The Name of the Flower (Rock Spring Collection of Japanese Literature) [Paperback]

Kuniko Mukoda (Author), Tomone Matsumoto (Translator)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 1880656094 | ISBN-13: 978-1880656099 | Publication Date: September 1, 1994

The thirteen stories in this collection focus on ordinary characters from daily life- the working husband and the loyal wife who sadly and silently endures. Inevitably, they unravel to reveal human obsessions, flaws, and fears. And like the very best Japanese fiction, they are filled with sharp details and subtle, revealing changes of hue and texture.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Widely respected in Japan, Mukoda (1929-1981) humorously mixes Eastern tradition with Western values in these tales, which have been superbly rendered into English. Her female characters study flower arrangement, become dentists and get their hair permed. Ex-wives pick up restaurant tabs and men play golf on Sunday. She describes one mama-san (or brothel madam) as not being "a striking beauty. She was thin and looked rather like a short version of Olive Oyl, Popeye's girlfriend." The majority of these stories begin by describing the daily experiences of average Japanese families, but it's never long before macabre elements creep in. There are no good relationships here: apparently happily married men have affairs and keep mistresses; a woman about to be married falls in love with her fiance's subordinate; a young mother slicing ham cuts off her son's finger. Unusual for a woman writer of her generation, Mukoda's most sympathetic portraits tend to be of sons and husbands. Strongly rooted in the post-modernist tradition, these open-ended tales raise suspicions in the main character's mind that reach an unresolved climax, drawing readers in as participants in the outcome.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

"Kuniko Mukoda's wonderful stories vividly present the personal strengths and sorrows of modern Japanese women." -Gail Tsukiyama -- -Gail Tsukiyama

"Kuniko Mukoda's wonderful stories vividly present the personal strengths and sorrows of modern Japanese women." -Gail Tsukiyama -- Review

"Mixes Eastern tradition with Western values...superbly rendered into English." -Publisher's Weekly -- -Publisher's Weekly

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 152 pages
• Publisher: Stone Bridge Press (September 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1880656094
• ISBN-13: 978-1880656099
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.5 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,070,140 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Startling vignettes of Japanese domestic life, August 7, 2006

By 

David Bonesteel (Fresno, CA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Name of the Flower (Rock Spring Collection of Japanese Literature) (Paperback)

There is a fairly silly comment in the Publisher's Weekly review above that Kuniko Mukoda's stories "mix Eastern tradition with Western values." Another reviewer on this page states that this short story collection will demonstrate how little Westerners understand Japanese society. I couldn't disagree more. The late Mukoda wrote closely observed stories about domestic dilemmas set in Japan of the 60s and 70s. Although there are naturally references to Japanese traditions and cultural practices, I did not find them a barrier to understanding--and I don't think that's just because of my long acquaintance with the country. Mukoda's characters are typically experiencing a crisis in their family life that is illuminated or complicated by memories of past events. These characters, their emotions, and their struggles are very recognizable to Western readers, not because Mukodas wrote about "Western values" but because she is a talented observer of human nature, which remains a constant everywhere.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Mr. Carp ate my ears, March 17, 2003

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Daitokuji31 (Black Glass) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Name of the Flower (Rock Spring Collection of Japanese Literature) (Paperback)

I picked up this book for some light reading over the weekend. I am doing research for an essay and I wanted a book of short stories to read while I was in between sections of the books that I am supposed to be reading. Unfortunately I found this book so interesting that I finished it in a couple of sittings. I am pretty sure that this book gets lost between the cracks left between the works of Mishim, Tanizaki, and Kawabata and those of Yoshimoto and Murakami. I'd certainly had never heard of the writer and when one reads the bak of the book one learns why. Kuniko Mukoda only wrote prose fiction for a very short time because soon after she started writing her short stories she was killed in a plane crash, before that she wrote radio and television dramas. The translator points out that she wrote over one thousand radio dramas.

The stories in this little book seem to follow under one main theme infidelity. The reader gets to see both sides of the relationship. We see the husband who is being eaten up inside because of his outside relationhips, and we see the wife's side in which wonders if in fact her husband is cheating on her. Interesting stories of daiily life that makes one wonder how Mukoda made such mundane things so interesting.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars true mistress of contemporary japanese fiction, June 21, 2004

By 

Ying Lu (Detroit, MI United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Name of the Flower (Rock Spring Collection of Japanese Literature) (Paperback)

I heard of the name of the author because this year Japan is coming out with a tv drama serie about some of her hidden letters. This is a passionate observer/participant of life who articulates prose with clarity and ingenuity of an accomplished writer, and with subtle modesty representing a women of the last century.