Afleveringen
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Author and travel-writer Angus Waycott talks about his 8-day walk around Sado Island off Niigata Prefecture in the Japan Sea. He gives us in-depth accounts of: a mujina (tanuki-worshipping) cult, funa-ema (literally "ship horse pictures"), exile (including those of Zeami and Buddhist priest Nichiren), and the controversy behind the Kinzan gold mine and its "slave labor," all topics that he recorded in his book Sado: Japan's Island in Exile, originally published by Stone Bridge Press in 1996 and re-issued as an e-book by the author 2012 and 2023.
Book Description: "Given the choice, no-one ever went to Sado. For more than a thousand years, this island in the Sea of Japan was a place of exile for the deposed, disgraced or just plain distrusted â ex-emperors, aristocrats, poets, priests and convicted criminals alike. This book rediscovers the exilesâ island, explores the truth about its notorious gold mine, tracks down a vanishing badger cult, and drops in on the home of super-drummer band Kodo. Along the way, it paints a vivid picture of one of Japanâs most intriguing backwaters, now emerging from a long exile of its own."
About the Author
Angus Waycott is an author and travel writer whose books have been published in the UK, USA, Japan and the Netherlands. He has been the voice of TV news broadcasts, commercials, and award-winning documentaries, voiced "character" parts in game software and anime productions, and worked as a copywriter, publisher, teacher, translator, lighting designer, and staircase builder. His books are Sado: Japan's Isand in Exile, Paper Doors: Japan from Scratch (2012), The Winterborne Journey: along a small crack in the planet (2023), and National Parks of Western Europe (2012). Check out his short video on Sado Island.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at the publisher's website. Amy Chavez, podcast host, is author of Amy's Guide to Best Behavior in Japan and The Widow, the Priest, and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island.
Subscribe to the Books on Asia podcast.
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We talk with publisher Peter Goodman and author/translator Frederik L. Schodt about artificial intelligence as it relates to writing and publishing books.
Frederik L. Schodt's book The Astro Boy Essays: Osamu Tezuka, Mighty Atom, and the Manga/Anime Revolution was recently listed as one of the books used to train generative AI. Peter Goodman is publisher of Stone Bridge Press (our podcast sponsor), publishing books about Asia for over 30 years. Both of these guests offer their views on AI, the use of published books to train artificial intelligence, the issues of copyright, fair use, and plagiarism, the different ways writers and publishers can use AI as a tool, and what the AI industry should be doing to move forward and make AI trustworthy and beneficial for everyone involved.
Check out the article in the Atlantic discussing the nearly 200,000 books used to train generative-AI systems, with a searchable database.
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Zijn er afleveringen die ontbreken?
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In this episode of the Books on Asia podcast, host Amy Chavez talks with author and translator Frederik L. Schodt, who has written/translated many books on Japan including The Osamu Tezuka Story, Manga, Manga!: The The World of Japanese Comics, The Astro Boy Essays, and My Heart Sutra: The World in 260 Characters (read our review).
But the two books we're going to talk about today are his historical non-fiction books Professor Risley and the Imperial Japanese Troupe: How an American Acrobat Introduced Circus to Japan and Japan to the West, and Native American in the Land of the Shogun: Ranald MacDonald and the Opening of Japan. Both books, published by our sponsor Stone Bridge Press, are accounts of American men who pioneered US-Japan relations.
Schodt talks about "Professor" Risley, an early acrobat of the mid-nineteenth century who starts his own circus that he takes to Japan. His trademark move involved juggling his two small sons with his feet. See an example of what is now known as the Risley Act in this video we found on Youtube:
https://youtu.be/VkFIkXXyDVc?si=zXfmUyeW9QBrwM_o
Risley later starts a Japanese circus that he takes touring around the world.
The other book we discuss is Schodt's biography of Native American Ranald MacDonald, who makes his way to Japan during the Edo period and ends up not just teaching English but having a hand in negotiations with Commodore Perry and the opening of Japan.
About the Author
Frederik L. Schodt is a writer, translator, and conference interpreter based in the San Francisco Bay area. He has written widely on Japanese history, popular culture, and technology. His writings on manga, and his translations of them, helped trigger the current popularity of Japanese comics in the English-speaking world. He was awarded the Special Category of the Asahi Shimbun's prestigious Osamu Tezuka Culture Award, and in 2009, he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold Rays with Rosette, for his work helping to promote Japan's popular culture overseas.
