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Japanese Writers
“If you only read the books that everyone else is reading, you can only think what everyone else is thinking.” - Haruki Murakami
Japan has a tremendous literary tradition, yet many Westerners are only aware of Haruki Murakami.
I love Haruki Murakami’s work and have read almost everything he’s written. However, I wanted to go in a different direction and share some books I’ve enjoyed by award-winning, lesser-known Japanese authors, that you may not have read yet.
These books offer a perspective about Japan and Japanese people in a way that reading a guidebook or a book about Japan written by a Westerner will not.
I loved this short book.
Using spare, surgical prose, Nakamura tells the story of an unnamed pickpocket navigating Tokyo’s seedy underbelly.
Seen but unnoticed, the anti-hero works out in the open, blending in with society while existing on its fringes.
A kind of redemption is within reach as he befriends a young boy (not unlike a younger version of himself) and shows the boy some tricks.
Unexpectedly, his past comes calling in the form of his first partner offering an easy job he can’t refuse. But we all know how easy jobs go. The pickpocket ends up…well, I wouldn’t want to ruin the ending.
As soon as I put this book down, I wanted more. If you like film noir and hardboiled detective stories, if HBO’s recent Perry Mason or Tokyo Vice shows are your vibe, if the feeling of impending doom wrapping its inevitable grasp around you is something you are drawn to, this book is for you.
If The Thief piques your interest in how pickpockets operate in real life, I suggest Whiz-Mob: A Correlation of the Technical Argot of Pickpockets with Their Behavior Pattern by David W. Maurer. This book will give you a look into the subculture of pickpockets and show you how they operate. It’s not written by a Japanese author, it’s just a great book.
Although The Art of War by Sun-Tzu is more well-known, you may find The Book of Five Rings more practical. In this book, Miyamoto Musashi, Japan’s most renowned swordsman due to winning over 60 duels, details his thoughts on the lessons he’s learned from his battles.
Unlike The Art of War which focuses on leading an army, Musashi’s teachings are about winning individual battles by outmaneuvering and outthinking your opponents. Instead of outlining physical tactics, he discusses strategy, mindset, and self-mastery. These lessons apply to fields from martial arts to business and can thus be useful in modern-day life.
This book pairs well with Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai by Yamamoto Tsunetomo.
Or for an epic tale, check out Miyamoto Musashi's fictional life in Musashi by Eiji Yoshikawa.
Totto-Chan is an autobiography by a major Japanese TV personality and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador. In Japan, she is on the level of an Oprah. The book details her unusual upbringing in terms of her schooling and being misunderstood until she met an extremely insightful and understanding principal. This inspirational book will show you what’s possible under the right circumstances and guidance.
A tremendously popular book in Japan, Totto-Chan became the best-selling book in Japanese history with over 5 million copies sold when it was published.
Aside from being an incredible read, this book will give you insight into a touchstone of Japanese culture.
Written in the dialogue format method of Greek philosophy, this book based on Adlerian psychology can easily be read in one day. An older philosopher and an angry student engage in conversation about life, choices, circumstances, narratives, interpersonal relationships, and many other topics.
The book delivers new perspectives on how to live. It presents some uncomfortable ideas and requires the reader to embrace thinking differently so it won’t be everyone’s cup of tea. I found the new ways of framing things to be empowering and useful.
If you feel like you’re holding yourself back, this book could unlock fresh viewpoints that will enable you to move forward.
Published in 2020, but only recently translated into English (2023), Aoyama’s book is about five people who coincidentally end up at the same library at key moments in their lives. The librarian gives them personalized recommendations seemingly unrelated to what the characters are seeking.
You’ll get to experience a range of dilemmas as the characters vary in age, interests, and stage of life. The book also provides insight into Japanese societal expectations and work ethics. The interwoven vignettes unfold at a gradual pace to offer hope in a time of need.
Six Four is more than a detective novel. It’s a window into how Japan works, offering numerous details, situations, and cultural experiences particular to Japan. You will learn a lot about Japanese culture in this book.
A long, slow-burn detective mystery, Six Four is filled with a myriad of characters and their numerous complex and personal interactions.
Split loyalties. Traditional hierarchy. Raw ambition. Coverups. Revenge. Six Four has them all.
The story centers around a 14-year-old cold case involving a kidnapping, a botched ransom exchange, and a terrible outcome. The case is considered the police department’s biggest failure, and a huge embarrassment. The fallout has rippled throughout the entire police department changing careers and altering lives.
The protagonist, Mikami, is a former detective who had worked on the original case but has now been moved to media relations for the police department. He hopes to soon return to the Criminal Investigations department.
Coincidentally, Mikami’s daughter is now missing. After researching the old case, he soon finds an anomaly in the previous investigation. This leads to him uncovering deep secrets.
All the powerplays, alliances, and machinations remind me of the TV show Tokyo Vice. This book reads almost like a series of TV episodes. It goes deep into individual characters and their lives and takes its time to resolve the storyline.
This book is not your typical page-turner detective mystery and thus will not be for everyone. However, if you’re willing to commit, you’ll be rewarded with a satisfying payoff.
If you like Stieg Larsson’s The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, you’ll likely enjoy Six Four.
Yoshie, a young woman, is hurt and confused by her father’s sudden death. He was a popular rock musician and died in what seems to be a “love murder-suicide in a forest in Ibaraki with a woman who’d apparently been a distant relative.” Anyone would be rocked by this type of situation and watching how Yoshie copes and slowly puts her life together is where Banana Yoshimoto’s work shines.
While this specific situation is not common, we’ve all gone through unexpectedly heart-wrenching things in life, and how one deals with those times is a universal theme.
Yoshie moves from upscale Meguro to hipster Shimokitazawa in a change of environment and takes a job in a small bistro. Soon her mother shows up and moves in. We then experience the journey of mother and daughter struggling to come to terms with their new reality.
