Customer Reviews

The Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an exceptional volume of short stories by Japan's finest writers, available in English Translation. It includes a wonderfully complete version of Kawabata's "Izu Dancing Girl" as well pieces by Natsume Soseki, Mishima Yukio, and many others. The structure and arrangement of the stories is such as to lead the reader from old to new, and therebye allows one to experience the natural evolution of Japan's culture through the window of her modern literature. Without a doubt this book will become the heart of anyone's Japanese Library.

"The Oxford Book of Japanese Short Stories," edited by Theodore Goossen, brings together 35 stories in a volume of 452 plus xxxi pages. The stories are arranged chronologically by the author's birth year. The authors chosen span the generations; the collection starts out with Ogai Mori (1862-1922) and concludes with Banana Yoshimoto (b. 1964), and the rest are pretty evenly spaced out between them. The book also includes brief biographical notes on the story writers.

This is a richly diverse collection of tales. Many different settings, subjects, and types of characters are to be found here. The stories range in length from three to forty pages, although the overall average is fairly short (editor Goossen, in the introduction, admits his childhood preference for stories that are short enough to be enjoyed in a single sitting). Marriage, sex, war, slavery, crime, friendship, animals, illness, and military discipline are among the many different topics explored in an anthology that is full of horror, humor, and beauty, as well as the fantastic and the absurd.

I would like to mention some of the stories in this superb collection. "Night Fires," by Naoya Shiga, is a beautifully written story that offers the reader a taste of life in a rural mountain area. "Portrait of a Geisha," by Kanoko Okamoto, presents a compelling view of the geisha world through the title character and her household. "The Accordion and the Fish Town," by Fumiko Hayashi, is about a peddler's family eking out a living in a seaside town; this story is rich in evocative details about food, clothes, family life, and economic activity in Japan. "In the Forest, Under Cherries in Full Bloom," by Ango Sakaguchi, is extremely violent and gory, yet funny in a weird way; it's about a mountain bandit who claims a new wife as booty.

Also worthy of note--"Passage to Fudaruku," by Yasushi Inoue, is set in 1565; as the story opens, an abbot is contemplating an oceanic pilgrimage to a "mythical isle." Atsushi Nakajima sets his story "The Expert" in ancient China. About a man's quest to become the world's greatest archer, it's a funny, yet mystical story with a fairy tale quality. Yukio Mishima's story "Onnagata" explores a man's fascination with a male kabuki actor who plays female roles on stage. I was really struck by "Toddler-hunting," by Taeko Kono. About a childless woman with a bizarre hatred for little girls and an even more bizarre fascination with little boys, this is a shocking, outrageous, and truly daring work of fiction. Another strong entry is "The Elephant Vanishes," by Haruki Murakami; about an elephant's mysterious disappearance, this story has a surreal flavor. There are many more great stories in this collection.

Goossen's introduction effectively establishes historical and cultural context for the Japanese short story. I recommend saving the final section of the introduction, subtitled "Legacies," and treating it as an afterword after reading all the stories. The insights in this section do illuminate the stories, but may, for some readers, remove some of the element of surprise that can make the stories more enjoyable (I have tried to avoid revealing too much in my own comments on the specific stories). I have read many anthologies over the years, and I would definitely rank this one--with its generous, diverse, and consistently compelling selection of tales--among the best.

The Oxford book of Japanese short stories
edited by Theodore W. Goossen.
Publisher: Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1997. (2002 printing) ISBN: 0192833049

For all you Kurosawa film buffs, here's a chance to read "In a Grove"...the story that helped launch the ideas for "Rashomon". For those who love Mizoguchi, here's your read for "Sansho the Steward". For those who just love good stories, they're here-in one handy volume. This excellent collection includes about a hundred years' worth of superior Japanese writers, organized by the author's birthdate...and concludes with contemporary stories.

Kawabata's here, and his "The Izu Dancer" is one of the gentlest of stories in his disturbing, aesthetic ouvre. I loved "Passage in Fudaraku" by Inoue Yasushi, and "Portrait of an old Geisha" by Okamoto Kanoko, and there's a good Mishima one, too, about a Kabuki actor who plays women.

And, if you are geeky like me, you will appreciate the information in the frontispiece. However, if you want to get straight to the riveting stories, that's cool too! Incredibly readable book, and gets my highest recommendation.

