purchase offered, “I’ll help too,” and we decided to divide up the work and donate to all six facilities.

This brought the total number of picture books that my companions and I would buy to ten.

When I then approached Ms. Hasegawa, chair of the Sapporo Novosibirsk Association, she readily agreed to procure them.

Then, around 40 days later, in early October, all ten picture books finally arrived in my hands.

The Russian-language Pallas’s cat picture book «Why Is the Pallas’s Cat Angry?»

So, I mailed copies to my companions or handed them over directly, and when I visited Asahiyama Zoo the other day, I donated one copy.

A photo of a Pallas's cat, October 6, 2026

This is the picture book to be donated to Asahiyama Zoo. I have also included a message from my companions and me.

According to a staff member at Asahiyama Zoo,

“We cannot guarantee that the picture book will be placed in the open-access area of the library,”

but I think that visitors to Asahiyama Zoo will be able to read the picture book in the library if they inquire in advance.

My companions are planning to deliver copies to the other five facilities in due course. I will write another article when that happens.

The picture book is very cute, and the story is enjoyable to read as well.

(I am reading it little by little using Microsoft’s Translator app. At present, I have finally made it about one-third of the way through.)

So, it was a very valuable experience 😃

(Update)

Ms. Hasegawa apparently procured several extra copies this time and listed them in the online store as well. But by the time I looked, they were already sold out 😁

https://www.nposapporo.com/shopItems/161838037

(Update 2)

Due to circumstances, the copy intended for donation to “Higashiyama Zoo” may instead be donated to “Ueno Zoo.”

Ueno Zoo has a reference room where books can be viewed by appointment.