Seicho Matsumoto’s “Suspicion” is based on a true story known as “the Beppu 300 million yen insurance murder,” swapping the real-life husband with a former Tokyo hostess.
CULTURE / Books
May 25, 2025
Truth is slippery in ‘Suspicion,’ a detective story based on a true crime
Seicho Matsumoto’s mystery novella is based on 1974’s “Beppu 300 million yen insurance murder.”
After last year’s controversy over using AI to write about 5% of her novel, Rie Qudan was asked by an advertising magazine to write a short story where she uses AI for 95% of it. The resulting short story, “Kage no ame” (“Rain Shadow”), was published March 25.  
CULTURE / Books
May 24, 2025
AI fiction is already here. Are humans ready?
Last year, Rie Qudan faced controversy after admitting that chatGPT wrote 5% of her novel. Now she’s published a story she only wrote 5% herself, leaving 95% to AI.
Teru Hasegawa, Esperanto name Verda Majo, wrote leftist political essays during WWII.
CULTURE / Books
May 20, 2025
A window into the mind of Esperantist and political activist Teru Hasegawa
During WWII, a young Japanese woman resisted her country's descent into fascism by writing leftist essays, now collected and translated in "Whispers of a Storm."
On the surface, "Wildcat Dome" tells a personal story of damaged children — now adults — bound together by tragedy. Underneath, there’s a constant undercurrent of political consequence, invisible and pervasive like radioactive particles.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 26, 2025
‘Wildcat Dome’ challenges Japan's historical narratives
Prolific writer Yuko Tsushima explores themes of militarization, colonialism and occupation through the identities of mixed-race orphans in postwar Japan.
In the dystopian society of Sayaka Murata's latest book to come out in English, sex between married couples is considered incest and therefore taboo.
CULTURE / Books
Apr 14, 2025
'Vanishing World': Sayaka Murata’s vision of a sex-hating society
In Sayaka Murata’s latest book to come out in English, sex between married couples is considered taboo, and humans reproduce predominantly via IVF.  
Yuki Tejima, who runs the Instagram account booknerdtokyo, hesitated to try her hand at literary translation until she won an award at the International Translation Contest.
CULTURE / Books
Mar 29, 2025
Yuki Tejima's metamorphosis from bookworm to literary translator
An Instagram “bookfluencer” and professional translator for over 10 years, Tejima’s love of books was, strangely enough, a hurdle to working in literary translation.
Novelist Genki Kawamura wrote in the dedication to his “One Hundred Flowers” novel that his grandmother’s memories “bloomed like a hundred flowers” at the close of her life.
CULTURE / Books
Mar 22, 2025
'One Hundred Flowers': A moving exploration of loss, love and living with dementia
Author Genki Kawamura drew inspiration from his grandmother's experiences to thoughtfully portray a woman suffering from dementia in his novel.

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Mount Fuji is considered one of Japan's most iconic symbols and is a major draw for tourists. It's still a mountain, though, and potential hikers need to properly prepare for any climb.
What it takes to save lives on Mount Fuji