A delightful book of short stories from Kyoko Nakajima, author of The Little House, and winner of the Naoki Prize
This is a delightful book of short stories from Kyoko Nakajima, author of The Little House, and winner of the Naoki Prize. I’m half-way through Things Remembered and Things Forgotten, (transl. Ginny Tapley Takemori) but my favorite story so far is “The Life Story of a Sewing Machine,” which describes the model number 100-30 machine, More…
Shortlisted for the 2013 Man Asian Literary Prize, “Strange Weather in Tokyo” is a story of loneliness and love that defies age.
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Limited time only deal for US$1.99 (on Amazon Kindle, Barnes & Noble Nook, Apple Books) See Where to Buy links to the left. Shortlisted for the 2013 Man Asian Literary Prize, Strange Weather in Tokyo is a story of loneliness and love that defies age. Book Description: Tsukiko is in her late 30s and living More…
Limited time only Amazon Kindle deal for US$1.99 (Amazon US, Canada) or 150 yen (Amazon Japan) Book Description The Hundred Secret Senses is an exultant novel about China and America, love and loyalty, the identities we invent and the true selves we discover along the way. Olivia Laguni is half-Chinese, but typically American in her More…
A modern recasting of stories surrounding Japan’s famous mountain witch.
(Stone Bridge Press, June 22, 2021) Review by Jann Williams Over two-thirds of Japan is covered with forested mountains. Traditionally these are sacred places, viewed as dwelling places of the dead and ancestral spirits, and as a liminal space between this world and the other world. Yama, the Japanese word for ‘mountain,’ is reflected in More…
Yasuda has provided a witty and fresh approach to this art.
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Review by Cody Poulton This slim volume, at just over 100 pages, is a primer to noh, Japan’s classic performance art. First appearing in Japanese, the text was translated by Kawamoto Nozomu, who was raised in the United States and currently trains with the author in noh utai singing. The work was published by Japan More…
By CJ Fentiman From Chapter 3: A Cat’s Resentment (toward those who help it) (猫の逆恨み / Neko No Sakaurami) I’d had kittens before, but none with such a destructive nature. Finally, I decided it was time to take him to the vets and get some advice. Maybe there was something physically wrong with him that More…
It is that so-called “insignificant encounter” that Murakami focuses on to develop beautiful short stories.
It is that so-called “insignificant encounter” that Murakami focuses on to develop beautiful short stories.
Review by Cody Poulton It’s a bitter irony that a festival that is nearly as old as Kyoto, dedicated to ridding the city of pestilence in the hot and sticky month of July, was cancelled by the world-wide coronavirus pandemic last year. 2021 bodes no better: the great processions of splendid floats through the city, More…
Mystery Writers of America’s story collection When a Stranger Comes to Town, edited by Michael Koryta was just released (April 21, 2021)! Thanks to Hanover Square Press and Tina deBellegarde for giving BOA permission to run the following story from the anthology. It’s been said that all great literature boils down to one of two More…
Twenty-four stories in a collection of climate fiction that seek to imagine what cities might look like in a future of multi-species co-existence and green justice.
Review by Leanne Ogasawara Set primarily in the Asia-Pacific, the twenty-four stories of this new collection of climate fiction seek to imagine what cities might look like in a future of multi-species co-existence and green justice. Firmly planted in the new genre of solarpunk, the stories are filled with a polyphony of voices—some non-human and More…
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