Read Japanese Literature

Read Japanese Literature is a podcast and resource site about Japanese lit and some of its best works. Follow this account for updates about the podcast, booklists of translated lit, and updates on new English-languages releases. Remember to fill out your profile before you follow folks. ☺️

I was thrilled to write a review of the new graphic novel Stagtown, a supernatural horror story about a creepy town haunted by subterranean anxieties. It's a brilliant mix of classic American Gothic and contemporary creepypasta. #Halloween #booksky 🦌 My review: www.comicsbeat.com/graphic-nove...

With less than a week until Halloween, RJL wants to remind you about all our great spooky season content—including this list of Japanese horror stories! 👻🎃👹 (In Japan, you read chilling tales to cool down in the summer in the lead up to Obon.)

Allow me to add a list of short Japanese books! Contemporary authors include - Kaori Fujino (1980- ) - Natsuko Imamura (1980- ) - Hitomi Kanehara (1983- ) - Sayaka Murata (1979- ) - Ao Omae (1992- ) - Rin Usami (1999- ) - Risa Wataya (1984- ) - Nao-Cola Yamazaki (1978- )

Don’t call it a memoir, but *do* read this magnificent book!

Ben Woollard reviews Aya Koda’s Tree (trans Charlotte Goff) for @asianreviewofbooks.bsky.social: “The book is profoundly personal and tranquil (even if placid at times), but over and over again, it imparts an empathy and attentiveness to the natural world that all readers surely need.”

Shocked. Coin Locker Babies was his masterpiece, but he also wrote some memorable sci-fi novels, still not translated, and his early literary fiction, like Almost Transparent Blue sticks with you. Vile, vivid, and visceral prose, always full of compassion for the misfit and the downtrodden. RIP

Devastating. One of the all time greats. Not enough of his work is available in English, but Coin Locker Babies, In the Miso Soup, Audition and 69 are amazing.

Sad to learn about the death of Ryu Murakami on October 17. He was 74.

Most kanji carry two kinds of reading: on'yomi, borrowed from Chinese, and kun'yomi, the native Japanese word. 水 is sui, from Chinese, and mizu in Japanese. Why has Japanese kept this two-layered reading system that other languages dropped?

Toronto friends! Do you like books? From Japan?? By queer authors??? Who won the Akutagawa Prize???? Then come see me interpret for one at the end of this month! A guaranteed* good time! *Not actually guaranteed. I cannot guarantee fun. That is up to you.

Happy birthday to Edogawa Ranpo, born October 21, 1894. You can learn more about Edogawa with RJL.

Happy UK+ release to Haruki Murakami's "personal story" Abandoning a Cat (trans Philip Gabriel). "Originally published in the New Yorker in 2019, and now presented in a full, unabridged form, Abandoning a Cat is a poignant, self-reflective work..." Expected out in N America next week.

Happy N American release LAST WEEK to Keigo Higashino's Laplace's Witch (trans Stephen Paul). "Two people die in hot spring towns in different parts of Japan. Investigating the case is a geochemist who witnessed the same mysterious girl at both crime scenes." UK+ release next month.

An excerpt of my latest translation, The Traveling Tree by famed photographer Michio Hoshino, has been included in the latest edition of Kyoto Journal. Read it there, or pick up a copy of this beautiful memoir, available wherever books are sold. kyotojournal.org/product/kj-1... #memoir #alaska

Contest for newbie J-->E translators, run by the JAT. This year's piece is a news article about Kokuhō （国宝）, the blockbuster movie about backstage kabuki intrigue in today's world. Have to have less than 3y of "professional translating experience," so good for students or the student-at-heart...

RJL Episode 52—Japanese Horror Stories is now available! Horror and uncanny stories are fundamental elements of Japanese storytelling. - horror in classical Japanese lit - kaidan in Edo Japan - modern uncanny fiction - Japanese horror of the last 70 years - Ryu Murakami + In the Miso Soup.

Special thank yous to @elipsett.bsky.social, @brianbergstrom.bsky.social, and @kenjilaine.bsky.social for their assistance with this episode. This episode includes a celebration of Kurodahan Press.

RJL Episode 52—Japanese Horror Stories is now available! Horror and uncanny stories are fundamental elements of Japanese storytelling. - horror in classical Japanese lit - kaidan in Edo Japan - modern uncanny fiction - Japanese horror of the last 70 years - Ryu Murakami + In the Miso Soup.

@europaeditions.bsky.social has been a solid source of Japanese literary fiction in translation, introducing authors like Mieko Kawakami to the English-speaking world. I'm not the only one who will no longer review or promote their editions if they're being translated by AI.

For #caturday , Shere Khan recommends KAIBYO THE SUPERNATURAL CATS OF JAPAN. Coming Nov 10! Pre-order today!!! link.amazon/B03aKlvil #booksky #Catsky #yokai #catsofbluesky

RJL Episode 52—Japanese Horror Stories is now available for Patreon supporters. Join now and enjoy 10 minutes of bonus content, including information linking written Japanese horror stories to J-horror films + allegorical readings of In the Miso Soup.

Happy birthday to Akiyuki Nosaka. The Japanese Renaissance Man and author of Grave of the Fireflies would have been 96 today. You can learn more about Nosaka and his story "Cake Tree in the Ruins" with the RJL podcast.

Happy 66th birthday to the great Okinawan writer Shun Medoruma. You can learn more about Medoruma and his short story "Droplets" with the RJL podcast.

RJL's horror episode is recorded and half edited! Here's one of my favorite modern kaidan to whet your appetite.

Another year, another witching month. With October upon us, what better time to dive into the classics of eerie Japanese cinema? Watch our video chronicling five of Japan's most memorable horror films. youtu.be/MRXcaLcfV2A

New blog post! When did Japanese borrow "fuck"/"shit"/"bitch" from English, and what happened when they entered the Japanese language? Find out below: wesleycrobertson.wordpress.com/2026/10/09/a...

Murakami loses again. Very funny look at Nobel history with a high comedy clip of Murakami fans being devastated on Japanese TV.

12yo LOVES Seiji Yoshida’s Houses with a Story (trans Jan Mitsuko Cash), found w/ help from @averyudagawa.bsky.social + SCBWI Japan. “Imagined houses and the people who make them home offer unexpected worlds to wander through and explore…” Anything else remotely like this awesome book out there?

Last day for free shipping!

Happy North American release day.

Happy release day to The Tattoo and Other Stories by Junichiro Tanizaki (trans Paul McCarthy, Anthony Chambers + J. Keith Vincent). "This dazzling collection of short fiction features three stories that appear here in English for the first time, plus fresh translations of his best-known classics."

N Americans—Bookshop.org is running Anti-Prime FREE SHIPPING today + tomorrow (10/6-7)! Pick up your #bannedbooksweek titles or anything from your TBR. Support your fave indie shop or RJL! Our shop has tons of curated lists, bit here's a list of horror. bookshop.org/lists/japane...

I will serving as the mentor for Japanese strand. Please apply and encourage others in your network to apply!❤️