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Natsume Soseki, Banana Yoshimoto, old/mod lit.
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Has anyone read Soseki or Yoshimoto by chance? I should have mentioned other authors that I like but these two are my favorites (though one is definitely is a classic and the other a modern favorite). In my experience reading Japanese literature has been unlike reading any other type of literature. While this may be due to translations (I can't read Japanese if it meant my life) - well, I could very well be saying the same thing about Russian Literature - which is a wonderful genre in its own right anyway...In any case, the effect of Japanese culture on its writers has had a refreshing and poetic effect on me as a reader mostly because of detail - sights, smells, sounds...a calming effect happens. It's like reading/drinking in subtle and soft but precise details like water - after reading Dostoevsky on a heavy philosophical rant about Life. Heh. But that's just me. Any notable books in the Japanese genre that you might like to discuss?
真ç?†å�
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miko|
Re: Natsume Soseki, Banana Yoshimoto, old/mod lit.
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I once read a book which is a collection of poems by a Japanese author. I forgot his name but I won't forget his story. If I remember correctly, he was once a gymnast instructor who got injured and because of his injury, he became paralyzed. The book he produced was a collection of poems he wrote while in the hospital. It was mainly about birds, flowers and even the trees he saw. His poems are dramatic, I felt his emotion - his longing, his desire to remain unresentful of what had happened to him. I also have a poetry book which has a section for haiku. What I like about haikus is that you can give two interpretations to it: one is literal - what is based on the text - and the other a metaphorical interpretation of what the Japanese poet meant with what he wrote. About the first author I mentioned, I'm sorry I forgot the title of his book. I'll look for it. ^_^ |