Golden Kin-Yōbi: 4 - Pushkin Press

Welcome to Golden Kin-Yōbi, our regular Friday giveaway where you can win some great J-Lit.  Why the name?  Well, as some of you may know, the first character used in Japanese when writing Friday means 'gold', and hopefully many of you will strike gold over the next few weeks :)

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It's Week Four of our giveaways, and today's is a bumper one.  The wonderful people over at Pushkin Press are providing five books as prizes, including worldwide postage, so you've got a great chance of being amongst the winners this time ;)

The first three prizes are from the series of books by Yasushi Inoue which Pushkin have recently brought out.  Beautifully colour-coded, we have Bullfight (red), a novella about an attempt to liven up post-war Osaka; Life of a Counterfeiter (yellow), three of Inoue's short stories; and The Hunting Gun (green), a story of lost love told in three letters, a classic of modern J-Lit.

In addition, to those three, we have two very different books on offer.  One is a children's book from the Pushkin Children's imprint, Pushkin's latest J-Lit release.  Akiyuki Nosaka's The Whale that Fell in Love with a Submarine is a collection of war-tinged stories suitable for older children (one I'll be reviewing soon).  The other is definitely *not* suitable for kids - in Ryu Murakami's From the Fatherland, with Love, a story of a North Korean invasion of Japan, there are a whole host of adult themes ;)  Please note that this prize will be the paperback edition, not the hardback one pictured.

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 29th extended to Saturday, the 31st of January (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday Saturday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen entirely randomly, one way or another).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes! 

One copy of Ground Zero, Nagasaki goes to Rathi Dwi

The second copy goes to Carola

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Columbia University Press for providing some great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 3 - Columbia University Press

Welcome to Golden Kin-Yōbi, our regular Friday giveaway where you can win some great J-Lit.  Why the name?  Well, as some of you may know, the first character used in Japanese when writing Friday means 'gold', and hopefully many of you will strike gold over the next few weeks :)

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Our giveaway today is thanks to Columbia University Press, and they have kindly offered two copies of a new publication as prizes, including worldwide postage to the winners - and it's a book I'm keen to get my hands on myself :)

The prize being offered today is Yuichi Serai's collection of short stories, Ground Zero, Nagasaki.  The book features six tales set in contemporary Nagasaki, each of which is permeated by the events of 1945.  According to the publisher's description, the stories have a strong Catholic influence (Nagasaki was one of the centres of the original Christian movement in 16th-Century Japan), which reminds me of the work of Shusaku Endo.  Serai won the Akutagawa Prize for another of his works, and this book won the Ito and Tanizaki Prizes - definitely a book which will appeal to many,

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So, if you'd like to win a copy, simply comment below, leaving your name and e-mail address.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 22nd (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen entirely randomly, one way or another).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes! 

Rivers goes to rhonda

The Early Cases of Akechi Kogoro goes to kimbofo

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Kurodahan Press for providing some great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 2 - Kurodahan Press

Welcome to Golden Kin-Yōbi, our regular Friday giveaway where you can win some great J-Lit.  Why the name?  Well, as some of you may know, the first character used in Japanese when writing Friday means 'gold', and hopefully many of you will strike gold over the next few weeks :)

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This week's contest has two books as prizes, including worldwide postage to the winners, and this time they are kindly provided by Kurodahan Press, a small publisher based in Japan which breathes new life into gems which may otherwise have passed us by.

The first offering is Teru Miyamoto's Rivers, a loose trilogy of stories set between 1955 and 1969.  The three stories (two of which took out the prestigious Osamu Dazai and Akutagawa Prizes) look at boys of different ages growing up in the post-war era.  I read this recently, and as you can see from my review, it's a book I can definitely recommend :)
 
The second prize on offer is something a little different.  Edogawa Rampo was a pen name playing both on the American writer Edgar Allan Poe and the Tokyo setting of the Japanese author's noir mysteries.  The Early Cases of Akechi Kogorō is a collection of stories introducing the detective who would later feature in some of Rampo's more famous pieces, and it's perhaps a welcome change of pace from the usual tea ceremony and cherry blossom viewing of classical J-Lit ;)

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 15th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen entirely randomly, one way or another).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes!

The Sound of the Mountain goes to Parrish Lantern

Beauty and Sadness goes to David H.

Thousand Cranes goes to Chelsea McGill

Snow Country goes to Kamo

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Penguin Modern Classics (UK) for providing some great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 1 - Penguin Modern Classics

Welcome to Golden Kin-Yōbi, our regular Friday giveaway where you can win some great J-Lit.  Why the name?  Well, as some of you may know, the first character used in Japanese when writing Friday means 'gold', and hopefully many of you will strike gold over the next few weeks :)

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Today's first giveaway, one to kick off this year's January in Japan, comes to us courtesy of Penguin Modern Classics (UK), and they have kindly offered four books as prizes, including worldwide postage to the winners - and great books they are too.  All four are by the first Japanese winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature (and J-Lit Giant), Yasunari Kawabata, and they're all great reads.

