Japanese novels are being pulled from the shelves of bookshops in Beijing, according to local reports, as the row over a group of islands in the East China sea continues to escalate.

China and Japan both lay claim to the disputed islands – known as the Senkaku islands in Japan and as the Diaoyu islands in China – as does Taiwan. The clash started when Japan announced earlier this month that it had bought the islands from private owners, sparking protests in China, where Japanese firms have closed their offices and diplomatic events have been cancelled.

The dispute has now spread to the literary sphere, with bookshops in Beijing removing books by Japanese authors from their shelves, according to reports.

The popular Wangfujing bookstore has pulled Chinese versions of Haruki Murakami's bestseller 1Q84, as well as other Japanese authors' titles, said the Japan Times. "We don't sell Japanese books," said a shop clerk, adding, "I don't know much about the reason, but perhaps it is because China-Japan relations are not good."

Another large Beijing store was also getting rid of books by Japanese authors and those relating to Japan, according to Japanese newspaper the Asahi Shimbun. "It's because of the deteriorating ties between China and Japan," a bookseller was quoted as saying.

The Asahi Shimbun reported that the Beijing Municipal Bureau of Press and Publication had instructed publishers not to release books relating to Japan, or by Japanese authors, an allegation denied by the bureau.

A source told the Guardian that at times of heightened sensitivity, it is common practice for the Chinese government to instruct retailers on what they can and can't sell. "There are instructions from time to time, especially at moments of internal instability, such as this, but they will be short-lived," said the source.