The Girl I Left Behind [Hardcover]

Shusaku Endo (Author), Mark Williams (Translator)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1995

An early novel written some 30 years ago, The Girl I Left Behind tells of the choices made by young adults who are learning who they are and what they want in life. Endo's compact, emotionally lacerating novel Silence is currently being made into a film by Martin Scorsese.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

"Some 35 years have passed since I wrote this novel and, on rereading it, I am struck by the immature technique revealed in certain places." So writes Endo (Deep River) in a candid afterword. Endo, Japan's foremost Catholic novelist, is a good critic of his own work, for this novel is a sentimental tale filled with coincidence and heavy Christian symbolism. Yoshioka Tsutomu, a typical Japanese salaryman, hears a disembodied voice in his head that says: "It's not possible for someone to interact with a fellow human being without leaving some traces." Specifically, the voice (which belongs to Jesus Christ) refers to a country girl named Morita Mitsu, whom Yoshioka seduced when he was a college student. Their affair was a shabby thing: Yoshioka exploited Mitsu's sympathy for his slight limp, caused by childhood polio, to get her into bed. Mitsu's a true naif, down to the sentimental pop songs she sings and the movie stars she adores. As far as Yoshioka's concerned, it's a one-night stand. But Mitsu keeps popping into his life at the oddest moments: a misshaped crucifix she acquired on their evening together resurfaces in Yoshioka's life; later, he falls in love with a woman who used to work with Mitsu. Inevitably, he meets her again, but under greatly altered circumstances, an encounter that leads Mitsu to a life of Christian charity. Flawed and awkward as it is, this early novel by a writer who has since come to be viewed as a master has moments of sparkling intelligence and clarity.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Language Notes

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: Japanese

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 194 pages
• Publisher: New Directions Publishing Corporation (November 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 081121303X
• ISBN-13: 978-0811213035
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.7 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,570,540 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Disturbing, but a terrific novel, June 3, 1998

By 

Bryan Siegfried (Illinois) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Girl I Left Behind (Hardcover)

I stumbled across this novel in the library and picked it up merely because I am an Endo fan. I experienced the book on two levels. On one, the novel relates the trauma of unreturned love. Most people can relate to that theme, and it tended to draw me through the story. The parallel with Jesus' life is not meant to be exact. Mitsu represents the suffering of humanity, as she suffers in her one way. Every episode of Mitsu's life is tragic. For some people, the tragedy might be oevrdone, but I was left sleepless by it. I would recommend The Girl I Left Behind to anyone who enjoys Shusaku Endo's novels.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Warning: I Might Be Biased, October 6, 2006

By 

Bu-Chan (Aotearoa) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Girl I Left Behind (Hardcover)

It was written by Shusaku Endo. So, of course, I was almost fated to read it. Once again, the plot didn't sound like my usual choice in novels, (a refrain all too common in my reviews), but Endo always seems to be able to sucker punch me. And this novel is no exception.

The basic plot shadows Yoshioka Tstomu, a poverty stricken student with an overlt developed libido. Yoshioka encounters Morita Mitsu, a somewhat naive obsessive who cannot tolerate other people's suffering without getting involved. The resultant divergence of paths is nothing compared to the enduring impact that the encounter had on both people. Both of the main characters are distinct not only in their ethical and moral values, but also in their responses to the encounter between them. While Yoshioka continually tries to justify himself and his actions in using Morita, Mitsu heads off on a far different path.

The book is a great tale that delves into human thought and psychology, and Endo's confessed immaturity of style really only comes through in a couple of places. For those familiar with Endo's later works, these points will be noticeable, but newcomers to Endo will probably not find them too noticeable.

Once again, Endo has delivered a gritty story flooded with real-life sufferings of two people and their own walks of life. I loved the book immensely and was hooked to the very last word. I was actually depressed that it ended, to be perfectly frank. Great book for all Endo fans and people wanting to be Endo fans. Of course, as a fan, I am biased.

5.0 out of 5 stars The Girl I Left Behind, July 30, 2007

By 

Sheila U. Chugani - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Girl I Left Behind (Hardcover)

I'm still in the process of reading this book, but I picked it out of a small collection of contemporary world novels at the library due to the fact that I was assigned to read over the summer. I started to read it, and didn't think much of this story, but as I continued when I got home with it, I couldn't put it down! I can relate so much to this book in so many ways. I know it might seem strange, but I love it when I become best friends with the books I read. Thumbs up to this one!