The four up for grabs are Snow Country (an elegant novella set in the mountains of northern Honshu), Thousand Cranes (another short piece which looks at traditional manners and customs), Beauty and Sadness (an excellent story of an affair gone sour) and The Sound of the Mountain (my favourite Kawabata, a tale of an old man coming to grips with mortality).  This last book is the choice for the second of our readalongs - with luck, the winner may even get their copy in time to join in!

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 8th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen entirely randomly, one way or another).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 5 - Stone Bridge Press & Peter Owen Publishers

Welcome to the last Friday of January and the final Golden Kin-Yōbi for 2014!  While parting may be sweet sorrow, I'm trying to ease the pain a little with a very special post - today's giveaway is a double :)

Two more publishers of quality J-Lit have kindly offered some prizes - American-based Stone Bridge Press and British-based Peter Owen Publishers.  These giveaways will be geographically limited:  the Stone Bridge Press books will be US and Canada only while the Peter Owen books will be for everyone outside those countries.  All clear?  Then it's time to introduce today's books :)

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Stone Bridge Press have kindly put three of their recent publications up for grabs, two of which are from acclaimed writer Junzo Shono.  Evening Clouds is a short novel, an elegant, lyrical description of everyday life in suburban Tokyo, while Still Life and Other Stories is a collection of tales which Stone Bridge publisher Peter Goodman describes as "one of the books I'm most proud to have published at Stone Bridge Press."

The third Stone Bridge offering is Masaaki Tachihara's Wind and Stone, a short novel which is described as "a disturbing tale of seduction, based on Japanese aesthetics and the artistic pursuit of destructive beauty."  The writer won the popular Naoki Prize and was twice nominated for the Akutagawa Prize, so this is bound to be a good read :)

The selection offfered by Peter Owen Publishers is also an impressive one.  There are two excellent novels by Shusaku Endo to be had: Volcano, a simmering tale of life in the shadow of sin and the natural world (my review here); and When I Whistle, an excellent story about dealing with right and wrong in the modern world (my review here).

The third of the books on offer is Ryunosuke Akutagawa's Kappa, a rare longer outing for Japan's supreme short-story writer.  Let's face it - if you have a country's major literary award named in your honour, your books must be worth a read... 

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter (in their geographical zone...), and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, February the 6th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be posted here once they've been announced (the winners, naturally, will be chosen using some kind of random on-line draw thingy).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck! 

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes!

Oh, Tama! goes to Mihai

The Nobility of Failure goes to Paul

Blue Bamboo goes to M

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Kurodahan Press for providing some great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 4 - Kurodahan Press

It's Friday again, and that means it's time for another giveaway!  This week, it's courtesy of Kurodahan Press, a great small publisher which has a mix of new translations and reissues of out-of-print books, both from Japan and elsewhere in East Asia.  The selection comprises an eclectic mix of literary fiction, speculative fiction and non-fiction, and this giveaway will feature three of their books - with free worldwide delivery :)

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First up is Osamu Dazai's Blue Bamboo, a reissued collection of several of the writer's short stories.  The collection shows the same great style as his more famous work, but it has a much lighter tone and is a joy to read.  It's a mixture of oriental fairy tales, autobiographical pieces and contemporary stories, all wonderfully translated by Ralph McCarthy.  I loved it - find my review here.


Next up, it's some non-fiction.  Ivan Morris was a well-known Japanophile (see my review of his Modern Japanese Stories anthology), and his work The Nobility of Failure is a study of several Japanese historical figures.  In his book, Morris attempts to answer a simple question: why does Japan celebrate its heroic failures?  It's an old book, but a good one, a fascinating insight into the Japanese psyche - and one I'd love to try :)



As is the third book today - although this one is a very different creature.  The latest Kurodahan release is a slice of more contemporary J-Lit, Mieko Kanai's Oh, Tama!  It's a warm, humorous tale set in Tokyo, where a man with many problems to address receives an additional headache in the form of a cat.  Oh, Tama! is a lighter work which sounds like something most readers would enjoy!

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 30th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen using some kind of random on-line draw thingy).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes!

The three copies of Natsume Soseki's Light and Dark go to:

Marina Sofia

Judith (Leeswammes)

and Emma (Words and Peace)

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Columbia University Press for the great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 3 - Columbia University Press

We're back with another Golden Kin-Yōbi, a day of opportunity for lovers of J-Lit :)  Our generous donors today are Columbia University Press, who release a wide range of fascinating Japanese books, both fiction and non-fiction.

Which of their books are being offered as prizes?  Well, it's one of their most recent publications, and it's a chance to try one of Japan's most famous writers - in a book which few English speakers will have read...

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Natsume Soseki was the first of my J-Lit Giants, and in his home country he is arguably seen as the most famous Japanese writer of the modern era.  He is known for such works as Kokoro, Botchan, I am a Cat and Kusamakura, but one of his best books has just reappeared in English with a new translation by John Nathan.  Light and Dark is Natsume's final work, his longest novel - one I've just finished reading and enjoyed immensely :)

Set on the eve of World War One, it is described as "a minutely observed study of haute-bourgeois manners" and "a psychological portrait of a new marriage that achieves a depth and exactitude of character revelation that had no precedent in Japan at the time of its publication and has not been equaled since".  In the introduction, translator John Nathan compares the style to Henry James, and while Soseki uses much shorter sentences than the Anglo-American writer, the way he analyses his characters' thoughts is very similar.

