Emilio Insolera's "Sign Gene" gave the world its first deaf superheroes. But after writing, directing, producing and starring in the film himself, you might argue that Insolera is the one with the superpowers. And the filmmaker says he can thank a stint in Japan for ...

"Taketori Monogatari," or "The Old Bamboo-Hewer's Story," is a fascinating piece of early Japanese literature, well worth the short read. Written in the 10th century, it is one of the earliest known Japanese prose narratives, and the story recounts the beloved folktale of the ...

Early on, Yuko Tsushima broke the boundaries of the traditional Japanese I-novel, giving voice to a voiceless minority by authentically depicting the struggles of single mothers in society as a single mother herself.

Beautifully written, thought-provoking and utterly immersive, Nahoko Uehashi's "The Beast Player" uses the genre of fantasy to question the political realities of human tyranny over the natural world.

Hard-boiled, multifaceted writer Joel Rose paired up with the late Anthony Bourdain to pen "Anthony Bourdain's Hungry Ghosts," an illustrated collection of fright and food evoking the Japanese kaidan (ghost story) tradition.

"No-No Boy," a 1957 novel by Japanese-American writer John Okada, unravels the complicated, varied perspectives of Japanese-Americans in the aftermath of World War II under the shadow of the internment camps of the American northwest.

From her distinctive style to her choice of topics, Mieko Kawakami is both a writer's writer and an entertainer, a thinker and constantly evolving stylist who manages to be highly readable and immensely popular.

For any fan of speculative fiction, Hybrid Child presents a sprawling, imaginative excursion into the unknown that also predicts current familiar thematic questionings on gender politics or weaponized robots.

In the midst of Showa Era (1926-89) Japan, with patriarchy dominating and imperialism rising, a young female playwright, Fumiko Enchi (1905-86), started a literary career that would eventually lead her to become a passionate advocate for female empowerment, while casting a critical, penetrating eye ...

According to author and translator Adam L. Kern, there's a pervasive myth that haiku is only nature poetry, that it is always serious and connected to Zen, that there are hardly any women haiku poets. But haiku covers far greater ground.