Read Japanese Literature

In this episode, we examine the history of the Aum Affair and its lasting impact on Japanese fiction.We'll start out with the history of new religions in Japan, including Aum Shinrikyo. We'll take a look at Haruki Murakami's non-fiction book, Underground: The Tokyo Gas Attack and ...  Show more

In this episode, we're taking a look at Yasunari Kawabata's life and work.As we tell his story, we'll ask ourselves two big questions. Is Kawabata really a traditionalist? And what is up with the way he writes about adolescent girls?cw: author suicide, problematic imagery about a ...  Show more

In this episode, we look at the writers behind two of Japan's greatest movie monsters—Godzilla and Mothra.We'll start out by looking at Godzilla—its context, author, and story—before we turn to Mothra. We'll close with a reflection on why the stories behind the movies are importa ...  Show more

In this episode, we take a look at the Japanese cell phone novel and the classic story of Train Man.We’re going to start today by explaining the Japanese cell phone novel, including some relevant background like the history of serialized publishing in Japan and the rise of Japane ...  Show more

In this episode, we explore the enduring legacy of Greek/English/Irish/American/Japanese author Lafcadio Hearn and the ghost story The Peony Lantern.We'll start out by looking at Hearn's life. We'll discuss the long history of the story Boton Doro, more commonly known as The Peon ...  Show more