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November 22, 2024
 

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Kris Kosaka

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Kris Kosaka
Kris Kosaka, a resident of Japan since 1996, contributes regularly to The Japan Times. She is a lecturer at Meiji Gakuin University in the Faculty of International Studies.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Feb 2, 2019
'The Lone Samurai': A meticulous portrait of warrior-legend Miyamoto Musashi
William Scott Wilson's definitive 2004 biography, 'The Lone Samurai: The Life of Miyamoto Musashi' stands out not only for its meticulous historical accuracy, but also for the author's expertise on samurai texts.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Jan 19, 2019
Takako Arai's poetry is a relentless 'dance of language'
Takako Arai's poems unravel complicated lives in an ever-widening mesh of humanity, her style retaining an energy and optimism despite her visceral, often disturbing subject matter.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Dec 29, 2018
Looking back on the dogged nature of canine fiction
To close out the Year of the Dog, why not read some of the best in canine literature in Japan.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Dec 22, 2018
Red Circle Authors: Sending Japanese literature westward
Red Circle Authors is a 'home' for a group of established Japanese writers, helping to promote their work overseas while heightening awareness of the great depth and breadth of Japanese literature.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Dec 15, 2018
Bluestocking magazine: A call for women's empowerment, still resonant today
Covering issues such as poverty and unemployment, geisha prostitution, arranged marriages, legalizing abortion and women's suffrage, the controversial Bluestocking magazine engendered the birth of the 'new women' (shin-fujin) in Japan, and became a battle cry for wider reform.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Dec 11, 2018
While ballet reigned supreme, a range of dance delighted fans in 2018
For a dance-loving country like Japan, every year brings delight in the variety of performances on offer, but the depth and breadth of 2018 on stage has been particularly grand for fans across a wide range of genres and movements.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Dec 1, 2018
Escape from the everyday with Miyuki Miyabe's 'Brave Story'
Miyuki Miyabe's 'Brave Story' tackles pertinent adolescent issues that are juxtaposed against a supernatural realm of fantasy.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN
Nov 24, 2018
'Apocrypha: The Legend of Babymetal': A triumphant artistic manifestation of Babymetal hits
'Apocrypha: The Legend of Babymetal,' illustrated by G.M.B. Chomichuk, is a surreal multigenre manga that elaborates on 'kawaii metal' band Babymetal's origin story.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Nov 17, 2018
Touching on themes of loss and longing, Kaori Ekuni's fiction retains a sense of lightness
A prolific writer with over 50 works published in Japanese since 1987, Ekuni's recent novel, 'Geckos, Frogs, and Butterflies,' won her the 2015 Tanizaki Prize. Her two works translated into English, 'Twinkle Twinkle' and 'God's Boat' address issues of loss and longing with both humor and wisdom.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Film
Nov 13, 2018
Deaf filmmaker Emilio Insolera flexes his superpowers with 'Sign Gene'
Emilio Insolera's "Sign Gene" gave the world its first deaf superheroes. But after writing, directing, producing and starring in the film himself, you might argue that Insolera is the one with the superpowers.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Nov 3, 2018
'The Old Bamboo-Hewer's Story': Deeply ingrained in the Japanese cultural imagination
"Taketori Monogatari," or "The Old Bamboo-Hewer's Story," is a fascinating piece of early Japanese literature, well worth the short read. Written in the 10th century, it is one of the earliest known Japanese prose narratives, and the story recounts the beloved folktale of the bamboo princess, Kaguya....
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Oct 20, 2018
Fierce and inventive, Yuko Tsushima's oeuvre goes beyond the 'I-novel' genre
Early on, Yuko Tsushima broke the boundaries of the traditional Japanese I-novel, giving voice to a voiceless minority by authentically depicting the struggles of single mothers in society as a single mother herself.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / RECENTLY PUBLISHED BOOKS ABOUT JAPAN
Oct 13, 2018
Nahoko Uehashi's 'The Beast Player': Fantasy grounded in nature
Beautifully written, thought-provoking and utterly immersive, Nahoko Uehashi's 'The Beast Player' uses the genre of fantasy to question the political realities of human tyranny over the natural world.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Oct 6, 2018
'Anthony Bourdain's Hungry Ghosts': Deliciously sinister, beautifully illustrated supernatural tales
Hard-boiled, multifaceted writer Joel Rose paired up with the late Anthony Bourdain to pen 'Anthony Bourdain's Hungry Ghosts,' an illustrated collection of fright and food evoking the Japanese kaidan (ghost story) tradition.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / ESSENTIAL READING FOR JAPANOPHILES
Sep 29, 2018
John Okada's 'No-No Boy': Once overlooked, now a classic tale of identity
'No-No Boy,' a 1957 novel by Japanese-American writer John Okada, unravels the complicated, varied perspectives of Japanese-Americans in the aftermath of World War II under the shadow of the internment camps of the American northwest.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Sep 15, 2018
Mieko Kawakami: A writer's writer who is at once highly readable and immensely popular
From her distinctive style to her choice of topics, Mieko Kawakami is both a writer's writer and an entertainer, a thinker and constantly evolving stylist who manages to be highly readable and immensely popular.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 25, 2018
'Hybrid Child': Enter a sprawling excursion into the unknown
For any fan of speculative fiction, Hybrid Child presents a sprawling, imaginative excursion into the unknown that also predicts current familiar thematic questionings on gender politics or weaponized robots.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books / WORKS BY JAPANESE WOMEN
Aug 18, 2018
Fumiko Enchi: A critical advocate of female empowerment
In the midst of Showa Era (1926-89) Japan, with patriarchy dominating and imperialism rising, a young female playwright, Fumiko Enchi (1905-86), started a literary career that would eventually lead her to become a passionate advocate for female empowerment, while casting a critical, penetrating eye over...
Japan Times
CULTURE / Books
Aug 11, 2018
'The Penguin Book of Haiku': Morsels of poetry from the mountaintop to the gutter
According to author and translator Adam L. Kern, there's a pervasive myth that haiku is only nature poetry, that it is always serious and connected to Zen, that there are hardly any women haiku poets. But haiku covers far greater ground.
Japan Times
CULTURE / Stage
Aug 1, 2018
In Yokohama, they'll be dancing in the streets
Summer is a time for dancing. Across the country there are countless local matsuri (festivals) in which a regionally specific odori (dance) is the main attraction and, of course, there are the many outdoor music festivals that allow people to let loose and move.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
Ruling coalition and DPP strike last-minute deal over economic policy
DPP policy chief Makoto Mahaguchi speaks at the party's policy gathering in Tokyo on Wednesday.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.
Japanese expats in Asia find community through rugby
The Taiwan Fivewoods celebrate their victory at the 2023 Asian Japanese Rugby Cup in December of last year.
In Fukushima, a weekend of prose, poetry and translation
Aomori-based writer JJ Carter presented on tabletop gaming as creative inspiration for building characters and narratives.
For Dr. Nakamats, aging is just experience in action
Though he didn't win the recent gubernatorial election in Tokyo, the 96-year-old Dr. Nakamats' run was seen as inspirational in Japan's aging society.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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