In part three of this episode, we’ll finish our story of Japanese apocalyptic and dystopian fiction. First, stories from the mid-90s and 20-aughts. Then, stories from after the March 2011 Triple Disasters. We’ll end with a look at the life and work of author Yoko Tawada who has written several apocalyptic stories, including one of the most important works of post-3/11 apocalyptic fiction available in English translation—The Emissary, also known at The Last Children of Tokyo.CW: brief mentions...

In part two of this three part episode, we're looking at the apocalyptic and dystopian fiction of Japan. We'll begin with the evolution of the idea of "the end of the world" in Japan, especially after Japan started importing American and European science fiction. We'll move on to Japanese apocalyptic stories, especially between 1945 and the 1970s and then during the 1970s and 1980s. CW: brief mentions of historical and fictional violence and rape Part two mistakenly implies Jules Verne...

In part one of this three part episode, we're looking at apocalyptic and dystopian fiction as genres. Their origins in Western and Central Asia. Their evolution in Western Europe. And a history of English-language apocalyptic and dystopian storytelling that will provide us with context and a basis for comparison when we turn to Japanese stories in part two. Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. CW: brief mentions of historical and fictional violence and rape This...

In part two of this two-part episode on misogyny in Japanese literature, we're talking about the life and work of Yukio Mishima, especially by way of his I-Novel, Confessions of a Mask. Check out part one for 400 years of attitudes about women in JapanWoman in modern Japanese literature, especially in the work of some of its most important writersNotes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. This episode is rated mature.  CW: misogyny, fictional rape, internalized homophobia,...

In part one of this two-part episode, we're talking about misogyny in Japanese literature.  400 years of attitudes about women in JapanWoman in modern Japanese literature, especially in the work of some of its most important writersCheck out part two (coming soon) for the life and work of Yukio Mishima, especially by way of his I-Novel, Confessions of a Mask.Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. This episode is rated mature.  CW: misogyny, fictional rape, internalized...

There is no one quite like Kenji Miyazawa. Born into wealth, he longed to be “a real peasant”. One of Japan’s most influential children’s writers, he sold only one story during his lifetime. Read Japanese Literature takes a look at Miyazawa's colorful biography through three of his beloved stories. Miyazawa produced the artwork for this episode. It's a painted titled Power Pole in the Moonlight. Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. Get in touch at...

To celebrate the overseas release of The Boy and the Heron (aka How Do You Live?) RJL delves into the stories that inspire animator Hayao Miyazaki and Studio Ghibli, especially Nausicaä of the Valley of the WindHowl’s Moving CastleMy Neighbor TotoroWe’ll end with a deep dive into Kiki’s Delivery Service—the Ghibli film and the novel by Eiko Kadano (as translated by Emily Balistrieri). Notes and sources on the episode page. Transcript available. *25,000 total episode downloads! Thanks for...

In this episode, we're talking about one of the most important voices in modern Japanese literature, Haruki Murakami. His biographyWhy so many people have such strong feelings about his writingAnd his short story "TV People"We'll end with what I like best about this much loved (and much hated) author. Notes and sources on the episode page. Get in touch at www.readjapaneseliterature.com. Support RJL on Patreon.com. Buy your books from Bookshop.org. All content © 2023 Read Japanese Literature.

In this episode, we're talking about Japanese children's literature. The history of children’s literature in generalThe history of children’s literature in JapanAnd Sachiko Kashiwaba and Temple Alley Summer—a story that is about Japanese children’s literature (at least a little bit!)Notes and sources on the episode page. Get in touch at www.readjapaneseliterature.com. Support RJL on Patreon.com. Buy your books from Bookshop.org. All content © 2023 Read Japanese Literature.

How does a book make it from the mind of a Japanese author into the hands of an English-language reader? In part 2 of this 2-part episode, we'll tackle the question, “How do Japanese books get translated into English?" What kinds of choices do translators make when they present a Japanese-language text to English-language readers? We're still looking at at Minae Mizumura's An I-Novel, translated into English by Juliet Winters Carpenter, and we'll end with some philosophical and ethical...

How does a book make it from the mind of a Japanese author into the hands of an English-language reader? In part 1 of this 2-part episode, we'll tackle the question, “Why do some Japanese books get translated into English? How do publishers decide what gets translated? How do they decide what doesn’t get translated." And we'll take a look at Minae Mizumura's An I-Novel, translated into English by Juliet Winters Carpenter. Transcript, notes and sources at the podcast episode page.  Thanks for...