Sounds like something you'd like to read?  Well, CUP are offering three copies, with worldwide postage for the winners, so you might just get the chance sooner than you thought :)

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If you'd like to win a copy of Light and Dark, simply comment below, leaving your name and an e-mail address.  For courier purposes, the winners will also have to provide me with a telephone number once I've confirmed the names (not yet!).  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 23rd (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen using some kind of random on-line draw thingy).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes!

A copy of Yasushi Inoue's Bullfight goes to Lizzy Siddal

A copy of Ryu Murakami's Coin Locker Babies goes to Reuven Pinnata
A copy of Murakami's Popular Hits of the Showa Era goes to Jacqui
A copy of Murakami's Sixty-Nine goes to Ally (Snow Feathers)

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to Pushkin Press for the great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: 2 - Pushkin Press

It's Week Two of Golden Kin-Yōbi, which means that you have another chance to win some great J-Lit - and today it's all courtesy of one of my favourite publishers, Pushkin Press.

While they are well known for their European fiction in translation, 2013 saw them branch out into J-Lit, and today's prizes come from that selection.  Pushkin have generously offered four books, with worldwide postage for the winners - so let's see what you can win today...

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First up is Yasushi Inoue's Bullfight, a great novella about an attempt by a journalist to put on a bullfighting event in post-war Osaka.  What initially seems like a crazy idea, gradually makes more and more sense, and people start to believe that the bulls will be fighting in the famous Kōshien baseball stadium.  He'll build it, but will they come?  I loved this (see my review here), and with more Inoue to come from Pushkin next year, this is a great chance to try his work.

Of course, most of Pushkin's J-Lit output last year was by one man, J-Lit's enfant terrible, Ryu Murakami.  Long overlooked in the Anglosphere, often in the shadow of a certain other Japanese writer, Pushkin's reissues have helped boost his profile again.

Coin Locker Babies is an explosive story of two boys abandoned shortly after their birth, and the revenge they take on a seedy, corrupt society.  We get to see a shadowy side of Tokyo and explore the downside of fame.  And the ending, well... (see my review here).

Where Coin Locker Babies is dark and brooding, Popular Hits of the Showa Era is simply nuts.  Karaoke, gangs, losers, friendship and anti-tank missiles - what's not to like?  My review is here...
 
The last book today brings a slight change of pace.  Sixty-Nine is a coming-of-age story with the usual R. Murakami touch.  A small-town boy dreams big, planning to stage a concert and get the girl of his dreams - find out if he suceeds :)  My review is here...

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So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 16th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen using some kind of random on-line draw thingy).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!

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And, of course, we need to announce the winners of last week's prizes!

A copy of Tomoyuki Hoshino's We, the Children of Cats goes to Josh

A copy of Hoshino's Lonely Hearts Killer goes to Carola

I will be in contact with the winners shortly - thanks again to PM Press for the great prizes :)

Golden Kin-Yōbi: Week 1 - PM Press

Welcome to Golden Kin-Yōbi, our regular Friday giveaway where you can win some great J-Lit.  Why the name?  Well, as some of you may know, the first character used in Japanese when writing Friday means 'gold', and hopefully many of you will strike gold over the next five weeks :)

Today's first giveaway comes to us courtesy of indie publisher PM Press, and they have kindly offered two books as prizes, including worldwide postage to the winners - and great books they are too!  Tomoyuki Hoshino is an excellent writer, one with markedly South-American influences, and I read and enjoyed both these books last year.

We, the Children of Cats is a collection of various short stories and novellas, with the tone ranging from the melancholy to the bizarre.  Several of the stories are based on real-life events, such as a famous school-dinner poisoning and the story of some rich Japanese juvenile criminals who ended up in South America.  Others though are literally out of this world...  The collection made the longlist of last year's Best Translated Book Award, and if you need more encouraging to try it, my review might tip the scales :)

Lonely Hearts Killer is a short novel which is dystopian in nature.  In a near-future Japan, a country which is beginning to become a pariah state, the last remnant of hope, the young Emperor, dies and leaves the country in a state of mourning akin to shock.  As people struggle to cope with life without hope, many people decide that there really isn't much point in living at all - and some even decide that if they are going to leave it all behind, they may as well take a few others along with them...  For more on this book, have a look at my review.


So, if you'd like to win one of these books, simply comment below, leaving your name, an e-mail address and the name of the book you'd like to win.  There's no need to follow me, either here, on Facebook or on Twitter (unless you want to, of course!) - anyone can enter, and everyone has an equal chance of winning :)

Entries will close at 8 p.m. (AEST) on Thursday, January the 9th (that's 9 a.m. on Thursday, London time), and the winners will be announced in the next Golden Kin-Yōbi post (the winners, naturally, will be chosen using some kind of random on-line draw thingy).  So, what are you waiting for?  Get commenting, and good luck!