Japanese Literature discussion
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message 51:
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Lynda
(new)
Nov 12, 2021 09:01PM
Hi, I'm Lynda and I'm joining the group from New Zealand. I lived in Japan for 18 months and have travelled back twice since. It was my love of Japan that got me interested in Japanese literature and I have a number of Japanese authors whose books sit on my library shelves waiting to be read. My goal for Goodreads 2022 is to devote as much time as I can to this genre. I look forward to reading and interacting with the group.
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Hi all! I'm Katie, a Canadian living in Japan. I'm making a concerted effort to read Japanese literature in Japanese this year. I read a lot and I read widely, but I've got a ways to go in terms of Japanese fluency. Hope this group will be motivating in that regard!
Hi everyone! I'm from Japan and currently living in Singapore. I'm very excited to know there're so many people who read and appreciate Japanese literature! My favorite author is Banana Yoshimoto, and I'm always trying to read books from more authors. Looking forward to hearing about new perspectives on Japanese literature.
Hi all!My name is Ariana I'm in my early 30s, I've been interested in Japanese literature since I was about 14 when I started listening to Japanese rock music. The musicians would often reference Japanese Literature in their lyrics that I was unaware of so I began to seek it out and educate myself. The first Japanese novel I read was The Tale of Genji, which I enjoyed immensely. Since then I've read the works of authors such as Kazuo Ishiguro, Haruki Murakami, Shusaku Endo, Osamu Dezai, Keigo Higashino, Miyuki Miyabe, and my personal favorite Natsuo Kirino. If I see an English translation of her's I always pick it up.
Ariana wrote: "Hi all!My name is Ariana I'm in my early 30s, I've been interested in Japanese literature since I was about 14 when I started listening to Japanese rock music. The musicians would often reference ..."
Welcome, Ariana. I'm gobsmacked that you started with Genji. Much respect.
Katie and Saki - we're glad you joined us!
Welcome, Ariana!I'm impressed that you started with The Tale of Genji! It's a very long read and very far away culturally from the 21st century. I could see a lot of people starting that and then giving up.
Carol wrote: "Ariana wrote: "Hi all!My name is Ariana I'm in my early 30s, I've been interested in Japanese literature since I was about 14 when I started listening to Japanese rock music. The musicians would o..."
I was really motivated on a flight to Tokyo when I was 16 and really into annotating lol, I don't think I could have hyperfocused on such classic literature if I wasn't in such a sterile environment for 12 hrs and super excited to go see the historical locations ^-^;;
Hellooo I’m Gabby,I live in the states and am a university student studying biology. I am starting to learn jap and will be getting a minor in East Asian studies. I would like to grow my understanding of Japan culturally and historically through more books! If anyone has good starting books to read in Japanese I would greatly appreciate.
Welcome, Gabby!I studied Japanese in college alongside being a math major, and got my East Asian studies minor, too.
We have thread for starting recommendations in Japanese literature. We haven't gotten any feedback from beginners who tried these, and would appreciate some help improving the list: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Hello,my name is Nike and I'm a Swedish woman who has always been interested in Southeast, South and East Asia so of course that includes Japanese culture. Nice to have come across this group =)
Hi!! I'm Avery. I've been a member of the group for a good while but I am finally introducing myself today. My intro to Japanese fiction was Murakami's after Dark when I was 17 and it completely changed my life. I've read everything he's written since. I'm currently reading Underground by him. My goal for this year is to get back to reading more Japanese fiction (or just more translated fiction in general). So excited to be a part of this group.
Carol wrote: "Welcome, Nike and Avery!"Thank you =)
Sup! My name is Monique. I read the Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and fell down a rabbit hole of Japanese lit. So here I am now, as of this moment I'm debating to either read From the Fatherland with Love by Ryu Murakami, A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oe, or The Temple of the Golden Pavillion by Yukio Mishima. Anyone care to help with this decision?
Welcome, Monique! May you never find your way out of the hole!I read Temple of the Golden Pavilion shortly before A Personal Matter. Either is a good choice.
Ryu Murakami doesn't appeal to me, but does appeal to others, and I haven't read that one. So while I'm tempted to say "don't do it!", I can't really go that far.
If you're interested in recommendations, wee have a beginner's thread at: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
Thank you for that thread. I've seen a lot of reviews for different books. There's A LOT to cover. I shall further investigate and post what I chose on the currently reading on my page. Thanks!I'm currently reading Black Rain by Masuji Ibuse.
Monique wrote: "Sup! My name is Monique. I read the Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and fell down a rabbit hole of Japanese lit. So here I am now, as of this moment I'm debating to either read From the Fatherland with..."Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa looks cool, I might have to give that a read!
