Reading Japan: Fiction and Non-Fiction Picks
Japan is culturally one of the most fascinating countries, yet it does not reveal itself easily. The language barrier, a very strong one, makes it difficult to gain a deeper understanding of the traditions and cultural context that make the country a unique destination. Despite living here, there are many moments when I still feel quite lost, sometimes in a rewarding way, with the excitement that comes from the strangeness of it all, and sometimes, honestly, in an objectively idiotic way.
Fortunately, there is an extensive selection of books, either written in English or translated into it, that explore various aspects of Japanese culture, an object of fascination for many scholars, and which helps to put the experiences and travels in a better context. There is, of course, also the fascinatingly rich and often dark world of Japanese literature. Below is a list of some of my favorites (there is also a more recent companion piece, “Reading Japan: From Hokkaido to Okinawa,” which serves as a literary guide for a north-to-south journey through Japan), including both non-fiction and fiction titles that have helped me better understand and partially navigate the complexities of life in Japan.
Some of my favorite books about Japan
Lost Japan: Last Glimpse of Beautiful Japan by Alex Kerr
Lost Japan is one of the best books about Japan written by a foreigner. The book, which partially reads like a memoir, is a collection of fourteen essays by Kerr that explore various cultural aspects of the country. He introduces us to kabuki, life in rural Japan (in the deliciously remote Iya Valley in Shikoku), calligraphy, and many other aspects of Japan that he is, or once was, fascinated with. Unavoidably, there is also strong criticism – as the title suggests – but with a genuinely affectionate tone.
But do not read this excellent book by Alex Kerr during or before your first trip to Japan. Let yourself get amazed by the country first and fall in love with it blindly, without noticing any of its unpleasant sides. If you loved Japan the first time, you will likely come back.
On your second visit to Japan, you may start noticing certain things about the country that are not all that fascinating – “What is that abandoned concrete building doing on an otherwise pristine beach?” By your third visit (“Oh, so these are not native but planted trees, an entire forest of planted trees? And that is a result of a state policy?”). You will likely be ready to read Alex Kerr’s book to confirm your doubts about the country that you once madly fell in love with.
Do not worry, though. By then, even though the butterflies may be gone, your love for Japan will already be deep enough that you will continue to love it no matter what. Alex Kerr still lives in Japan for part of the year (dividing his time between Japan and Thailand), if that helps.
Lost Japan is a great read that delves into the world of an exceptional mind who is deeply in love with Japan but is also not reluctant to criticize the country, walking us through how it has changed over the decades.
The Setting Sun by Osamu Dazai
I must confess that it took me a while to get into this book—The Setting Sun —but once I did, I did not want it to end—an excellent post-war Japan story by Osamu Dazai.
The story focuses on a widowed mother, a divorced sister, and a veteran brother with addiction issues, all struggling with the changing dynamics in their country, moving from a feudal society to an industrial one. The family, once belonging to the aristocratic class, leaves their home in Tokyo and moves to the Izu Peninsula. In the new era, they must earn a living by working in the fields.
None of the characters are particularly likable, and that is strangely the allure of the book – they are all perfectly imperfect. You never truly get to know them and their motives; all three are full of surprises that carry you until the end of the book, when you finally better understand them.
Dazai delves deeply into the personal impact of post-war dynamics on the characters, while also hinting at the broader picture and the period’s cultural context. The Setting Sun is a dark yet very engaging read (like many other delightful reads from post-war Japanese literature).
The Woman in the Dunes by Kobo Abe
As soon as I finished it, I started re-reading Woman in the Dunes by Kobo Abe. I have never done that before, and I would not even describe this book as one of my favorites. However, its strange story and even stranger atmosphere, which the author skillfully created, made me not want to step outside of Abe’s world, even though it was literally a very claustrophobic environment.
