Indonesian-born Clarissa Goenawan's debut novel, "Rainbirds," is set in Japan, was written in Singapore, and was first published in the U.S. making it something of a transnational literary tour de force.

When asked about his affection for Pikachu, American author Kenny Fries breaks into laughter. No, he says in an interview via Skype, the iconic Pokemon character had nothing to do with his decision to come to Japan. He came initially because, after applying for ...

Way before Marie Kondo taught us how to clean out our closets, American Andy Couturier was learning how to live without extra stuff from folks in rural Japan.

"I was a little nervous about going into this restaurant at first," says Hawaiian Lance Kita as he leads our small group to a small windowless shop. We approach a sliding door with slotted wood, resembling a bamboo forest. I'm surprised by his confession. As ...

Chizuru Akitani, daughter of violinist Hiro Akitani, a National Living Treasure, and American Elena, who committed suicide by jumping from the Naruto Bridge, has apparently inherited her mother's depression. With her mother gone and her father remote, 12-year-old Chizuru has little defense against the ...

Having planned a family trip from our home in Tokushima Prefecture to Kobe and Osaka, we packed our 14-year-old daughter's wheelchair in the car and took the highway to Awaji Island. By flashing our daughter's red techo (an identification card for individuals with disabilities available ...

As a child living in a tiny apartment in Singapore, Wena Poon listened to radio plays broadcast in a variety of languages and watched TV — everything from Chinese sword-fighting operas to popular American series such as "M*A*S*H." "There was nowhere to go outside," ...

Although born in Japan, Mariko Nagai, author of the just-published novel-in-verse "Dust of Eden," was raised mostly in Belgium and the United States. "I grew up all over the world because of my father's job," she says. "First in Belgium, where I spoke Flemish then ...