Two women named for Japan's Akutagawa, Naoki literary awards
Two female novelists were selected Wednesday to receive Japan's prestigious Akutagawa and Naoki literary awards for their works, one of which depicts stalker-like behavior by a woman and the other ...
'The Ten Loves of Nishino': Ten tales to chronicle the growing sadness of an aging Casanova
Hiromi Kawakami's "The Ten Loves of Nishino," a collection of interconnected short stories centering around the titular character, is a poignant examination of gender relationships in Japan and a bittersweet ...
Taro Gomi: Still writing, still drawing, still beloved
Children's author Taro Gomi has authored over 450 books in his striking visual style, many of which — "Everyone Poops" included — have become classics of the genre, both in ...
Hot new Japan book releases for the sweltering summer
Time travel, yakuza, street photography and more feature in the best upcoming J-Lit releases for this summer (and beyond).
'The Last Train': High-stakes crime in glitzy Roppongi
"The Last Train" is a fast-paced police procedural with well-crafted prose, but suffers from a series of minor research errors.
'Inhabitation': A boy and a lizard, both down on their luck
Set in 1970s Osaka, "Inhabitation" is a surrealist, symbolic novel about one man's attempt to run from his past and build his own future.
'Gentle Black Giants': Diplomacy, sport and Japan's early love for baseball
"Gentle Black Giants" reveals a little-known chapter of Japanese baseball's early years and the impact that a collection of Negro Leagues players had on its development.
'Tokyo: City of Stories': An homage to the megacity
Cultural geographer Paul Waley adds to the slim body of academic work about Tokyo with an anthropologic take on the megacity's overlooked neighborhoods.
'Diva Nation': Feminine empowerment throughout Japan's history
"Diva Nation" pays tribute to Japanese women through the ages who have found a way to triumph despite societal restrictions.
'The Fourth String: A Memoir of Sensei and Me': Music, life and reflections on the space in between
Janet Pocorobba's "The Fourth String" reconfigures the typical Japan fish-out-of-water memoir into a meditation on music and mastery, relationships, culture and narrative.
'The Woman in the White Kimono': Love and loss in postwar Japan
Inspired by her own father's experiences in Japan, in "The Woman in the White Kimono" author Ana Jones pens a bittersweet love story that weaves together Japan's postwar past and present.
'Backlight': All alone in the wilds of Hokkaido
Based on a real-life incident in which a 7-year-old boy was abandoned in the woods by his parents, "Backlight" examines the search and rescue operation through a philosophical lens.
