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March 26, 2025
 

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Novelist Genki Kawamura wrote in the dedication to his “One Hundred Flowers” novel that his grandmother’s memories “bloomed like a hundred flowers” at the close of her life.
CULTURE / Books
'One Hundred Flowers': A moving exploration of loss, love and living with dementia
Author Genki Kawamura drew inspiration from his grandmother's experiences to thoughtfully portray a woman suffering from dementia in his novel.
CULTURE / Books
Osaka’s kabuki fan culture fueled an elusive figure of the ukiyo-e scene
In his new book, John Fiorillo partly lifts the veil on Shunbaisai Hokuei, who dominated the ukiyo-e art world in the Kamigata region during the early 19th century. 
CULTURE / Books
Grief ebbs and flows between two tragedies in 'The Place of Shells'
Mai Ishizawa’s debut novel, which won one of the three Akutagawa Prizes awarded in 2021, is also her first to be released in English, translated by Polly Barton.
“May You Have Delicious Meals” focuses on a trio of young office workers at the same workplace who have mixed feelings for food and each other.
CULTURE / Books
Mar 8, 2025
‘May You Have Delicious Meals’: The ugly taste of office and gender politics
By Eric Margolis
The English-language debut of Junko Takase’s Akutagawa Prize-winning novel serves complex prose in translation by Morgan Giles.
Taiwanese comic artist Rishiazao and interpreter Yun-wen Huang greet an attendee at the 2025 Angouleme International Comics Festival in France.
CULTURE / Books
Mar 1, 2025
Taiwan comics on the rise: Local storytellers, global aspirations
By Mike Fu
A supportive ecosystem and eager audiences — both domestic and global — are boosting the soft power of illustrated narratives from Taiwan.
Jose Ando purposefully wrote his Akutagawa Prize-winning novel “Dtopia” to be accessible to an audience beyond Japan and to spark conversations about race, gender and the effects of modern entertainment.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 27, 2025
Jose Ando's rapid rise from first pages to the Akutagawa Prize
By Eric Margolis
Just three years after dedicating himself to writing, the author won Japan's top literary award for his novel "Dtopia," which offers a fresh perspective on identity and diversity.
In Tomoka Shibasaki's short story collection "A Hundred Years and a Day," time flows architecturally, through the life of structures such as a ramen shop or a cinema.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 22, 2025
'A Hundred Years and a Day': Short stories unfold through the lives of structures and spaces
By Thu-Huong Ha
In Tomoka Shibasaki’s curious collection, time flows architecturally, plots meander by design and humans are unnamed, ephemeral and often disappear.
“Mornings Without Mii,” Mayumi Inaba’s 1999 memoir, charts the course of the author’s 20-year relationship with her calico cat, Mii.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 16, 2025
'Mornings Without Mii': A cozy cat memoir that gets down in the muck
By Thu-Huong Ha
Mayumi Inaba’s 1999 memoir charts the course of the author’s 20-year relationship with her calico cat, Mii.
"Uketsu" is a completely anonymous writer and YouTuber whose odd books — which blend mystery and horror — have become a smash-hit publishing phenomenon in Japan.
CULTURE / Books
Feb 7, 2025
'Uketsu': The internet phantom haunting Japan's bestseller lists
By Thu-Huong Ha
Anonymous author and YouTuber "Uketsu" deals in a quiet horror that has delighted millions of readers.
Akutagawa Prize winners (from left) Jose Ando, author of "Dtopia" and Yui Suzuki, author of "Goethe wa Subete o Itta," and Naoki Prize winner Shin Iyohara, author of "Ai o Tsugu Umi."
CULTURE / Books
Jan 15, 2025
Japan's most prestigious literary awards go to a trio of contemporary voices
By Alyssa I. Smith
Jose Ando and Yui Suzuki take home Akutagawa honors, while Shin Iyohara nabs the Naoki Prize.

Ozeki Onosato on doorstep of yokozuna promotion after latest title
Onosato celebrates after winning the Spring Grand Sumo Tournament in Osaka on Sunday.
Japan's first foreign swordsmith opens workshop in Hiroshima Prefecture
Johan Leutwiler checks a sword he made at his workshop studio in the Kui district of Mihara, Hiroshima Prefecture.
Tokyo court strips Unification Church of religious corporation status
Nobuya Fukumoto (far left), a lawyer for the Family Federation for World Peace and Unification, known as the Unification Church, is surrounded by the media at the Tokyo District Court on Tuesday after it ordered the group to be stripped of its religious corporation status.
Japan launches new Joint Operations Command to unify SDF branches
The head of the Self-Defense Forces' new Joint Operations Command, Gen. Kenichiro Nagumo, inspects an honor guard Monday morning at the Defense Ministry in Tokyo.
Applications for forgery-proof passports start in Japan
New Japanese passports will be printed using laser technology based on banknote printing techniques, making forgery more difficult.
Cherry blossom season kicks off in Tokyo after warm weekend
Blooms are seen on the Meteorological Agency's sample cherry tree at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on Monday.
Japanese wages likely to rise more than 5% again this year
Wages are set for another big increase this year as annual negotiations secure generous agreements.
Stay at home if Mount Fuji erupts, government panel says
Mount Fuji in November. For the first time, the government has released specific guidelines on how residents should act in the event that Mount Fuji erupts.
In pictures: Tokyo's weeklong celebration of baseball's best
Shohei Ohtani belts a home run in the fifth inning of the second game of the Tokyo Series between the Dodgers and Cubs.
What's the fuss over Ishiba's gift vouchers?
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba waits for a session of the House of Councillors Budget Committee to begin in Tokyo on Friday.

Podcast

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

Longform

The sun shines from behind a waving Philippine flag at the Manila American Cemetery and Memorial.
Eighty years after the Battle of Manila, old foes forge new ties
By Anton L. Delgado

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Challenging spirit and teamwork keep ANA flying high
Challenging spirit and teamwork keep ANA flying high

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