Read Around Asia Challenge
Read at least one book by an author from each country in Asia.
Best books from Asia (1979)
871.
JapanDescription:
In N.P., Banana Yoshimoto's enchanting novel of uncanny subtlety, style, magic, and mystery, a celebrated Japanese writer has committed suicide, leaving behind a collection of stories written in English. But the book, itself titled N.P., may never be published in his native Japan: each translator who takes up the ninety-eighth story chooses death too-including Kazami Kano's boyfriend, Shoji. Haunted by Shoji's death, Kazami is inexorably drawn to three young people whose lives are intimately bound to the late writer and his work. Over the course of an astonishing summer, she will discover the ... continue
873.
The Makioka Sisters : Vintage Classics Japanese Series by JUNICHIRO. TANIZAKI EN
Description:
In the years leading up to the Second World War, four sisters live in dilapidated houses in Osaka and Ashiya, and each navigate their own complex, personal relationship to the fading lustre of the Makioka family name. Rich with breathtaking descriptions of ancient customs and an ever-changing natural world, Junichiro Tanizaki evokes in loving detail a long-lost way of life even as it withers under the harsh glare of modernity.
874.
Hear the Wind Sing by Haruki Murakami EN
Description:
Hear the Wind Sing is the first novel by Haruki Murakami; it first appeared in the June 1979 issue of Gunzo, one of the most influential literary magazines in Japan.
It is the first of the "boku" tetralogy; translated by Alfred Birnbaum.
875.
Territory of Light : A Novel by Yuko Tsushima EN
Description:
From one of the most significant contemporary Japanese writers, a haunting, dazzling novel of loss and rebirth “Yuko Tsushima is one of the most important Japanese writers of her generation.” —Foumiko Kometani, The New York Times I was puzzled by how I had changed. But I could no longer go back . . . It is spring. A young woman, left by her husband, starts a new life in a Tokyo apartment. Territory of Light follows her over the course of a year, as she struggles to bring up her two-year-old daughter alone. Her new home is filled with light streaming through the windows, so bright she has to sq... continue
876.
The Setting Sun by 太宰治 EN
Description:
Novel of present day Japan. Reaction of an upper-class family to the war and the resultant cultural impact.
877.
The Liminal Zone by Junji Ito EN
Description:
Three-time Eisner Award winner Junji Ito presents brand-new nightmares! What destiny awaits them after the screaming? After abruptly departing from a train in a small town, a couple encounters a “weeping woman”—a professional mourner—sobbing inconsolably at a funeral. Mako changes afterward—she can’t stop crying! In another tale, having decided to die together, a couple enters Aokigahara, the infamous suicide forest. What is the shocking torrent they discover there? One of horror’s greatest talents, Junji Ito beckons readers to join him in an experience of ultimate terror with four new stories... continue
878.
Venus in the Blind Spot by Junji Ito EN
Description:
A “best of” collection of creepy tales from Eisner award winner and legendary horror master Junji Ito. This striking collection presents the most remarkable short works of Junji Ito’s career, featuring an adaptation of Rampo Edogawa’s classic horror story “Human Chair” and fan favorite “The Enigma of Amigara Fault.” With a deluxe presentation—including special color pages, and showcasing illustrations from his acclaimed long-form manga No Longer Human—each chilling tale invites readers to revel in a world of terror.
879.
An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro EN
Description:
A Japanese artist looks back on his life in this celebrated and prize-winning novel.
880.
A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oe EN
Description:
First pub. 1964. Author's most dramatic work, won him the prestigious Shincho Literary Prize. In the novel the narrator tells how he responds to the birth and problems posed by his handicapped child. Recipient of the 1994 Nobel prize.