The writers –
Now suppose the first place to start is with Haruki Murkami ,he is the most well-known contemporary Japanese writer ,I ve read a number of his books the novel south of the border west of the sun i really enjoyed ,also his non fiction collection of writing about running what i talk about when i talk about running with its Raymond Carver inspired title ,Gave a wonderful insight into the modern Japanese Psyche and the man himself ,other writers i ve read include Yukio Mishna’s the sailor who fell from grace with the sea which i didn’t enjoy so much but has stuck in my mind for a time after i read it .the female writer banana Yoshimoto whose kitchen I read years ago ,a family drama set in nineties Tokyo ,she is a firm favourite of a twitter friend and writer Dan Holloway one of the year zero collective .i also have a collection of short stories which featured 25 story’s from early to mid twentieth century japanese writers ,there are a lot of new writers appear from japan that i shall be reading future and people like endo .
World cup memories –
they have played last three world cup with 2002 being the only time they progress ,they had a wonderfully talented midfielder called hidetoshi Nakata he was dubbed the David beckam of japan and supported a very jazzy haircut ,they pull a big victory over russia in 2002 which was a mild shock as they were thought to be the outsiders in their group .
Japan does have so many great writers. I’ve only read a small number, but hopefully will get more here soon. And interesting that they beat out Russia, do you think they will make it far this year?
hi amy there in a really tough group ,i ll think they ll struggle get past first round ,yes a lot good japanese writers ,all the best stu
Would be interested in picking up this collection as Asian lit seems to be a reading weak point for me. Bellezza has everyone at it with her summer Japanese challenge so maybe this is the time to dive in.
BTW, love the World Cup tie-in thing you are doing!
thanks frances ,this collection is a good place to start think ivan morris the editor was a leader in japanese lit and a translator ,think still available in a different cover I ve had it for a number of years thou ,all the best stu
Oh gosh, another country’s literature to explore! The only Japanese writer I have read is Murakami – but I’ve read several of his – Kafka on the Shore being my favourite. I need to look into finding more Japanese authors to read I think as in many ways its such an alien culture to our own
me too tom maybe read 20 books and that just feels like a scratch on the surface ,i love getting insight into japanese mindset as it is so different from ours at times ,stu
You need to look up a publisher called Kodansha International on this one. They publish many titles as part of the Japanese Literature Project, an endeavour that seeks to put Japanese lit out there in a select few languages.
I don’t rate Murakami: read one, failed to get excited enough to finish another two. Kodansha published his first novel – Hear The Wind Sing – which you are unlikely to find outside of Japan. He doesn’t allow it, apparently.
Anyway, other writers: Kenzaburo Oe, Yasunari Kawabata, Juni’chiro Tanizaki, Akira Yoshimure, Ryunosuke Akutagawa, Ryu Murakami, Hitomi Kanehara – a few that jump to mind.
thanks stu ,,loads for me to look at myself ,i ve read probably 20 books and still feel a new comer to japanese lit
I really need to get my hands on What I Talk About When I Talk About Running. I thought I might not like Murakami’s non-fiction, but reading Underground a while back changed my mind.
its worth it he gives some wonderful insight to his life and japan ,all the best stu
I have a copy of Modern Japanese Stories somewhere – must dig it out! And I’m also a big fan of Murakami’s What I Talk About When I Talk About Running… very inspiring. Nakata Hide was Japan’s great hope. It was so sad after the last World Cup.
shame you,ve a hard group this time be hard to get through but you never know :),all the best
Great resource, Stu! Thanks for pointing it out (I’m hopelessly behind in my Google Reader). I think I’m going to read Natsuo Kirino for the challenge as intended to last year but didn’t get around to it (story of my life).
I adore Japanese literature.
your welcome claire ,all the best stu ,look forward to your review 🙂