JP /lit/

I've started to read again, as I haven't in an embarrassingly long time. I haven't read any Japanese literature yet, so I got these 3 novels based on peer recommendations: > Kafka on the Shore - Murakami (2005) > The Cat who Saved Books - Natsukawa (2021) > Kokoro - Soseki (1996) Not only was I curious to see if these books are good literary works, but I was wondering if other lains have read any and would like to give some recs!

I read The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa and Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa. They're modern, but somehow good. I am glad I read them and those are my two recommendations.

>>8590 The first and last are great; I've never heard of the second. 1Q84 by Murakami is also very good.

"The Tatami Galaxy" by Tomihiko Morimi is pretty good. I really resonated with it. You might like it.

>>8605 >I really resonated with it. "It really resonated with me" would be the correct idiom, lainon. To elaborate further: The way you put it is very full of one's self, while the correctly put idiom communicates the idea that you related a lot to the characters. I suspect this is what you meant.

I've been enjoying Japanese stuff all my life even before all this wired stuff and weeb stuff. I'm not really part of that modern weeb scene at all. I'd be interested in books as I probably have somethibg in common with Japanese mindset through osmosis. More than any of the western classics. Are there many translations in English or Spanish of Japanese literature? How far back does their tradition go? I was reading no longer human when I was young but did not finish it because I had decided to kill myself and burned all my possessions

>>8602 >>8590 In my limited experience (and my friend's more extensive experience) modern japanese lit is bad, read some older stuff. My friend and I both agree that Murakami is overhyped and underwhelming. Seriously don't waste your time unless you are into "that" kind of thing. IMO IQ84 was a drag and could (should) have had 1/3 - 1/2 of its content cut. I didn't bother with Kafka on the shore but two of my IRL /lit/ friends agreed it is trash and that is enough for me. I would recommend instead: the temple of the golden pavilion - Mishima The Makioka sisters - tanizaki (excellent and long!) a portrait of shunkin - tanizaki (excellent and short!) snow country - kawabata blue bamboo - osamu dazai (short story collection) > Kokoro - Soseki (1996) This is actually 1914, and good. if you want some fun (very short) real folk tales: Kwaidan by Lafcadio Hearn >>8620 My very limited understanding is: Old japanese writing is very, very long and traditional. The cool stuff shows up around 1900 w/ Western influence and reactions. Postwar stuff can be good and weird (Mishima, Kawabata) or weird cu-ck-old and other sex fetishism due to radiation induced brain/culture damage (SAD! many such cases!). The only decent recent japanese author I/we know is actually britishish, japanese in skin only. The remains of the day - Kazuo Ishiguro (it's good!)

>>8625 whats wrong with pre western?

>>8625 Talked to my friend. They also recommend: >Black Rain by Ibuse if you want to learn about the atom bomb. >Akutagawa (Kappa + short stories, "in a grove" is awesome, see attached) if you want to read stuff by a congenital schizophrenic who killed himself (likely because he started getting hallucinations, his mother had the condition and suffered from it throughout his childhood) >Setting Sun, No Longer Human - novels by Dazai, says they are excellent >Says to not read mishima's sea of fertility tetralogy until you've read 4-5 of his other books. Helps to "get" his style first. >As an example of degenerate post-war lit, friend says kobo abe's woman in the dunes was riddled with sex for sex's sake, doesn't actually do anything interesting. not worth reading. If you are into that kind of thing, I guess he's the guy for you. I'll also recommend: >In praise of shadows by tanizaki if you want a short, very well written discussion of "traditional" japanese aesthetic ideals >>8626 Nothing wrong with it, I just don't know much about it. My (potentially very bad) understanding is that there was not much of an intermediate phase in japanese writing from pre to post western. So the pre-western stuff I do know of is all very "traditional". Not bad, actually good, just different and has less "appeal" / "readability". e.g. tale of genji (have only read a tiny part of due to business, seems OK. courtroom girl/boy drama) tale of the heike (have not read, seems OK. Iliad but japanese) hokagami (fujiwara family history, have not read) Are all old and very long. They are probably good, I just am too busy reading ancient western stuff to mess with them. Pre-western japanese poetry (e.g. basho's narrow road to the deep north) is excellent.

>>8627 > business Meant busyness...

>>8625 If he recommended Dazai no longer human and temple of golden of pavilion I don't think he's actually read Kafka on the Shore and disliked it. Give it a go, I've read a decent amount of Japanese literature and its probably the best one.

