Tag: #japan

The Travelling Cat Chronicles — Hiro Arikawa

By 5t4n5

The Travelling Cat Chronicles -- Hiro ArikawaSo yeah, i love cats and i love most things Japanese, so eventually i had to get around to pulling this out of “The Pile” and reading it.

It’s one of those books that one just flies through, and i was always eager to dive back into it whenever i got a few moments spare.

Nana, a street cat, is our wonderful narrator, who gives us a delightful cat’s eye view of Satoru’s world as he drives around Japan visiting each of his childhood friends trying to get one of them to adopt Nana before he dies, but Nana has other ideas and is determined to stay with Satoru until the very end.

It’s through this cat’s eye view, and through each childhood friend we visit, that we get to learn, bit by bit, about Satoru’s life: a life of tragedy, loss and grief, and how these things shaped Satoru.   I think i’d put it on the shelf with The Little Paris Bookshop, also a well written book about tragedy, loss and grief with some cats in it.

Yes folks, a definite must read for anyone who likes cats.

Warning:   you may get a little soggy eyed at the end — cats can do that to you.

Hiro’s Page

#japan #hiroarikawa

A Cup of Sake Beneath the Cherry Trees — Yoshida Kenkō

By 5t4n5

A Cup of Sake Beneath the Cherry Trees -- Yoshida KenkōThis small book is a selection of quotes from Essays in Idleness.

The writer begins the book with this statement:

What strange folly, to beguile the tedious hours like this all day before my ink stone, jotting down at random the idle thoughts that cross my mind “¦

We are then regaled with a selection of those random thoughts, and quite good thoughts some of them are too.

Although written approx 1330 in Japan, a lot of these thoughts are as relevant today in the wider world as they were back then.   Yes, admittedly, some might be a bit dated and endemic but there are some very timeless thoughts for the modern, wider world to enjoy as well.

There’s also a delightful curmudgeonliness to the thoughts, like you’re listening to your favourite grand parent having a rant about what’s bothering them this week.

I shall certainly get a copy of Essays in Idleness and have a full read of Yoshida Kenkō’s thoughts.

Kenkō’s Page

#japan #yoshidakenko

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet — David Mitchell

By 5t4n5

The Thousand Autumns of Jacob de Zoet -- David MitchellAnd onto David Mitchell’s fifth book…

It’s certainly a change from his other books, being based in Japan at the end of the 18 Century at the Dutch East India Company’s island/trading post, Dejima.

When the Shoguns closed Japan to westerners they left Dejima as the only doorway into Japan for Europe’s trade, and it was the Dutch who ran Dejima.

The book centres around actual historical events, but names and dates are changed to allow David to weave his tale.   And the tale takes us inside ancient Japanese nefarious occult beliefs and practices as we follow our protagonist and his love for a Japanese midwife who becomes entrapped within the cultists’ lair, all the while having to deal with the political machinations within the interplay between Dejima, Nagasaki and the Shogun in Edo.

Once more, a great piece of story telling from this incredible writer, and a also an incredibly interesting look inside the life and work of Dejima itself at a very interesting time in Japanese history.   Well worth a read after you’ve read David’s first four books, but do expect something rather different.

And i’m now embroiled in David’s 6th book, The Bone Clocks, which is more in style with his first four books and i’m enjoying immensely.   I’ll let you know what i think soon.

David’s Page

#japan #davidmitchell

number9dream — David Mitchell

By 5t4n5

number9dream -- David MitchellYet another great book from David Mitchell.

This story has us following a young Japanese man, Eiji Miyake, looking for his father through Tokyo’s twists and turns.

Eiji has never met his father as he is the child of one of his father’s affairs.   Eiji’s twin sister died in a swimming accident when he was young and he is also estranged from his mother, and in so being this puts even more emphasis on meeting his father and being acknowledged as his son and finding some family.

The strange thing with this story (there always seems to be a strange thing with David’s stories), is that while the whole book is written in Eiji’s first person perspective, only part is real while the other part of it is the pure fantasy of Eiji’s imagination.   But where real and fantasy meet, and which is which, one is left feeling never quite sure as they blend so seamlessly taking the reader on a journey where fantasy and reality become the same and/or irrelevant.

This is certainly a great book, especially for those estranged from parents while young, and a fantastic adventure (or maybe a fantastic fantasy) through the seedy underworld of Tokyo.

Well worth a read!   David Mitchell is truly one of the greatest writers of our time.

David’s Page

#japan #davidmitchell

The Zen Experience — Thomas Hoover

By 5t4n5

The Zen Experience -- Thomas HooverBeen quite a while since i read this, but do remember it being a very interesting read on the history of Zen.   It tells Zen’s full story through fascinating tales of its most influential masters of its various historical schools, all the way from its roots in India and into modern Japan.

If more people read about the history of the world’s religions instead of fighting over them the world would be a much nicer place.

Thomas’ Page

#japan #zen #thomashoover