The Atlantic

Modern Japanese Literature: Two Views of the Novel

ALTHOUGH Tokyo is, naturally, the literary center of Japan, one of the Meccas of modern Japanese literature is a small town called Magome, in a mountain valley some hundred and fifty miles west of the ...
Santa Barbara Independent

UCSB Professor’s Memoir on Japan, America, Film, and Literature

In a recent conversation, John Nathan, UCSB’s Takashima Professor of Japanese Cultural studies, recalled a trip to Tokyo with his son. “He kept asking, ‘Dad, what has this place got do to with you?'” ...
SFGate

GETTING VERTICAL / Hip new line of modern literature from Japan is 'un-put-downable'

Establishing a cultural beachhead in the wilds of American publishing necessitates bold action and nerves of steel. Enter Vertical Inc., an upstart New York publisher that hopes to introduce millions ...
The Harvard Crimson

Fifteen Questions: David Atherton on Japanese Literature, Creativity, and Remembering to Breathe

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. FM: Why did you end up studying Japanese texts? DA: As a kid, my family were followers of an Indian guru, and so we spent time as sort of ...
Los Angeles Times

Edward Seidensticker, 86; pioneering scholar, translator of Japanese literature

Edward Seidensticker, a pioneering scholar and translator of Japanese literature, including the epic “Tale of Genji,” has died in Tokyo. He was 86. Seidensticker died Sunday after slipping into a coma ...
The Denver Post

Leading translator of Japanese literature dies in Tokyo

TOKYO—Edward Seidensticker, a leading scholar and translator of Japanese literature including the epic “Tale of Genji,” died Sunday in Tokyo. He was 86. A native of Castle Rock, Colo., Seidensticker ...
ジャパンタイムズ

Cat companions and the 'healing fiction' boom

Browse a rack of translated Japanese literature these days and you’re likely to spot a certain motif among the book covers: cats. Often recognized as an atmospheric trope or plot device in the fiction ...
HeraldNet

E-mail has become literature in Japan

I t’s not an original idea for a story but, hey, there’s something to be said for sticking to the standards. Boy meets girl. On a train. She disappears into the urban anonymity of … oh, make it Tokyo.
Nippon

Rana Seif: The Translator Bringing Japanese Women’s Lit, Manga, and More to Middle East Readers

Japanese-Arabic translator Rana Seif feels driven to bring contemporary Japanese novels by women writers to readers in the Middle East, saying that the problems women face are similar in Japan and ...
Smith College

East Asian Languages & Cultures

The Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures offers multiple pathways for students to develop their knowledge of the vibrant cultures of China, Japan, and Korea. While developing linguistic and ...

Hungarian author Krasznahorkai wins Nobel Prize in Literature

Hungarian author Laszlo Krasznahorkai has been named the winner of this year's Nobel Prize in Literature. The Swedish Academy ...