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November 30, 2023
 

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CULTURE

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Trial participants listen to wartime leader Hideki Tojo give his defiant testimony in the old Army Ministry courtroom during the International Military Tribunal for the Far East in January 1948.
CULTURE / Books
'Judgment at Tokyo' investigates powers at play in postwar tribunal
Gary J. Bass' new book thoroughly delves into the prosecution of Japanese military atrocities and its divisive legacy.
CULTURE / Books
‘What You are Looking For is in the Library’: A tender tale with a touch of whimsy
Five readers discover comfort and direction at their local library in Michiko Aoyama’s novel, which offers a believable take on modern life in Tokyo.
CULTURE / Books
Location is everything in 'The Heron Catchers'
Author David Joiner ties the local crafts and literary history of Ishikawa Prefecture's Yamanaka Onsen into his new novel.
“Godzilla and Godzilla Raids Again” fully articulates the intentions behind the creation of Japan’s most infamous "kaijū" (monster) before Toho Studios releases the newest chapter in the “Godzilla” saga.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 29, 2023
‘Godzilla’ novellas expand on infamous monster’s origins
By Kris Kosaka
Shigeru Kayama’s entertaining and informative stories delve deep into the underlying pacifist beliefs of the entire “Godzilla” franchise.
Japan’s crime thriller genre owes a lot to Kido Okamoto and Taro Hirai, who is better known by his pen name of Edogawa Ranpo
CULTURE / Books
Oct 22, 2023
Japanese thrillers and crime mysteries to curl up with this fall
By Kris Kosaka
As the nights grow colder, pick up a recommended read in crime fiction and dive deep into this unique intersection of art and entertainment.
A 19-year-old girl plagued with strange visions sets out with her younger brother to uncover the truth about her perfect family in Banana Yoshimoto’s “The Premonition.”
CULTURE / Books
Oct 14, 2023
Banana Yoshimoto’s new book is a sickly sweet fantasy
By Thu-Huong Ha
In “The Premonition,” the characters exist in a dream-like state of sweetness and steer clear of examining complex questions.
Steve Kemme's "The Outsider" offers insight into Lafcadio Hearn's prodigious talent with the pen and the development of his style over the course of his career.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 8, 2023
'The Outsider' brings out colorful personality of one of history’s great Japanophiles
By David McElhinney
A new biography on Lafcadio Hearn charts the course of the writer’s 54-year life and shows how his years in Cincinnati and Japan were formative periods.
Writer Jon Fosse poses in Oslo in 2015. Since his debut novel was published in 1983, Fosse has written poems, essays, children’s books, plays and novels.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 5, 2023
Norwegian playwright and author Jon Fosse wins literature Nobel
By Kathleen Benoza
The Swedish Academy cited Fosse's “innovative plays and prose which give voice to the unsayable.”
The Mikomotojima Lighthouse in Shimoda, Shizuoka Prefecture, was designed by Richard Henry Brunton, a Scotsman who was employed by the Meiji government to build lighthouses across Japan in the 19th century. In "The Japan Lights," author Iain Maloney connects his personal travels and experiences in Japan to Brunton's pursuits.
CULTURE / Books
Oct 1, 2023
'The Japan Lights' traces a journey of self-discovery in the wake of 3/11
By Kris Kosaka
Iain Maloney's wise book connects his travels in Japan to the pursuits of Richard Henry Brunton, a Scotsman who built lighthouses across the country.
In "Dragon Palace," Hiromi Kawakami's new collection of short stories, middle-aged and elderly characters inhabit a world in which sexuality and attractiveness are liberated.
CULTURE / Books
Sep 17, 2023
Hiromi Kawakami's 'Dragon Palace': Delightfully raunchy and funny
By Thu-Huong Ha
In her new collection of short stories, the author returns to a world of fluid transfiguration with dry matter-of-factness and knowing humor.

A new wave of Chinese elites is flocking to Japan
Toyosu, a reclaimed area and former industrial zone in the Tokyo Bay area, has become popular with a new wave of Chinese immigrants for its breathtaking views of the Tokyo skyline.
Japan is enticing for digital nomads, but visa hurdles remain
Akina Shu has visited around 50 countries as a speaker and ambassador on the digital nomad lifestyle since 2020.
Reluctant CEO becomes billionaire at Netflix rival in Japan
Yasuhide Uno, Usen-Next Holdings CEO, has transformed his father’s company into Netflix’s biggest competitor in Japan.
Children of Jehovah’s Witnesses submit report detailing sexual abuse
Ayuko Kato, minister in charge of child policies. A group of children of Jehovah’s Witnesses have submitted a report to the Child and Family Agency detailing sexual abuse.
Wasabi effective in improving memory of elderly: study
A research has found that hexaraphane — a component found in wasabi — helps improve the episodic and working memories of elderly people.
Children of Jehovah’s Witnesses submit report detailing sexual abuse
Ayuko Kato, minister in charge of child policies. A group of children of Jehovah’s Witnesses have submitted a report to the Child and Family Agency detailing sexual abuse.
Japan is enticing for digital nomads, but visa hurdles remain
Akina Shu has visited around 50 countries as a speaker and ambassador on the digital nomad lifestyle since 2020.
Nature-focused theme park to open in Okinawa in 2025
A rendering of the new Junglia theme park scheduled to open in Okinawa in 2025
Japan to start trial of over-the-counter sales of morning-after pills
Customers look at products on display outside a drug store in Tokyo on Friday. As part of a trial, 145 stores nationwide will be allowed to sell morning-after pills until the end of March.
Bedbugs are spreading in South Korea and China. Is Japan next?
A bed bug in Paris in September

Podcast

An official shot for this year’s lineup for NHK’s annual “Kohaku Uta Gassen.”
Things get warmer with Xi; Johnny’s get the cold shoulder

Longform

Yoshiko Koide sits in a classroom at Nagoya College where she teaches a Japanese-language observation seminar.
How a dictionary came to spark outrage among the web’s otaku
By Thu-Huong Ha and Yukana Inoue

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Italian cuisine that conveys appeal of Hachinohe
Italian cuisine that conveys appeal of Hachinohe

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