Mars wrote: "Monique wrote: "Sup! My name is Monique. I read the Memory Police by Yoko Ogawa and fell down a rabbit hole of Japanese lit. So here I am now, as of this moment I'm debating to either read From the..."It's eerie in my opinion. It also gave me softer 1984 vibes. I definitely was able to visualize the setting and felt as though I watched a movie as I read. I stopped reading fiction for years because I was unable to paint a picture for myself as I read and this book has pulled me back into fiction genres.
We had The Memory Police as a group read back in 2019. Feel free to contribute your thoughts there!https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...
And when she woke the next morning, hearts had vanished from the world.
Bill wrote: "And when she woke the next morning, hearts had vanished from the world."A perfect reference:)
Hi everyone. I just found this group and I hope it is still active. I was an exchange student to Japan in high school and I am going to go back to school for East Asian studies. I am excited to get recommendations.
Welcome, Jennifer!Yes, we're active! We just scheduled four more books for group reads.
Bill wrote: "Welcome, Jennifer!Yes, we're active! We just scheduled four more books for group reads."
Awesome. I am so excited to be here!
I’m Arancha, I’m from Madrid, Spain. I currently work as an architect and I am coursing a MA in Arts and cultural management. Since 2 years I am quite interested into Japanese stuff, especially anime BSO, which I use a lot to work and even during my workout, exercising yoga! Around 2019 I also started reading Japanese writers (Ishiguro, Banana Yosimoto, Hiromi Kawakami, Mieko Kawakami and Murakami of course) Now I am more into historical books, but time to time I enjoy reading Japanese books, so here I am searching for some of your recommendations :)
Nice to meet you all!
Arancha
Hi my name is Kendall and I am 15 years old and live in America. I just started picking up reading as a hobby earlier this year (and not just reading from time to time). Someone recommended me Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami earlier this year and I liked it a lot so I became interested in reading other Japanese works that’s not just manga. I have two cats that I love a lot and I like to draw and help people so when I get older I want to work as an art therapist for children. I think I’m the youngest and most inexperienced reader here Lol.
Great to see so many people from around the world sharing their love of Japanese literature. I myself grew up in Japan and later lived there again off and on for many more years. I've worked as a translator, editor, and businessman, all the while writing my own fiction and drama. I'm living in Connecticut in the US now. Some of my favorite writers: Soseki, Kawabata, Tanizaki, and Shimazaki Toson (Before the Dawn).
Hi everyone,My name is Sanne and I'm from the Netherlands.
I majored in Japanstudies in university and also followed some classes on Japanese lit. (both more contemporary as well as the 'classics') and I loved it!
Unfortunately, not many of my fellow Japanstudies students are such avid readers as I am. Every time I ask for recommendations they just mentioned something about Murakami and then switch topics... And since Murakami doesn't really do it for me, I decided to look for Japanese-literature-lovers-kindred spirits here :)
So far, I've read most things by Soseki, Ishiguro, Tanizaki, Kawabata, and Banana Yoshimoto. I also really enjoyed the Tale of Genji, Rashomon and the Pillow Book. And currently, I'm rereading the 'Before the coffee gets cold' - series by Toshikazu Kawaguchi, but this time I'm reading it in Japanese instead of English.
Looking really forward to getting to know you all and exchange the literature love
Sanne-Maxime wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Sanne and I'm from the Netherlands.
I majored in Japanstudies in university"
Ha, you're my 後輩 then :D Welcome to the group!
Omg how fun! Nice to meet you :)
The Bells of Old Tokyo: Meditations on Time and a City If you would like a book that is a history of Tokyo, and thus of Japan, you might like this one. Anna Sherman, the author, tells the story of the origins and significance of bells in major towns in Tokyo. The bells were the huge and deeply resonant ones. They were sounded at various times of the day and night to let the townspeople know what time it was, since there were no clocks back then. Today, these bells are sounded at New Years, at least, for people to learn or remember how life used to be. Intertwined is the history of each location. If you enjoy nostalgia, which many Japanese do, you will love this book!
Sanne-Maxime wrote: "Hi everyone,My name is Sanne and I'm from the Netherlands.
I majored in Japanstudies in university and also followed some classes on Japanese lit. (both more contemporary as well as the 'classics..."
I do understand you about Murakami. Everyone mentions it, as though it is a Holy Grail, the way teenage boys mention Tarantino, when asked about films, as though it is some untouchable wonder. Murakami doesn't cut it for me either. I see that you also like Japanese classics, have you read anything by Fumiko Enchi or Kenzaburo Oe? I highly recommend.
