The Meija Era (1868-1912) brought Japan into the Modern Age. Contemporary writer, Soseki Natsume, expressed the feelings of the time through his classic Botchan which Sekikawa explores through an adult story that Taniguchi illustrates with exquisite and elegant detail forming a transparent window onto this time of turbulent (and sometimes violent) change in Japanese society.
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About the Author
[b]Natsuo Sekikawa[/b] was born in November, 1949. Mostly an historian and essayist, he collaborated with [b]Jiro Taniguchi[/b] from 1976 - 79 writing hard boiled stories like [i]Lindo 3[/i]. They followed this up in the 1980's with the award winning series [i]Botchan No Jidai[/i]. [b]Jiro Taniguchi[/b] was born in Tottori, Japan in 1947.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Botchan is my favorite work of Japanese literature. Funny, insightful, at times both light-hearted and mournful, it is a perfect novel. Still completely relevant today, "Botchan" is the one book that I recommend everyone read before moving to Japan in order to learn the culture. The author, Natsume Soseki, is considered one of the greatest authors of Japan, and in was featured on the thousand-yen note for years.
When I saw Jiro Taniguchi and Natsuo Sekikawa's "The times of Botchan," I originally thought that it was going to be a manga adaptation of the famous novel. But it is so much more.
While I love "Botchan," I have never thought too much about the writing of "Botchan," of the story behind the story. I have never thought about the process behind Soseki's writing of the novel, so different from his works like I Am a Cat and Kokoro. That is the story that Taniguchi and Sekikawa explore in their comic "The times of Botchan."
Volume one opens with Soseki sitting on his front porch, staying at his famous stray cat, and contemplating a new novel. Soseki was feeling caught in the Meiji era, and time when Japan was transforming from one kind of nation to another, achieving technological advances in weeks what had taken other countries centuries. The nation was emerging from the two hundred and fifty year period of isolation known as the Edo period, and was in a full-fledged identity crisis. The clash of the old and new, of tradition and innovation, of country and city, of Eastern and Western, all of this Soseki sought somehow to embody in his short comic novel.
To help process his ideas, and just to be social, Soseki meets with a group of young writers who wish to study at his footsteps. In "The times of Botchan," Soseki wanders the streets of Tokyo with these young writers, taking a little something from each of their personalities that will eventually end up as a character in his book.
Do you need to have read "Botchan" to appreciate "The times of Botchan?" I don't think so. Aside from Soseki's musings the story doesn't delve too deeply into the events of the novel. It would help to have at least a familiarity with Meiji period Japanese literature, as many of the characters are famous names from that time. Ogai Mori (Vita Sexualis) is a character, as is a personal favorite of mine Lafcadio Hearn (Kwaidan) and there is a great scene where Soseki reacts to the news that his return from London has pushed Hearn out of his professorship with Tokyo University as the pressure to expel foreign influences grows.
I thought Taniguchi and Sekikawa's "The times of Botchan" was just brilliant. Everything about the book, from the art style to the pacing to the subject matter are far removed from what is typically thought of as "manga." Jiro Taniguchi's art is highly detailed, sometimes being drawn from famous photographs that I recognize, yet with an obvious influence of Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira) in the facial expressions of his characters.
What was originally supposed to be a short two-volume collaboration between Taniguchi and Sekikawa, "The times of Botchan" blossomed into a ten-volume series that goes beyond the titular novel and into an exploration of literature in the ever-changing Meiji period. Frankly, I can't wait to read the rest of the series, and it is no wonder that publisher FanFare / Ponent Mon received an impressive seven Eisner Award nominations in 2010. This is high-quality literate comics.
When I saw Jiro Taniguchi and Natsuo Sekikawa's "The times of Botchan," I originally thought that it was going to be a manga adaptation of the famous novel. But it is so much more.
While I love "Botchan," I have never thought too much about the writing of "Botchan," of the story behind the story. I have never thought about the process behind Soseki's writing of the novel, so different from his works like I Am a Cat and Kokoro. That is the story that Taniguchi and Sekikawa explore in their comic "The times of Botchan."
Volume one opens with Soseki sitting on his front porch, staying at his famous stray cat, and contemplating a new novel. Soseki was feeling caught in the Meiji era, and time when Japan was transforming from one kind of nation to another, achieving technological advances in weeks what had taken other countries centuries. The nation was emerging from the two hundred and fifty year period of isolation known as the Edo period, and was in a full-fledged identity crisis. The clash of the old and new, of tradition and innovation, of country and city, of Eastern and Western, all of this Soseki sought somehow to embody in his short comic novel.
To help process his ideas, and just to be social, Soseki meets with a group of young writers who wish to study at his footsteps. In "The times of Botchan," Soseki wanders the streets of Tokyo with these young writers, taking a little something from each of their personalities that will eventually end up as a character in his book.
