Hideo Yokoyama's 'Seventeen': A plane crash, a newsroom, an all-engrossing thriller
Based on the author's own experiences as an investigative reporter at a local paper in Gunma Prefecture, "Seventeen" uses the 1985 crash of Japan Airlines Flight 123 as the catalyst for a gripping newsroom drama.
'Ask A North Korean' gets its answers from the source
Daniel Tudor's "Ask A North Korean" is testimony that ordinary North Koreans have more in common with the rest of us than many would have you believe.
'Shinrin-Yoku: The Art and Science of Forest Bathing': It's simple, get out into nature when you can
According to Qing Li, forest bathing is a cure-all: Time spent with trees can boost the immune system, increase energy, decrease anxiety, depression and anger, reduce stress and bring about a state of relaxation.
Clarissa Goenawan's 'Rainbirds': A murder, a cram school, a mystery
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.
'Hiroshima Boy': Mas Arai takes a well-deserved bow in the saga's final mystery
Masao "Mas" Arai, a humble gardener from Southern California, is a righteous dude. Carrying the ashes of his lifelong friend and fellow hibakusha (A-bomb survivor) Haruo Mukai, the 86-year-old Arai arrives for what he realizes will be his last visit to Japan.
'Sweet Bean Paste' offers an original take on the odd couple genre
Durian Sukegawa's novel is an original twist on the "odd couple" genre, in which two unlikely companions find they have much to offer each other, and retains much of the humor that genre entails.
Based on interviews with the hijackers and their wives over several trips to North Korea, journalist, author and editor Koji Takazawa's "Destiny" tells the story of the group of student radicals who hijacked a plane and redirected it to North Korea in 1970.