It is in the small changes, the small pleasures of life that we see them grow and learn how to redefine their lives. A lot of the book focuses on these day-to-day moments, and we get to feel the rhythms of life in Shimokitazawa and how it differs from Meguro. This aspect, in and of itself, gives you a feel of what living in these two distinct areas of Tokyo is like and how each has its unique vibe.
Despite the somber subject and tragic beginning, this book is filled with beautiful moments of celebrating the present and resolving the unknowable.
It’s no secret I love books and bookstores, especially Japanese bookstores. So, it shouldn’t be surprising that a story about a woman who isn’t much of a reader until she moves into an apartment above her uncle’s bookstore and starts to read books that help her sort out her life and re-establish her relationship with her uncle would be right up my alley.
The fictional bookshop is in Jimbocho (an area of Tokyo famous for its secondhand bookstores) and has been in the family for generations.
This book is also a great introduction to other Japanese authors as the protagonist reads many Japanese classics. The books inspire her, build her self-confidence, and give her a new outlook, enabling her to have deeper real-world experiences.
We watch her grow, bond with her unusual Uncle, and pursue a life that’s true to her heart.
Readers drawn to books like The Little Paris Bookshop by Nina George or The Door-to-Door Bookstore by Carsten Henn are likely to enjoy this book.
Another Murakami (he is not related to Haruki), Ryu is not as well known outside of Japan. However, many Japanese people I’ve spoken with prefer Ryu over Haruki because Ryu is viewed as being “more Japanese”. I don’t exactly know what that means, but I’ve heard this comment many times.
Set in early 70’s Japan, near an American Air Force base, this dark story is written in a cold, detached style. The narrator, Ryu, and his friends live carelessly and recklessly as they treat sex, drugs, petty theft, and violence as distractions from what they feel is an oppressive Japanese society. Their world seems hopeless, and they do anything to avoid dealing with reality. Occasionally the childlike innocence of the characters finds its way through, and we get a glimpse of what they could be or hope to be.
Dark and at times depressing, this short novella (130 pages) is a quick, but not easy read. I recommend it for people who thrive on the melancholy and hidden beauty of tragic stories.
I couldn’t help myself. I’m a big fan of Haruki Murakami. In my opinion, this is his seminal work.
What begins as a search for a lost cat, becomes an epic story where reality and perception aren’t always clear. The protagonist is a very average man dealing with themes of isolation, loneliness, and power.
Finding his cat becomes a quest that introduces many mysterious characters and creates more questions than answers. Eventually, things start to make more sense, and the answers begin to present themselves.
It’s a big book and a long saga filled with magical realism and many side trips.
If you’re newer to Murakami and unsure about reading a 600-page book, I’d suggest starting with the nostalgic coming-of-age story, Norwegian Wood. It’s half the length of The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle and a much easier entry point into Haruki Murakami’s writing.
If you enjoy magical realism and haven’t already read One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez, I think it’s a great read as a compliment to The Wind-up Bird Chronicle.
For a deeper dive into magical realism, try Pedro Paramo by Juan Rulfo. Both Marquez and Juan Luis Borges were big fans of this book.
Gachapon
Onyx modeling bunny hat from Gachapon machine in Shimokitazawa
Gachapon/Gashapon are both valid names for the vending machines that dispense small capsule toys. These are immensely popular in Japan. You can find them inside malls, in Yodobashi Camera stores, on shopping streets, and elsewhere. The types of toys you can get from these capsule machines are endless. From figurines to stickers to cat hats (see above) there’s something kitschy for everyone. Some of these Gashapon toys are even collector’s items!
The world’s biggest gachapon arcade, boasting 3,000 machines (yes, it’s overwhelming), is in the Sunshine City building in Ikebukuro (Tokyo). Sunshine City also features a Pokemon Center, an aquarium, and many other shops and places to eat. You could easily spend half a day here and it’s a great place to go if it’s raining or if you have kids or if it’s raining and you have kids or if you just have a lot of people on your list to bring back small fun gifts to. Also, Ikebukuro is known for having a lot of great restaurants.
Tamago (Japanese Eggs)
Restaurant in Kichijoji specializing in TKG. Look how orange the yolk is.
This may seem like a strange topic if you haven’t seen or eaten Japanese eggs.
Let me explain. Japanese eggs have the deepest orange yolk you are ever likely to see. And the yolk is thick. Take a toothpick and stick it in the yolk of a raw egg in Japan and it will stand straight up. In America, this would result in a leaky and broken egg yolk.
In the United States, eggs have a yellow yolk that is not vibrant in any way. And that’s how they taste. I’m referring to store-bought eggs, not eggs you can get at a farmer’s market or eggs from your own chickens. Don’t get me wrong, I like American eggs just fine (I eat them damn near every day). It’s just that Japanese eggs are on another level.
Japanese eggs are far less contaminated by salmonella and can be eaten raw. Yes, this is strange and against everything your mother ever told you, but I have yet to get sick from eating raw eggs in Japan after hundreds of times of eating them. I would never do this in America.
There are several Japanese dishes that contain raw eggs. The famous tamago kake gohan (TKG) is a perfect example. The raw egg served with sukiyaki is another case, as is the raw egg yolk that often accompanies tsukune in some yakitoriya or izakaya.
I’m not telling you to eat raw eggs in Japan, I’m just letting you know how eggs work in Japan and that you’ll likely encounter raw eggs at some point. Make your own decisions and do what you are comfortable with.
Either way, make sure you try eggs in Japan in whatever fashion is appealing to you. I normally don’t eat soft or hard-boiled eggs, but the eggs that are soft-boiled and placed in ramen are about the greatest eggs I’ve ever tasted.