>>8590 I read no longer human by Dazai. I related to it from page one, but it turned into a rabbit hole of a book that swallowed me in the self destructive darkness of the main character. At least I can say I haven't made a fool of myself like the mc yet

>>8635 >If he recommended Dazai no longer human and temple of golden of pavilion I don't think he's actually read Kafka on the Shore and disliked it. She read Kafka on the Shore and disliked it so much she didn't even finish it (iirc got 2/3 in or so). Which is quite possibly the first and only book I've heard of her not finishing now that I think about it... >Give it a go, I've read a decent amount of Japanese literature and its probably the best one. OP can definitely give it a shot. Given my low impression of IQ84 I will probably not bother with more Murakami. But some people seem to like his stuff, to each their own. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

>>8639 I put down Kafka on the Shore as well, it just wasn't good. Woman in the Dunes is an okay film to put on in the background of doing something else but the book itself is a bit of a drag with random sex. I do enjoy Kobo Abe though, Secret Rendezvous is a fun read. >Says to not read mishima's sea of fertility tetralogy until you've read 4-5 of his other books. I'm almost there. Life for Sale is next on my list. Sun and Steel gives perspective to Mishima and in some ways I wish I'd read it last given how he expands on his values and fixations...

Michihiko Hachiya's Hiroshima Diary was a quite interesting look at the immediate aftermath of the famous bombing of that city. Author is a doctor who's injured during his home's demolition and returns to his hospital to seek and provide help, all while making thoughtful observations on the damage and health effects of the bombing. pic related: the main setting

More pdfs would be appreciated

I enjoyed Eiji Yoshikawa's "Musashi". I consider it to be a "change your life" book. I've heard it said that all the archetypes of the Japanese personality can be found in it.

shinsekai yori (2008) - kusuke kishi absolutely love the series and reading it while listening to the ost of the anime really adds to the experience deals with themes of human nature and is set in a really cool si-fi/dystopian world, the world building is my favorite out of all the media ive seen fan translation of the novel: https://cadetnine.wordpress.com/

>>8590 Kokoro is very good. Soseki has a lot of great novels, my favourite is The Miner. It's absurdist and features no characters or story really, the majority of it is just internal monologue from the narrator as he leaves his life behind to commit suicide but ends up working at a mine.

I strongly disagree with Murakami being a bad a author, but he definetely has a more western approach to his works. 1Q84 maybe isn't the best onw to start with, i found it tedious at some points but it was good nonetheless. Kafka By The Shore is amazing, i'd also recommend Dance Dance Dance and Norwegian Wood. They were vital parts of my life growing up so i may be biased but i believe them to be perfect novels. Dance Dance Dance is absurdist at times and really gets you hooked, Norwegian wood is the perfect coming of age story, can't read it without crying and do so at least once yearly. Also Natsume Soseki's works are fantastic, aswell as Kazuo Ishiguro's. Found that last one through a lit thread on here, Klara And The Sun is very Cyberpunk and ponders on identity, the inhumanity of humans/humanity of androids, and death. Overall fantastic read and pretty short.

>>8673 One of my favorite anime, does the novel add much that you wouldn't get out of it?

>>8625 These recommendations are really good. And yes, Tanizaki is so underrated in the western world. Also while it is not a novel, "In Praise of Shadows" by him is a must.

Kafka on the Shore wasn't really all that good looking back on it, though I really enjoyed Norweigan Wood and Hard-Boiled Wonderland if I were to recommed anything by Murakami it would be those two.

I liked convinence store woman. I found it really light, but thematically it touched on one of my greatest fears so I struggled to read it.

I just read peculiar sounds by soseki. I didn't really get it. At first I thought the protagonist was schizo and I started to enjoy it, but the ending was sort of flat.

>>9327 sayaka muratas books are all really good. I really liked the earthlings. Its a bit fuarrrked up but shows the horrible factory like structure of the world

I know it's sort of a semi-basic pick, but I LOVED no longer human by osamu dazai. and also, while I haven't read either of these (at least not yet), I'm planning on reading in the miso soup and audition (both by ryu murakami) if u wanna check those out for yourself.

>>8625 >In my limited experience (and my friend's more extensive experience) modern japanese lit is bad, How many books have your friends actually read. I'm suspicious because people read Murakami, then hear that all contemporary japanese literature is bad and start to parrot the same message. You don't get to make sweeping claims like these with subpar experience and especially when it is most probable that the hidden gems are obviously not translated into english.