The Woman in the Dunes, classified as a psychological thriller, tells the story of a school teacher and amateur entomologist visiting a small town for the weekend to search for an insect species. Unfortunately, he misses his bus back home. And after that, he does not turn into an insect. With all due respect to Kafka, Abe’s story is much stranger than that, as it feels very real. At the urging of the village elders, he spends the night in a home occupied by a widowed woman at the bottom of a sand dune.
Also turned into a movie, Woman in the Dunes is a strange story of love, lust, and acceptance.
The Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Yukio Mishima
Yukio Mishima`s own life story is as interesting as his novels. One of the most influential (and also controversial) literary figures in Japan in the post-war era, Mishima, in The Temple of the Golden Pavilion, tells the story of a young man who becomes obsessed with the Golden Pavilion (Kinkaku-ji) in Kyoto. Loosely based on a true story, the Temple of the Golden Pavilion explores the concept of beauty and the destructive obsession that accompanies it.
Set in post-war Japan against the backdrop of dramatic societal change, the novel inevitably explores the nation’s and protagonist’s struggle to find their identity, and the sense of nihilism that accompanies it.
Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki
If you will read only one book about Japan, it may well be The Makioka Sisters by Junichiro Tanizaki. The book tells the story of an Osaka family and its three sisters, walking you through the generational differences in Japan and the changing role of women in society. It is a fantastic read, and everyone will easily find a character to relate to. I also recently read Quicksand by Tanizaki. It was a very interesting story of a very interesting love triangle – again, an Osaka story. His range as an author is mind-blowing.
Some Prefer Nettles by Junichiro Tanizaki
Another great read by Tanizaki, this time taking a more intimate look at the concept of marriage in Japan. The author, through one of the protagonists’ fathers, introduces us to the side of Japan that wants to be free of Western influence. Puppet theater, beautiful kimonos, a failing marriage, and pre-approved affairs are some of the themes that are explored in this novel.
Bending Adversity: Japan and the Art of Survival by David Pilling
I read this book only a few months after I moved to Tokyo. I’m not sure if a first-time traveler with no prior interest in Japan would enjoy it, but it was one of the best books I’ve read about Japan.
While David Pilling’s commentary, Bending Adversity, focuses on the tragic 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake that hit Tohoku, it also touches on other topics, including economics, politics, and Japan’s history. The book helped me to make a better sense of certain things I have been experiencing in Japan (not necessarily negative, just observations about the culture), and I recommend it to anyone who wants to go beyond the traveler’s perspective and dive a little bit deeper into the role of Japan within Asia and the world.
Things Remembered and Things Forgotten by Kyoko Nakajima
I delayed reading this book for months. I thought the theme – the grief – would make me feel sad and uneasy in a year of pandemic when we were forcibly separated from loved ones.
Kyoko Nakajima’s Things Remembered and Things Forgotten is a collection of ten stories that focus on the theme of grief. However, she offers a fresh and strangely cheering perspective on a topic that is otherwise likely to leave you feeling down. It was probably one of the best reads for me this year among the books by Japanese authors.
The Little House by Kyoko Nakajima
Another excellent read from Kyoko Nakajima. The story told in the Little House takes place during pre-war and wartime Japan (set between 1930 and 1945) and is told from the perspective of a housemaid in Tokyo. Thanks to Nakajima’s affectionate storytelling style, I began to care about nearly all the characters in the book from the very first page. The story is driven by familial secrets and their impact on each family member. I wish more of her work were translated into English.
Kokoro by Natsume Soseki
This famous novel by Natsume Soseki, first published in 1914, is the heartbreaking story of a friendship. Kokoro is one of the classics taught in Japanese high schools. The main theme of the novel is guilt, a theme explored by Soseki in a refreshingly and engagingly cliché-free manner.