Here's a list of some of the short stories in the volume:

Sansho the Steward / Mori Ogai -- The third night / Natsume Soseki -- The bonfire / Kunikida Doppo -- Separate ways / Higuchi Ichiyo -- The peony garden / Nagai Kafu -- Night fires / Shiga Naoya -- Aguri / Tanizaki Junichiro -- Blowfish / Satomi Ton -- Portrait of an old geisha / Okamoto Kanoko -- In a grove / Akutagawa Ryunosuke -- The bears of Nametoko / Miyazawa Kenji -- Spring riding in a carriage / Yokomitsu Riichi -- Carp / Ibuse Masuji -- The Izu dancer / Kawabata Yasunari -- Lemon / Kajii Motojiro -- The accordion and the fish town / Hayashi Fumiko -- The flower-eating crone / Enchi Fumiko --Blind Chinese soldiers / Hirabayashi Taiko -- In the forest, under cherries in full bloom / Sakaguchi Ango -- Passage in Fudaraku / Inoue Yasushi -- Merry Christmas / Dazai Osamu -- The expert / Nakajima Atsushi -- The rifle / Kojima Nobuo -- Unzen / Endo Shusaku -- The bet / Abe Kobo -- Three policemen / Yoshiyuki Junnosuke -- Onnagata / Mishima Yukio -- Toddler-hunting / Kono Taeko -- Mr. Carp / Mukoda Kuniko -- The duel / Kaiko Takeshi -- Prize stock / Oe Kenzaburo -- A very strange, enchanted boy / Tsushima Yuko -- The elephant vanishes / Murakami Haruki -- Desert dolphin / Shimada Masahiko -- Dreaming of Kimchee / Yoshimoto banana.

If you want stories that can actually transport you to their setting (as opposed to most of what passes for fiction today), then this is your anthology. The other reviews go into great detail so I'll mention only 4 stories I thought were particularly well done, in the understated style that is so emblematic of what is best about Japan. (1) Sansho the Steward (feudal period). A moving story which will make you want to hug your mother and apologize for anything unkind or inconsiderate you've ever done to her. See the 1954 film, "Sansho the Bailiff" (it's on DVD; diverges in some details from the story but remains true to the story's tenor; I saw the movie 25 years ago but only now have read the underlying short story). (2) Lemon (late 1920s/early 1930s after the Stock Market Crash). "I was utterly destitute." The short story is a thinly fictionalized day in the life of its author who was dying of (and did die from) TB. (3) The Three Policemen. 3 beat cops do figure in this (very) short story, but the title did not give away what the story was really about. Or maybe the story was about nothing. Suffice it to say that, short though it was, it gave off the scent of whiskey and tobacco in a disreputable part of Tokyo round about 1969 or 1970, maybe Kabuki-cho in Shinjuku Ward. (4) A Very Strange Enchanted Boy (modern times, 1990s.). Though there's so much written about how Japanese women are subservient, this story features a woman who made choices: the choice to try to steal another woman's husband, the choice to be an unwed mother, the choice to allow the father in her life only so much and no more. But unlike strident Western assertions of womanhood, this story is very...Japanese. If you are interested enough in Japan to have stumbled onto the title of this book and the reviews here (and you must be interested in Japan to have made it to this page), then don't hesitate: buy the book new or used or however.

Being a huge fan of Kenzoburo Oe, Yukio Mishima, and Haruki Murakami, I am no stranger to Japanese short stories. What delights me is the forethought that went into arranging this book. The majority of the authors were born in the 20th century, but all were active in writing prose in the 20th century. The stories are not all modern themed though, many are set in feudal Japan. The editor kept a limit to one story per author, so we don't end up with a book riddled with multiple Oe and Murakami short stories. It is a nice introduction to some authors that you might not normally come across.

I must say that I like that the book features some of the regular published translators. For example, Jay Rubin translates much of Murakami's work and he is the translator featured in 'The Elephant Vanishes' short story both in the original publication (Knopf or Vintage... can't recall) as well as in the Oxford.

The introduction is nice, the editor points out some of the differences in Western and Eastern literature so the reader is not stumbling blindly into Japanese short fiction unaware.

As a huge fan of Japanese prose, I must highly recommend this to those new to Japanese fiction as well as those like me who are already fans. Great writing from some of Japan's best 20th century authors.

This book single-handedly introduced me to a whole swathe of Japanese writers that I would otherwise have never known about - largely because the main body of their work has never been translated or become popular outside their native Japan. The stories, arranged in chronological order, gives the reader a unique (albeit potted) insight into the history of Japanese fiction and reveals a side of the Japanese people that we in the West are often unfamiliar with. The stories range widely in style and subject, some very simple and reflective, others semi-autobiographical, some humourous, some shocking and risque. All in all I felt the collection was a wonderful reflection of the Japanese culture and people; full of depth and insight, warmth and intrigue. A gem of a book that I've recommended and bought as a gift for countless friends.

Excellent collection of Japanese Short Stories. I found the chosen writers apt and certainly made my reading experience enjoyable. As a short story writer to be I found some of the stories had interesting techniques esepecially when using the flash back mode. Highly recommended.