Lily Haffenden delves into some of the most entertaining novels from Japan and South Korea
East Asian Literature has been climbing up the ranks of the book world recently, leaving awe in its wake. Some may argue Western literature cannot keep up! With some novels being made into major TV productions or films, you cannot deny their rising popularity. Let’s take a look at some of the most popular books on the market right now.
No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai
Originally published in 1948 by established Japanese author Osamu Dazai, this book illustrates the story of a troubled man who slowly descends into a state of disassociation and depression, while he tries to maintain a façade of ‘class clown.’ His descent into an existential crisis and his dependence on drugs and alcohol towards the end are documented by three notebooks and unreliable narrators.
We are introduced to the story when an at first unnamed narrator describes a man seen in three photographs. He does not describe this man very favourably and instead insults him many times. The notebooks are described in first person by the man in the photographs, Yozo Oba. A fascinating choice, as even though the man in the photos is himself, he describes himself as a stranger— emphasising his struggle with identity.
Yozo Oba presents himself as a complicated waste of oxygen who is afraid of people and struggles to interact with society. In his autobiographical account of his own life, we see his development from child to man. This is helpful to see how his character went so wrong. There are hints of child abuse in his affluent family and how he puts on a mask of a class clown and a joker to hide what lies beneath.
The sensitive subjects in Dazai’s book are quite different to other classical influences of Japan at the time and instead shows a more realistic, seedier side to life in Tokyo.
Interestingly, we see Yozo make a friend, Horiki, who shows him how to live his life to the fullest and make the most of it in the big city. Although Horiki takes on the role of a Devil to Yozo, we think Yozo is finally going to turn a corner only to be pulled back by his new friend who enables his misbehaviour and takes advantage of him at his weakest.
You must be careful when you read this novel though, as it is very easy to excuse Yozo’s behaviour- the voice he takes on is very convincing to evoke sympathy- Yozo is a spoilt rich kid in Tokyo who refuses to connect with society and instead wishes to wallow in boredom and depression.
While No Longer Human is a funny look into a man’s descent into depravity, it is a sensitive subject done in a humorous way to allow many to connect with Yozo.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi
This unique book tells the story of a quaint café that allows its customers to travel back in time, if they return before their coffee gets cold (hence the name). The story was originally a play in 2010 but was then adapted into a 2015 novel due to its popularity. It aims to ask the day-old question, if you had the opportunity to go back in time, would you?
The visitors to this coffee shop, however, quickly discover that nothing about their trip is meant to be simple. There are three glaring rules you must abide by:
Number one, whilst you travel to the past, nothing you do there will alter the present.
Number two, you must stay in the same seat the whole way.
And finally, number three, you must return to the present before your coffee gets cold.
A ghost woman who hovers in her seat is a clear reminder to the visitors not to disregard the rules. The story is separated into four sections: The Lovers, Husband and Wife, The Sisters and Mother and Child.
Kawaguchi explores the feelings of regret and longing and teaches the deeply philosophical lesson to revisit your past regrets and move on, either by trying to fix them and become a better person or by accepting that your past cannot determine your future.
Pachinko by Min Jin Lee
This New York Times Bestseller is an epic historical novel which follows the story of a Korean family in 1910 who emigrate to Japan just before the Second World War.
The main character, teenage girl Sunja falls dramatically in love with a wealthy stranger she meets on the beach in her home country of Korea. He promises her undying love and unending riches, but she soon discovers she is pregnant and her lover, who promised her the world, is married. She refuses to be persuaded with money by her wealthy ex-lover and is resolute on not being bought.
In a fit of spontaneity, she accepts an offer of marriage by a sickly Christian minister who is on his way to Japan and is passing through her hometown. She abandons her home country and moves to Japan with the minister: a decision that will affect the family detrimentally through the generations.
Lee explores themes such as sacrifice, discrimination and even suicide as the gap between the Koreans and Japanese is explored. Korean people in Japan were not considered citizens and so Sunja and her family were forced to live in the slums of Japan and her first born grandson (even though he was born in Japan) had to request from the government to affirm his residence in Japan as soon as he turns fourteen and then every three years after that for the rest of his life so as not to risk being deported.
We see this discrimination when Sunja’s son moves to a different part of the country and disguises himself as natively Japanese. As soon as he does this, he gets prosperous job offers and is allowed housing, creating a beautiful family along the way. As soon as Sunja searches for him and finds him, he decides he would rather shoot himself than reveal his identity.
This is where darker situations come into play and make the readers question whether Sunja’s sacrifice to leave everything behind to live a better life and give a better life to her son was the right one and whether her family deserved that kindness, as they all seem to want to distance themselves from her as much as possible.
All three of these books—and many more— are some of the most influential for a reason: they are all beautifully written, intricate stories which focus on longing to be someone, the highs and lows of life and how everyone can disregard past mistakes and move on and live a wholly fulfilling life. So which one are you going to start with?
