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April 30, 2024
 

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Kris Kosaka

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Kris Kosaka
Kris Kosaka, a resident of Japan since 1996, contributes regularly to The Japan Times. She is a lecturer at Meiji Gakuin University in the Faculty of International Studies.
For Kris Kosaka's latest contributions to The Japan Times, see below:
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Mar 13, 2021
Cathy Hirano: Translation is a door to another world
Translator Cathy Hirano balances her time between freelance translations and young adult literature, and has earned accolades for both. Although her most recognized translations are for lifestyle guru Marie Kondo’s wildly popular works, starting with “The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up,” Hirano’s translations have also won awards in children’s literature.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Mar 6, 2021
Foraging in Japan: What to eat and where to find it
In her book, “Eating Wild Japan,” Winifred Bird traverses the country searching for edible plants and the stories of those who pick them, eat them and live surrounded by them.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Feb 20, 2021
A daughter reclaims her mother’s heritage in ‘Speak, Okinawa’
Elizabeth Miki Brina's memoir reveals how country and culture are connected to identity by weaving her narrative with the history of Okinawa.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Feb 20, 2021
Stephen Snyder: Distilling the essence of a literary work
In recent years, Japanese literature has earned a reputation abroad for its edgy, socially-conscious fiction, which translator Stephen Snyder, 63, has had a hand in encouraging. Snyder has translated titles like “Coin Locker Babies” by Ryu Murakami, “Out” by Natsuo Kirino and last year’s finalist for the International Booker Prize, “The Memory Police” by Yoko Ogawa, which take on issues such as abandoned children, marginalized female factory workers and the role of literature in oppressed societies.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Jan 23, 2021
Poetry and translation are intertwined for Sawako Nakayasu
For poet Sawako Nakayasu, 45, a multicultural upbringing is what forged her distinctive perspective of language and artistic expression. Nakayasu was born in Yokohama and moved to the United States with her family when she was six. Although she was raised mostly in the U.S., Nakayasu also lived in France and China. In 2002, Nakayasu, who was already a published poet by then, became interested in translation while earning her Master of Fine Arts at Brown University.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Jan 16, 2021
Jeffrey Angles: Being a translator is an honor and a responsibility
Not only is Jeffrey Angles an award-winning translator of contemporary Japanese works, he’s also an award-winning Japanese poet. In 2017, the American writer received the Yomiuri Prize for Literature for his collection of poems written in Japanese, "Watashi no hizukehenkosen" (“My International Date Line”), making him one of a handful of non-Japanese writers to win the prize.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Dec 26, 2020
‘Love Child’: A labor of love 20 years in the making
Rakuko Rubin's collection of short stories that traverse bicultural themes and universal mileposts in life was translated by her husband, Jay Rubin.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / 2020 in review
Dec 19, 2020
Our critics’ favorite books published in 2020
As 2021 approaches, six Japan Times book reviewers look back on their top reads released in English this year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Dec 12, 2020
For Meredith McKinney, translations must be ‘as natural as breathing’
Inspired by haiku translated by R.H. Blythe, Meredith McKinney studied Japanese, moved to Kyoto and eventually built up a career in translating Japanese literature.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Nov 28, 2020
'There's No Such Thing as an Easy Job': How hard is it to find meaning in the modern workplace?
In Kikuko Tsumura's surreal and humorous novel, “There's No Such Things as an Easy Job,” an unnamed narrator sets her sights on trivial work after giving up her 14-year career.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Nov 14, 2020
Michael Emmerich: Wisely navigating the levels of translation
The UCLA professor and professional translator says there is a distinct pleasure in developing work in prose styles that are not his own.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 31, 2020
Calling out the U.S. military for ‘Poisoning the Pacific’
Journalist Jon Mitchell has spent 10 years probing the contamination of the Asia-Pacific region by the American and Japanese governments.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Oct 17, 2020
Motoyuki Shibata is always ready to listen to writers’ voices
The founder of the literary magazine Monkey says a translator's first priority should be to honor the pleasure of reading.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 3, 2020
Sayaka Murata's 'Earthlings': Alienated misfits fight against the ties that bind
Sayaka Murata's latest novel is an incisive expose of societal pressures and expectations, and touches on taboo topics such as abuse and incest.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 26, 2020
‘Reconciliation’ is an exemplar of the introspective I-novel genre
Naoya Shiga's confessional, autobiographical novella stands the test of time with its themes of relationships, grief and aging.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Sep 19, 2020
Polly Barton: A heart set on literary translation
The Bristol-based translator balances art-related texts with literary translation and has just finished her first original work, “Fifty Sounds.”
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Sep 5, 2020
‘Astral Season, Beastly Season’: The ambiguity and conflicting extremes of being a teenager
Poet Tahi Saihate's novel centered on adolescence offers an authentic yet compassionate view of searching for meaning and human connections.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / The World of Translators
Aug 22, 2020
Jay Rubin: An academic’s path to translation
To introduce our readers to translators of Japanese literature, we'll be highlighting one working translator each month, starting with Jay Rubin.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 8, 2020
Chilling Japanese ghost tales with contemporary twists to help you beat the summer heat
Here's a look at modern takes on Japanese ghost stories that will give you chills and thrills during Japan's spookiest time of year.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 8, 2020
‘Kiki’s Delivery Service’: New translation of Japan’s favorite witch delivers
Emily Balistrieri's English translation brings the magical adventures of an adolescent witch to a new generation of readers.
When will Japan intervene to support the yen?
Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki has reiterated the government's readiness to take an appropriate action as the yen continues to slide against the U.S. dollar.
'So hot you can't breathe': Extreme heat hits the Philippines
A pedestrian cools himself with a folding hand fan as he waits for a ride along a road in Manila on Wednesday, as extreme heat hit the Philippines.
Raising kids in Japan as a single parent? It takes a village.
Making things work as a foreign, single mother in Japan isn't easy, but these tips and tricks can help you through the hardest parts.
Yen rebounds strongly after first slide past ¥160 since 1990
The yen dropped to ¥160.245 per dollar on Monday before heading into the other direction to ¥155.01 amid speculation of an intervention by Japanese currency authorities.
JAL cancels international flight after captain gets drunk at Dallas hotel
A Japan Airlines' flight from Dallas to Tokyo was canceled last week after its captain got drunk at a local hotel.
Climate change, chalky grains and the risks for Japan’s rice farmers
A farmer plants seedlings in Satsumasendai, Kagoshima Prefecture. Japan’s self sufficiency rate for rice is nearly 100%, compared with 38% for food overall, on a calorie basis.
Japan wants you to spend more with ‘luxury tourism’
Performers play a traditional drum unique to Wajima, Ishikawa Prefecture, in the prefectural capital of Kanazawa on March 16 to mark the extension of the Hokuriku Shinkansen line to Tsuruga Station in Fukui Prefecture.
Theaster Gates’ ambitious ‘Afro-Mingei’ brings Black Chicago to Tokyo
Theaster Gates' “A Heavenly Chord” lines up church pews before seven speakers and a Hammond B3 organ, a type of electric organ prevalent in Black American churches.
Casa del Cibo: A thriving jewel born from Tohoku’s harsh past
When chef Ryohei Ikemi moved to Hachinohe, Aomori Prefecture, and opened Casa del Cibo in 2011, it was the first proper Italian restaurant in the city.
Town to block view of Mount Fuji in response to overtourism
The town government of Fujikawaguchiko, Yamanashi Prefecture, decided to set up a 2.5-meter-high screen to prevent tourists from taking pictures of Mount Fuji looming behind a convenience store.

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