Do you need to have read "Botchan" to appreciate "The times of Botchan?" I don't think so. Aside from Soseki's musings the story doesn't delve too deeply into the events of the novel. It would help to have at least a familiarity with Meiji period Japanese literature, as many of the characters are famous names from that time. Ogai Mori (Vita Sexualis) is a character, as is a personal favorite of mine Lafcadio Hearn (Kwaidan) and there is a great scene where Soseki reacts to the news that his return from London has pushed Hearn out of his professorship with Tokyo University as the pressure to expel foreign influences grows.
I thought Taniguchi and Sekikawa's "The times of Botchan" was just brilliant. Everything about the book, from the art style to the pacing to the subject matter are far removed from what is typically thought of as "manga." Jiro Taniguchi's art is highly detailed, sometimes being drawn from famous photographs that I recognize, yet with an obvious influence of Katsuhiro Otomo (Akira) in the facial expressions of his characters.
What was originally supposed to be a short two-volume collaboration between Taniguchi and Sekikawa, "The times of Botchan" blossomed into a ten-volume series that goes beyond the titular novel and into an exploration of literature in the ever-changing Meiji period. Frankly, I can't wait to read the rest of the series, and it is no wonder that publisher FanFare / Ponent Mon received an impressive seven Eisner Award nominations in 2010. This is high-quality literate comics.
Jiro Taniguchi has regularly created some amazing manga. In this series, he collaborates with Natsuo Sekikawa to create a story set in the early 1900s. Japan has just defeated Russia in the Russo-Japanese War but World War I has yet to start (it's actually around 1906 judging by the dates used - year 38 of the Meiji era would be 1906). Japan is trying to cope with becoming a world power after their victory and the people are divided as to whether Japan should embrace the Western ideals or hold to the traditional customs.
The main character in the first volume (which is the first I have read so far - the next two are on request at my library) is Natsume Sōseki, a highly regarded author of the time, famous for his novel "Botchan". We also encounter a few other authors, including Mori Ogai, the author of "Wild Geese". The events are mostly fictional, though the main events are taken from the true history of these people. This volume has a short essay and critique by Soseki's grandson, who does argue that much of his grandfather's actions in this manga were probably fictitious. Lafcadio Hearn also makes an appearance (he was the Western writer who lived the remainder of his life in Japan, as a Japanese citizen).
Knowledge of the novel "Botchan" is not required for enjoying this manga. It is not based on the novel but is instead about the man who wrote the novel and the times surrounding the creation of the novel. Soseki is an interesting individual, and reading his works, you actually can believe his portrayal in this manga.
This isn't kids manga. It's historic semi-fictional biography. It is slow and stately, often philosophical and inquisitive. There is little action to be had. It does read as a wonderful graphic novel. Some parts are amusing (such as Soseki's arrest) and others are sad or touching. I guarantee that if you enjoy this manga, you will seek out a copy of "Botchan" to read, or start investigating the writings of Hearn or Ogai. I enjoy them all, so this is a welcome little volume. If you like Jiro Taniguchi, this is a good read along the same lines as his style. If you haven't read Taniguchi then enjoy this and look into his other works.
Update: this series won the Tezuka Osamu cultural award grand prize in 1998. Nice little 1 million yen bonus.
The main character in the first volume (which is the first I have read so far - the next two are on request at my library) is Natsume Sōseki, a highly regarded author of the time, famous for his novel "Botchan". We also encounter a few other authors, including Mori Ogai, the author of "Wild Geese". The events are mostly fictional, though the main events are taken from the true history of these people. This volume has a short essay and critique by Soseki's grandson, who does argue that much of his grandfather's actions in this manga were probably fictitious. Lafcadio Hearn also makes an appearance (he was the Western writer who lived the remainder of his life in Japan, as a Japanese citizen).
Knowledge of the novel "Botchan" is not required for enjoying this manga. It is not based on the novel but is instead about the man who wrote the novel and the times surrounding the creation of the novel. Soseki is an interesting individual, and reading his works, you actually can believe his portrayal in this manga.
This isn't kids manga. It's historic semi-fictional biography. It is slow and stately, often philosophical and inquisitive. There is little action to be had. It does read as a wonderful graphic novel. Some parts are amusing (such as Soseki's arrest) and others are sad or touching. I guarantee that if you enjoy this manga, you will seek out a copy of "Botchan" to read, or start investigating the writings of Hearn or Ogai. I enjoy them all, so this is a welcome little volume. If you like Jiro Taniguchi, this is a good read along the same lines as his style. If you haven't read Taniguchi then enjoy this and look into his other works.
Update: this series won the Tezuka Osamu cultural award grand prize in 1998. Nice little 1 million yen bonus.
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