Recommendations from our site
“It is one of the best-known works of fiction by one of Japan’s best-known authors. I have a soft spot for Kokoro, probably because it was the first novel I read entirely in Japanese. Natsume Sōseki was a wonderful writer and his prose is incredibly beautiful. I find the novel fascinating because it is about a nation on the verge of dramatic change. Sōseki’s life (1867–1916) overlapped almost entirely with the Meiji period (1868–1912), and the novel articulates the sensibilities of the late Meiji era and the tensions of a modernising nation.” Read more...
The Best Modern Japanese Literature
Linda Flores, Literary Scholar
