9 novels by contemporary Japanese writers

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

These deep books touch on the most complex topics - from the search for the meaning of being to the role of religion in human life. Lifehacker has collected a selection of important works of Japanese literature of recent years, which will not leave anyone indifferent.

1. "Golden Temple", Yukio Mishima

Yukio Mishima was nominated three times for the Nobel Prize, and his novel "The Golden Temple" is considered the most widely read work of Japanese literature.

The plot is based on real events: a Buddhist monk in a fit of madness burned down the Kinkaku-ji temple. Mishima was shocked by this story, and he supplemented it with a new meaning: Beauty becomes more perfect after death, when it is inaccessible.

2. "The Woman in the Sands" by Kobo Abe

Kobo Abe has always been concerned with the question of man's search for his place in the world. This is what his cult novel "Woman in the Sands" is about.

The main character is a teacher who is fond of insects. He sets out for a rare specimen, and on the way he has to stop for the night in a remote settlement. The dwellings there are located at the bottom of the sand pits. Having gone down there for the night, in the morning he realizes that it is impossible to get out. For years, he remains locked in a pit alone with a lonely woman.

3. "Kafka on the Beach" by Haruki Murakami

Haruki Murakami is perhaps the most popular Japanese writer today, with millions of books published worldwide. In his works, a leisurely narration is combined with a dynamic, twisted plot.

"Kafka on the Beach" is the story of two dissimilar people whose fates are closely intertwined: a teenager who ran away from home, and a feeble-minded old man Nakata, who knows how to talk to cats and predict the future.

4. "Inconsolable" by Kazuo Ishiguro

Ishiguro is often compared to Konrad and Nabokov. At the age of six, he and his parents emigrated to the UK, where he was able to create classical and at the same time authentic works in a non-native language.

Famed pianist Ryder travels to an unnamed European city to give a concert. All events seem to take place in a dream: the heroes wander through the inner labyrinths, from which there is no way out, do not hear each other, partially lose their memory. The novel "Inconsolable", filled with literary and musical allusions, is not easy to read, but incredibly interesting.

5. "Echo of Heaven" by Kenzaburo Oe

The story of a woman with two disabled children, who suffered many difficulties and losses. Oe masterfully describes how a person experiences grief and tries to cope with it. The main question that worries the writer is how many misfortunes a person can endure and then find the meaning of life.

6. "Salt of Life", Ishihara Shintaro

Ishihara Shintaro is a writer and former mayor of Tokyo. The heroes of his books destroy stereotypes about the Japanese as being slow, people who are always in their thoughts.

The Salt of Life is a collection of stories about those who spend their lives in constant motion. Most of these stories are related to the sea, fish, diving, boats and yachts. The book is a great adventure that can be read in one breath.

7. "Kitchen", Banana Yoshimoto

After graduating from the Faculty of Literature at the University of Japan, Yoshimoto released her debut novel "Kitchen", which immediately brought her worldwide fame. At the center of the story is Mikage, an unusual girl who most of all loves to be in the kitchen. Only there she forgets about her loneliness.

8. "Silence" by Endo Shusaku

The novel "Silence" is dedicated to real historical events, the clash of Eastern and European values. In the middle of the 17th century, the Japanese authorities organized brutal persecution of Christians in order to eradicate foreign religion. Despite this, three missionaries from Portugal make their way to a completely unfamiliar country to continue preaching.

9. "Gentle Cheeks", Natsuo Kirino

Five-year-old girl Yuka disappears without a trace on the Hokkaido mountain lake. Years later, everyone was desperate to find her, except for her mother. Every year she comes to the place of disappearance and tries to understand the causes of the tragedy.