Another well-known novella by Natsume Soseki, Botchan (坊っちゃん), also taught in high schools, tells the story of a mathematics teacher and his clashes with students in Matsuyama, Shikoku, where he gets his first teaching job.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
Pachinko is a Buddenbrooks (by Thomas Mann) type of novel by a highly praised Korean author, Min Jin Lee. It tells the story of a Korean family who immigrated to Japan during the pre-World War II era. The story spans multiple decades, from 1910 to 1989. Pachinko focuses on the Korean identity in Japan and how living as a minority in one of the most reserved cultures in the world feels.
The racism and discrimination the family faces constitute the center of the story. Each family member deals with their situation differently.
Pachinko was my first on-page exposure to the Korean perspective on Japan, and I thoroughly enjoyed the story, appreciating the perspective it offered.
My only criticism would be that the author’s desire to address multiple cultural issues simultaneously results in too many characters, and consequently, some of them remain underdeveloped. Pachinko is, however, still a terrific (and a page-turner) read that will keep you busy for a while. The 530-page book was adapted into an Apple TV Series a few years ago, but I haven’t yet had a chance to see it.
Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata
If you have already been to Asia, you probably already know that life revolves around convenience stores that are open 24/7. Japan is no exception, and it sure takes things a little bit further (when does it not?) – with some big grocery stores also being open 24/7. The convenience stores – or “kombinis” in Japanese- sell everything one may need throughout the day, including socks and clean white button-down shirts for office workers.
Given the “cultural” importance of convenience stores in Japan, I could not resist the temptation to read the highly praised Convenience Store Woman by Sayaka Murata as soon as its English translation came out in 2018.
The (anti)hero of the book, Keiko Furukara, is a recluse who, despite having the qualifications for a much higher-paying job, has dedicated her life to the convenience store where she has worked for decades. But then, what is a better job? How do we find it?
Convenience Store Woman is not one of those books that tell you to follow your heart and do what makes you happy. It is delightfully much more bizarre than that. It reads somewhat like Murata’s tribute to Albert Camus’s The Stranger; I felt like emotionless Keiko could get along well with Camus’s Meursault.
Murata is a very courageous writer, but I wish she pushed her hero even a little further in terms of her mental isolation, and not just gave us sneak peeks of how societally unacceptable her behavior could get. Still, this refreshingly engaging read highlights some of the strangest aspects of urban Japanese culture.
An Artist of the Floating World by Kazuo Ishiguro
In An Artist of the Floating World, Nobel laureate Kazuo Ishiguro (born in Nagasaki, Japan, but now a citizen of the United Kingdom) explores the life of a retired painter and his relationship with his two daughters. One of the daughters is already married, whereas the other one struggles with the cumbersome matchmaking procedures in post-World War II Japan.
Ishiguro’s novel takes readers through the izakaya scene in Tokyo, making them listen to sake-fueled dialogues between an art teacher and his students, and offers a glimpse of the art scene of the period. We, as readers, also get privy to the protagonist’s internally voiced regrets about his wartime behavior. This is a tragic story of how a war can divide a nation.
The Old Capital by Yasunari Kawabata
The Old Capital is an amazing alternative guide to Kyoto by Japan`s first Nobel prize winner, Yasunari Kawabata. It is a very short novel about a family running a kimono house in Kyoto. The novel takes the readers through almost every landmark in Kyoto (Arashiyama included!).
The book features an interesting literary structure, where milestone events occur so quickly (and in one short sentence!) that it forces you to focus on the details rather than the events. Old Capital is the ideal choice if you are looking for something that also acts as a non-traditional guide to the country.
Another great book by Yasunari Kawabata is Snow Country, which tells the story of love between a wealthy man and a geisha in a hot spring village in the Japanese mountains. Finally, if you want to get a sense of Kawabata’s literary genius, I highly recommend “The Dancing Girl of Izu and Other Stories.”
Fear and Trembling by Amelie Nothomb
It has been so long since I read the books of the Belgian author Amélie Nothomb, long before I visited Japan, and at an age when I was still young enough to care enough to keep up my French (she originally writes in French, but all her books are also translated into English).
