夜長姫と耳男

乙女の本棚

by Ango Sakaguchi

人気シリーズ「乙女の本棚」第12弾は坂口安吾×イラストレーター・夜汽車のコラボレーション!
小説としても画集としても楽しめる、魅惑の1冊。全イラスト描き下ろし。

好きなものは呪うか殺すか争うかしなければならないのよ。
師匠の推薦で、夜長姫のために仏像を彫ることになった耳男。故郷を離れ姫の住む村へ向かった彼を待っていたのは、残酷で妖しい日々だった。

ノスタルジーを感じさせる美しい作品で大きな話題を呼んでいるイラストレーター・夜汽車が坂口安吾を描く、珠玉のコラボレーション・シリーズです。
自分の本棚に飾っておきたい。大切なあの人にプレゼントしたい。そんな気持ちになる「乙女の本棚」シリーズの1冊。

112 pages, Kindle Edition

Published November 21, 2019

About the author

From Niigata, Sakaguchi (坂口安吾) was one of a group of young Japanese writers to rise to prominence in the years immediately following Japan's defeat in World War II. In 1946 he wrote his most famous essay, titled "Darakuron" ("On Decadence"), which examined the role of bushido during the war. It is widely argued that he saw postwar Japan as decadent, yet more truthful than a wartime Japan built on illusions like bushido.
Ango was born in 1906, and was the 12th child of 13. He was born in the middle of a Japan perpetually at war. His father was the president of the Niigata Shinbun (Newspaper), a politician, and a poet.
Ango wanted to be a writer at 16. He moved to Tokyo at 17, after hitting a teacher who caught him truanting. His father died from brain cancer the following year, leaving his family in massive debt. At 20, Ango taught for a year as a substitute teacher following secondary school. He became heavily involved in Buddhism and went to University to study Indian philosophy, graduating at the age of 25. Throughout his career as a student, Ango was very vocal in his opinions.
He wrote various works of literature after graduating, receiving praise from writers such as Makino Shin’ichi. His literary career started around the same time as Japan’s expansion into Manchuria. He met his wife to be, Yada Tsuseko, at 27. His mother died when he was 37, in the middle of World War II. He struggled for recognition as a writer for years before finally finding it with “A Personal View of Japanese Culture” in 1942, and again with “On Decadence” in 1946. That same year, the Emperor formally declared himself a human being, not a god. Ango had a child at 48 with his second wife, Kaji Michio. He died from a brain aneurysm at age 48 in 1955.

Reviews

[Emi · Rating 4 out of 5]

妖しくて残酷で狂気的でひきこまれる話だった。挿絵と相まって美しいラスト。
坂口安吾作品はまだ本作と『桜の森の満開の下』しか読んだことないけど結構好き。