Reflections on the puddle of life

I recently ordered The Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories both because it is Japanese fiction, but also because it is short stories. I'm going to read more short stories this year. The book is really good; I've been dipping in and out of it and today I read the most fantastic short story called In the Forest, Under Cherries in Full Bloom by Sakaguchi Ango which is well worth a read if you ever come across it. It's wicked and kind of disturbing and very Japanese. It's inspired me, which is a first this year. I'm actually writing again. Woo hoo!

I've been reading a lot of Japanese fiction. I find Japanese work very interesting. There are many sides to it, as you might imagine. Some Japanese work, for example the work of Ryu Murakami or Natsuo Kirino, is graphic, violent and very pop culture. Not necessarily my cup of tea, but well done all the same. Other Japanese work is slower, more introspective and quietly emotional. That's more what interests me. There's a kind of restraint to it, beauty certainly, and depth. Kind of like a haiku there's more to it than immediately appears on the surface.

Regardless of the type of work there is a feeling which runs through Japanese fiction. A sense of isolation, loneliness and yet a sense of strength and individualism which is almost fierce.

So I've compiled my top 5 Japanese authors. This list may expand, as I've still got quite a few to go, but as at today my recommendations are as follows. In no particular order.

Haruki Murakami
Haruki Murakami was the first Japanese writer I read. I love his work. He has a number of styles but most of his work falls into the genre of magical realism, such as A Wild Sheep Chase or his more well known works such as Kafka on the Shore or The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle, or love stories such as his famous work Norwegian Wood. For me the magical realism wins out every time. My favourite of his works, Hard-Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World is a two sided, futuristic story in which a 'Calcutec' (a human data processing/encryption system) is hired to complete an assignment for a mysterious scientist working in the Tokyo sewer system. In the other side to the story an unnamed man enters a walled town called 'The End of the World' which his shadow is not allowed to enter. Instead it lives outside the wall where it is expected to die. Never before had I imagined how much it is possible to feel sorry for a shadow! The two stories are intertwined, but I shall not say how as I wouldn't want to spoil it for you.

Aside from his fictional work, Murakami has also produced a biographic work called What I talk about when I talk about running which gives an interesting insight into what it means to be a writer that runs marathons, and a chilling, insightful study into the sarin gas attacks on the Tokyo underground called, imaginatively, Underground. Using interviews from both victims and perpetrators this provides a disturbing and sometimes upsetting view of the Japanese psyche. Well worth the read.

Yasunari Kawabata
Yasunari Kawabata won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968, being the first Japanese writer to receive such an honour. Kawabata's writing is starkly beautiful and haiku-esque. Whilst his books tend to be on the short side, they're packed with meaning and intensity. Barely a word is wasted.

Of Kawabata's works, one of the most is Snow Country a stark tale of love between a Tokyo businessman and a provincial geisha. Beautifully written, but not my favourite of his works. Instead I'd recommend Beauty and Sadness, the story of a married Japanese writer reunited with a failed love from the past, a love which he had written about in a novel. The reunion is bitter-sweet, particularly as the writer becomes entangled with his former love's live in companion/lover. A beautifully intricate novel.

Of Kawabata's work, I'm still to read the one he considered his masterpiece, The Master of Go. Perhaps my view will change when I get round to that one.

Kobo Abe
If you like your fiction surreal Kobo Abe is definitely your man. Weird, psychological and dramatic is how I would classify his work. Abe's most famous work, The Woman in the Dunes is a must read. The tale of a man seeking a new classification of insect, his wanderings take him to a village sunk in the dunes, a village he becomes prisoner to. Trapped in a house with a woman, they must dig every day to keep the house from being consumed by the dunes. A tense pyschological drama exploring what it means to be trapped. A disturbing read.

My favourite of Abe's works, however, is the uniquely bizarre Kangaroo Notebook: A Novel. This is the strange tale of a man who wakes one morning to find radish sprouts growing from his legs. After being abandoned by the doctor to whom he goes for treatment, aided by a mind-controlled hospital bed, our protagonist embarks on a surreal journey from which he may never return. Mind altering, but remarkably original, this is a novel which explores what it means to be helpless.

Natsume Soseki
Natsumi Soseki is one of Japan's most revered writers. There's a soft, warmth and sadness to Soseki's work. Nostalgia, perhaps. But a sense of humour too, as evidenced by one of his most well known works I am a Cat which takes a satirical look at Japanese society through the eyes of a cat.

I'm still new to Soseki, but so far I totally love Kokoro (meaning 'heart'). A story told by a nameless narrator, focusing on the life of a man our narrator refers to as 'Sensei' (literally, 'teacher' but generally used as a mark of respect), a reclusive individual who strikes up a strange friendship with the young narrator. The story is split into two parts; the first being the observations of our narrator, the second a confession written by Sensei to the narrator explaining his life. At a deeper level Kokoro explores a change in culture in Japan, the end of the Meiji era and the development of a more relaxed, modern era, and how the two fail to communicate with each other. It is a subtle, delicate novel, heavy with regret.

Jun-ichiro Tanizaki
Tanizaki has the passion and vibrancy which can be somewhat lacking in other Japanese writers. From within the traditional Japanese cultural restraints Tanizaki explores sexuality and eroticism as well as the structure of Japanese family life. In some respects Tanizaki's work could be considered shocking, but his stories are told with such honesty and vigour I wouldn't classify them so.

The Diary of a Mad Old Man and The Key are perhaps Tanizaki's most forthright erotic works. Exploring similar themes of sexuality, The Key comprises diary entries written by a husband and wife, ostensibly secret but written in such as way as to imply that each knows the other is reading it. Through the diaries we see how, even in the most intimate of moments, the couple fail to communicate and understand each other except by means of mutual deception. It is a complex novel, though presented simply. Equally The Diary of a Mad Old Man explores the sexual obsession of an older, unhealthy man with his young and attractive daughter-in-law.


Other writers
Okay, so I've compiled my top 5, but there are other excellent Japanese writers worth considering. How about trying one of these:

Naoya Shiga, whose work A Dark Night's Passing beautifully explores the life of one man of 'unlucky' birth.

Kenzaburo Oe, another Nobel Laureate. Strongly autobiographical in nature. Not to my taste, but a good writer nonetheless.

Banana Yoshimoto, a popular contemporary Japanese writer. Her short novella Kitchen explores the life of a young woman, coming to terms with the loss of her grandmother, her last living relative, and her emotional connection to the kitchen.

Ryunosuki Akutagawa, known for his short stories including The Grove which is also known as Rashomon.

And that's just the one's I've read. Other famous Japanese writers I'm still to read include Yukio Mishima, who will probably make my top 5, Shusaku Endo - famously known for 'Silence', Shikubu Murasaki whose novel The Tale of Genji is perhaps the oldest known example of the novel.

And last but not least Masuji Ibuse whose novel Black Rain is currently in the May elimination for the book club reading. Please give it a vote (come on, it's got to be a more interesting read than Kavalier & Clay)! http://www.online-literature.com/for...t=51191&page=2

I hope that might encourage a few more people to try out some Japanese fiction, or if you're already a fan share your favourites here!