Nothomb was born in Japan (her father was a diplomat). After decades abroad, she returned to Japan in her early 30s. Fear and Trembling focuses on the work environment in Japan and walks you through the unpleasant office behavior that women in Japan – and particularly foreign women – may encounter. While I made it sound like such a dark story, Nothomb is known for her excellent use of humor, and I can categorize this book as humorous non-fiction. Fear and Trembling is the best-known of her many books on Japan.
Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto
A book by Banana Yoshimoto—though unfortunately, Banana is just a pen name, not her real one (her real name is Mahoko). Her short novel Kitchen, while touching upon what the kitchen means for a home, mainly focuses on the grief we experience after losing a loved one. The story brings together a cast of fairly eccentric characters.
Yoshimoto is one of the best-known authors in contemporary Japanese literature, and I need to read more of her books to see whether her writing style appeals to me. Kitchen is, in any case, a quick and captivating read.
Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami
Just like Old City is to Kyoto, Strange Weather in Tokyo by Hiromi Kawakami is a great alternative guide to Tokyo. The story centers on an intense relationship that evolves into love between a young woman and her former high school teacher. I strangely read this one during a winter trip to the Lofoten Islands years ago and immediately wanted to travel to Japan once again. The story follows the change of seasons in Tokyo, walking us through all things Japanese, starting with warm sake and continuing with iced cold beer.
The Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami
It took me some time to get into the Nakano Thrift Shop by Hiromi Kawakami, but halfway through it, it became more engaging. I still prefer Strange Weather in Tokyo by the same author, but this one is also a fine read, offering insights into the lives of merchants in Tokyo through multiple characters, each with a remarkable capacity to say the strangest things at the most ordinary and unexpected moments.
Walking in Circles: Finding Happiness in Lost Japan by Todd Wassel
I recently read Walking in Circles by Todd Wassel during my walking trip to Shikoku. This is the account of his walk covering the entire Shikoku Pilgrimage Route. It is an engaging read in which the author makes the reader (or me) care about him and about whether he will manage to complete the entire pilgrimage route. It is one of those easy-to-read travel accounts that you may particularly enjoy if you are planning your own Shikoku walk.
Lady and the Monk: Four Seasons in Japan by Pico Iyer
I read The Lady and the Monk by Pico Iyer while traveling to Shirakawa-go in the winter of 2016. This is an autobiographical story by the renowned travel writer Pico Iyer, recounting his time in Kyoto and his romantic entanglement with a married Japanese woman. It is a captivating read, offering insight into the expat life in Japan, taking you inside family homes in Kyoto, and allowing you to witness the dynamics of a romantic relationship between a Westerner and a Japanese person. Some of Pico Iyer’s remarks about women in Japan are a little controversial, but it is too difficult to judge them properly, as the book focuses on a very personal experience. I wonder why they haven’t made a movie of this book yet, as his story would surely make a captivating one.
A Wild Sheep Chase by Haruki Murakami
Murakami`s name usually comes up first if you look up books about Japan. I like Haruki Murakami even though he is not my absolute favorite (his Norwegian Wood is among my all-time favorite books, though). I find his writing style a little too pretentious at times, and I often think that many of his stories also serve to praise himself in a somewhat narcissistic manner (like Colorless Tsukuru Tazaki and His Years of Pilgrimage).
His books are, however, still great companions for any trip to Japan, and he is one of the reasons why I visited Hokkaido in the middle of winter some ten years ago. Part of the story in his strange book ‘Wild Sheep Chase‘ takes place in Hokkaido, and I particularly liked his description of the imaginary, mystical Dolphin Hotel. The way Murakami describes Hokkaido in his book conveys a strong feeling of isolation. The feeling was so strong that I thought I would be the only one sitting on a regional train in Hokkaido bound for the north when I first visited the island in the winter of 2015. It did not turn out to be the case, and I could barely find a seat on the train. But rest assured that the wonderful Hokkaido is still worth a visit, and there are many corners on the island where you will be greeted by nothing but solitude.