>>8625 Kazuo Ishiguro is a patently excellent author.

Bumping this thread and also asking you Lains for the most philosophical fiction or non-fiction japanese books that you could provide me. Osamu Dazai is there along with certain Mishima's works like 'Confessions of A Mask', but I want to know if I'm missing something.

http://enxx3byspwsdo446jujc52ucy2pf5urdbhqw3kbsfhlfjwmbpj5smdad.onion/Thebrain/

>>8606 You did a great job of educating without sounding condescending. How do I learn that?

>>9618 I'm worried you're being sarcastic and re-reading over what I had put lol. If you do mean it, it's best to start with addressing something in good faith. Don't assume something bad about someone, and try your best to remember that it's another person on the other side of the screen. I don't give it a whole lot of thought, but I do teach in academia. I'm an adjunct professor.

>>9619 I sent that way too early. I mention the professor thing because it might just be something that comes with experience. I had two books recommended to me a long time ago on the matter: >Adviser, Teacher, Role model, Friend (National Academy of Engineering) [ISBN-13: 978-0309063630] >The Effective, Efficient Professor (Philip C. Wankat) [ISBN-13: 978-0205337118] But I'll be honest with you, I mostly skimmed it at the time. I was very worried earlier on in grad school about the actual subject matter and whether or not I'm actually a competent person than I was about pretty much anything else.

Where does lain get their untranslated books from? I've been struggling to find (obviously, free) JP ebooks for Mishima and Oe, amongst others.

Serious question, what is it with Japanese authors and cats? Whenever I see a fiction book (not obviously aimed at children) that features a cat on the cover and the title, it's Japanese. Is it because of "I am a Cat" being a classic there and therefore creating some sort of Cat Book market in Japan?

Don't forget The Tale of Genji by "Shikibu", circa 1011AD, sometimes touted as the first novel ever written, and I Am a Cat by Natsume, 1905.

i think Kafka on da beach is the best novel of Murakami, usualy i'm not into vibes like that but its got me. the short stories of Akutagawa Ryonosuke are fun too. another one i read is Abe Kobo The Box Man its about a guy who like drugs

I read a summary of the Cat Who Saved books for a popular literature class which I thought was ironic given the one place/person/realm (again it was a summary) who/where they skimmed through books as fast as possible cutting out all the unnecessary information. It was pretty funny and also pointed out the absurdity of a class where I am basically made to pretend to read Harry Potter and talk about the Dudley family being fascists to appease an instructor.

kafka on the shore succs ass down the beach, it's really like walking in on an uncomfortable j/o sesh idk how else to put it... norwegian wood is better, and wind-up bird chronicles is his best. i haven't gotten around to 1Q84 yet >>9078 the miner is sooseki's best imo >>9621 i have no idea and frankly its frustrating the library genesis only carries a few japanese textbooks, which is fine for learning some specific vocabulary, but the subject is dry or uninteresting aozora.gr.jp/ is the one storehouse of free books but finding japanese texts online is a pitfa; you get 1000 links to booksellers who, its impractical to buy from, shipping costs and everything, idgaf... i'd love some leads on where actual uploaders put useful works

This is cheating, but if you like folklore, proto-weeb Lafcadio Hearn wrote Kwaidan while living in Japan. It's a pretty good collection of mostly ghost stories. The last several pages are just essays on the cultural relevance of certain bugs in Japan.

Does Japanese translate well into English?

>>10400 Kwaidan is super cozy and excellent I have yet to find anything else in a similar vein, although IIRC dazai did a series of retellings of folk stories that is also nice (crackling mountain + blue bamboo are the two collections i can recall) nice dubs

I found these in my book collection, so I will share them. I hope they are not too bad.

this is my favorite novel about an outcast weirdo failure at life who goes to japan from france shusaku endo is a very good author this book is funny and has anime humor even though it's from the 50s but also very deep, i cried thinking about it days later after i first read it

>>8620 >I've been enjoying Japanese stuff all my life even before all this wired stuff and weeb stuff. I'm not really part of that modern weeb scene at all. I'm very similar. Japanese society and attitudes resonate with me deeply, and while I am aware of the flaws and negative behaviors of the Japanese, a socially regimented society appeals more to me. I'm not a weeb either, in fact I dislike anime. Anyways, RE the topic, I have been planning to read Botchan by Soseki for some time and finally finished my current book. Maybe I'll come back with my thoughts after? It seems to be a short book as well.