Hi Diana,Your untouchable wonder comment really cracked me up xD
It is a very accurate description though haha
I haven't read Enchi or Oe yet, I'll definitely add those to my tbr! Thank you :)
And Marcia thank you for your recommendation as well of course!
The litmus test of real Japanese literature readers is when they question of the status of Murakami Haruki :)
Bill wrote: "The litmus test of real Japanese literature readers is when they question of the status of Murakami Haruki :)"True. But that seems risky out in the wild : )
Please elaborate about Murakami. I personally feel like he keeps writing the same book and stopped following him.
Hello!my journey began one day when I decided to learn Japanese. At that time I was about to finish my education as a pattern maker and I had discovered several Japanese fashion artists who raised my attention to Japan and the Japanese culture. Meanwhile it is not only the language that I'm keenly interested in but also the culture itself and how better to dive into it other than reading?
Lately I have read some books from Murakami and Soseki that I liked most and I have already a reading list for the coming year and I'm curious about it.
Carol wrote: "Bill wrote: "The litmus test of real Japanese literature readers is when they question of the status of Murakami Haruki :)"True. But that seems risky out in the wild : )"
...the best Murakami in Japanese lit is Ryu! :-)
Tanya wrote: "Please elaborate about Murakami. I personally feel like he keeps writing the same book and stopped following him."I like Haruki, but I think what bothers many lovers of Japanese literature (including me) is that his mainstream success overshadows other more complex works - which is not his fault, but it's sad that he is by many considered to be representative and the epitomy of postmodern Japanese lit. I'm pretty sure he would be the first one to agree that this is unfortunate.
There is another argument that is often named, which is that his literature is very "western" - I think this is not a valid point though, because how dare people tell a Japanese author that he should be more Japanese, or how to be Japanese.
Hi everyone. I'm Matt. I came across the group while I was searching for information on Kōbō Abé translations - I'm looking forward to discovering a lot of new reading, and getting to know you all.
Hi everyone, my name is Laura, 26 years old from Barcelona. I just signed into this group and i'm so happy that many people around the world share my passion. I've been reading Japanese literature since more than 10 years ago and right now I'm looking for books written by Japanese women that have made an impact into the society. Hope to having very good conversations!
Hello everyone, I'm Monica. I'm 26 and started learning Japanese since April of last year. I also really like Japanese literature and hope to read more of it this year. よろしくお願いします。
Hello fellow Japanese literature enthusiasts, I'm 32 and from a little country from Eastern Europe (Romania) and I've been a long time fan of Japanese culture. It started with anime, then some video games, manga and a few years ago I began reading books written by Japanese authors.I believe the first book I read was Beauty and Sadness by Yasunari Kawabata, then went on to read a book by Yōko Ogawa that doesn't seem to have been translated to English (probably "Tender Sighs"? although it seems kind of that to translate the title as such).
I mostly love how different their literature is compared to what I'm used to, it's like taking a vacation in a place you're not familiar with and you're just enjoying the view.
Welcome, Garanwyn!A few of Ogawa's books have been translated into English, I thought with a good reception, but they're coming very slowly. I hope for more. Goodreads keeps recommending me books of hers in French!
Feel free to comment on what Japanese literature you're reading in our January in Japan thread, even if it's not available in English.
Hello,I'm a 37 year old American. I started reading Japanese literature maybe about 15 years ago. I was at Powell's (giant bookstore here) and there was a staff recommendation for both Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Murakami and The Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Mishima. I walked by it on several occasions and one day I bought both books and loved them both. I took to Mishima more and have all his novels (that have been translated anyway,) but have also read most things by Murakami, Kawabata, Ogawa and some by Dazai and Oe, but Mishima and Endo are still my personal favorites.
One of the things I enjoy about Japanese literature is they are often very different from the other books I'm used to reading, in structure, subject matter, etc.
Welcome, Benjamin!I was at Powell's once, about 15 years ago when I flew to Oregon for a family reunion. I don't recall what I bought, but I remember a great many staircases.
It still surprises me that not all of Mishima has been translated into English, and we continue to get 'new' books by him. With how popular he is, why did they wait so long?
re Mishima, I've no source for this other than a vague memory, but I believe he wrote a great deal, at speed, a deal of which are little more than pot-boilers. I understood that it was out of a desire to protect his 'literary' reputation that a lot remained untranslated. His estate is very protective of his image, I believe.
Japanese Literature
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Authors mentioned in this topic
Michiko Aoyama (other topics)Hiromi Kawakami (other topics)
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