In this episode, we’re talking about Japanese science fiction. The history of the genre. SF in Japan. Breakthrough feminist sci-fi writer Izumi Suzuki. Plus loads of SF stories, including Suzuki’s “Night Picnic”. CW: suicide Transcript, notes and sources at the podcast episode page.  Thanks for listening. Get in touch at www.readjapaneseliterature.com. Support RJL on Patreon.com. Buy your books from Bookshop.org. All content © 2023 Read Japanese Literature.

In this episode, we're talking about writing from Okinawa. The history of the Ryukyu Islands, especially the Battle of Okinawa. The evolution of writing from Okinawa. And the life life and work of author and activist Shun Medoruma, especially his Akutagawa-winning story "Droplets". CW: forced suicide (historical), violence (historical and fictional), historical rape Correction: This episode claims Hokkaido is Japan's largest island.  I know better and misspoke. My apologies.Honshu is Japan's...

On March 11, 2011, at 2:46pm, one tectonic plate forced its way on top of another 45 miles (or 72 km) off the Eastern coast of Japan. It caused a 9.0 magnitude megathrust earthquake that lasted about six minutes. The Great East Japan Earthquake triggered a tsunami—a great wave—that may have reached heights up to 133 feet (more than 40 meters).  The earthquake and tsunami also disabled the reactor cooling systems at the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant, causing several reactors to...

This episode is marked mature. Today we'll explore two trends in contemporary Japanese fiction: Protagonists who don’t want to have sexAnd women who want to have babies anyway.To take a closer look at these trends, we’re going to ask a couple of questions about contemporary Japan: What is “celibacy syndrome”? Does it even exist?What role does motherhood play in a shrinking society?And how do sexlessness and motherhood play out in 21st-century Japanese fiction?We’ll end with a closer look at...

The Akutagawa Prize is probably Japan’s most celebrated literary award. To better understand the Akutagawa Prize and its place in modern Japanese literature, we’ll start with an introduction to the history of “literary” fiction in Japan. Then we’ll move on to the history of the Akutagawa Prize itself, from its creation in 1935 through its most recent winners. And then we’ll finish with a look at the life and career of Kobo Abe including his most famous book, The Woman in the Dunes. (CW:...

Magical realism is a literary genre famous for unexplained fantastical encounters that pop-up in the otherwise everyday world. Today, we’re going to take a look at magical realism in Japanese fiction. We’ll start with defining magical realism, including a look at why that term is difficult and why some people think of it as controversial. Then we’ll turn to the history of magical realism in Japan and take a closer look at the work of Tomihiko Morimi, especially The Night Is Short, Walk on...

Today, we’re going to look at cats in Japanese literature. We’ll start with the history of cats in Japan. We’ll move on to cats in Japanese folklore and fiction, including the work of Haruki Murakami. And finally we’ll end with a discussion of our readers' choice, “The Town of Cats” by Sakutaro Hagiwara. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website. Become an RJL supporter for seven minutes of bonus content. Support this podcast by buying from Bookshop.org

In this episode… Is she a man-eating crone? Is she a lonely wanderer? Or is she a sensual matriarch? However you define her, she’s the yama-uba—Japan’s legendary mountain witch. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website. Donate to RJL's Patreon.

In this episode… Post-bubble Japan. The history of socially-conscious Japanese literature. And Yu Miri’s Tokyo Ueno Station, a powerful examination of Tokyo by one of the most invisible people imaginable—the ghost of a homeless day laborer. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website. Donate to RJL's Patreon.

In all our episodes so far, we’ve talked almost exclusively about what Japanese literature looks like in Japan. But we’re English-speakers and English-readers on an English-language podcast about Japanese literature in English. In honor of Women in Translation Month, we’re talking about why there is such a wealth of contemporary books by Japanese women available in English. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website. Donate to RJL's Patreon.

In this episode, we’re talking about Japan’s bubble economy of the 1980s and the work of Banana Yoshimoto. Runaway consumer spending. Everything kawaii. A Nobel laureate’s contempt. And a young author whose career challenged the publishings powers that be. Content warning: This episode addresses transphobia as well as hate crimes against Asian Americans and trans women. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website.

Today, we’re talking about the literature of change in the 1960s—how writers took on questions about what it meant to be Japanese in the post-war era and what was the continuing role of Japanese tradition. We’re looking especially at Yukio Mishima and Kenzaburo Oe. Content warning: This episode addresses fascism and suicide. Notes and sources at the podcast episode website.

Today we’re talking about the 1930s and 40s in Japan—fascism, World War Two, and the American Occupation. In particular, how did 20 years of censorship shape Japanese literature? We're also taking a look at the life and work of Akiyuki Nosaka, whose novella, "Grave of the Fireflies" inspired the classic anime film. We'll discuss his short story, "The Cake Tree in the Ruins". Notes and sources at the podcast episode website.