You can find him at his Website, on Twitter(X) @fschodt and on Facebook.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at the publisher's website. Amy Chavez, podcast host, is author of Amy's Guide to Best Behavior in Japan and The Widow, the Priest, and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island.
Subscribe to the Books on Asia podcast.
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In this episode of the BOA podcast, host Amy Chavez talks with John Ross, a New Zealand writer based in Taiwan. Ross has spent three decades in Asia, starting as a freelance photojournalist then becoming an English teacher and author. His works include Formosan Odyssey: Taiwan, Past and Present, You Donât Know China: Twenty-Two Enduring Myths Debunked, and Taiwan in 100 Books. He co-founded Camphor Press, a publishing house focused on East Asia called and co-hosts Formosa Files, a weekly podcast on the history of Taiwan.
John Ross lives in a small town in Taiwan, known as the birthplace of the inventor of instant noodles: Momofuku Ando. Ross explains why he moved to Taiwan in 1994 and how his plans for writing a book about the Mongolian manbeast was waylaid as he instead embarked on an epic journey in 1999 that became Formosan Odyssey: Taiwan, Past and Present. This first book is about travel, history, and small-town life in Taiwan.
Amy and John talk about Japanâs occupation of Taiwan and the legacies the Japanese left behind such as education, infrastructure, and railroads. Ross talks about Taiwanâs long history of attempted colonization by the Dutch, French, and Ming Loyalists.
Next, Ross talks about Taiwan in 100 Books, how he chose the volumes that tell the story of Taiwan through their interesting backstories, controversial texts, and fabulist authors who brought the first information about Taiwan to readers around the world.
In You Donât Know China: Twenty-Two Enduring Myths Debunked Ross explicates common misunderstood facts about various topics, including the Great Wall, Chinese medicine, fortune cookies, eating dogs, and Lord Macartneyâs mission to China in 1793.
Lastly, Amy and John talk about other authors, their books, and what led John Ross, Michael Cannings, and Mark Swofford to form Camphor Press in February 2014. Ross, in charge of acquisitions, talks about filling the void between academic and big box presses. He gives kudos to other small presses such as Earnshaw Books, Stone Bridge Press, and Blacksmith Books, who are all invested in bringing quality books to readers.
Amy introduces some Camphor Press books based on her own library. John adds some more titles to her list, including two by winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature Pearl S. Buck: The Exile: Portrait of an American Mother, and Fighting Angel: Portrait of a Soul.
John talks about the lost art of the travelogue and how the 1990s and the internet destroyed what should be an enduring genre.
They discuss great travel writers such as Heinrich Harrer, Bill Bryson, and Ernest Hemingway.
John and Amy talk about how the travel genre is changing and where it is headed. Amy also mentions Alex Kerrâs upcoming book Hidden Japan: An Astonishing World of Thatched Villages, Ancient Shrines and Primeval Forests (Sept. 2023, but you can pre-order here) and how the author advises people to not go to these places, but rather be happy reading about them instead.
John Rossâs favorite travelogues are:
Seven Years in Tibet by Heinrich HarrerLand of Jade: A journey through India Through Northern Burma to China (1996), by Bertil LintnerIn the Footsteps of Genghis Khan, by John DeFrancisRossâs three Favorite Books on Japan are:
On the Narrow Road to the Deep North: Journey into a Lost Japan by Leslie DownerIn Search of Japanâs Hidden Christians, by John DougillCharinko by Tom Gibb (an upcoming Camphor Press title)Be sure to check out John Rossâs books at the Camphor Press website or via Amazon. You can also visit him on social media at the following links:
Taiwan in 100 BooksCamphor Press (Sign up for the Camphor Press Newsletter by scrolling to the bottom of that page)Formosa Files PodcastThe Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, publisher of fine books on Asia for over 30 years. Subscribe to the Books on Asia Podcast. Subscribe to the BOA podcast at https://linktr.ee/booksonasia
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In 2021 John Rucynski--who has been living in Japan on and off since 1994--self-published A Passion for Japan through Blue Sky Publishing. In this anthology, which includes 31 writers, he asks not why the writers came to Japan but why they stayed. Here is a list of the essays and writers included, from the Table of Contents
ShodoÌ: Finding My Way in The Way of Writing
Karen Hill AntonOne Year with the Guardians of the Phoenix
Carmen SaÌpunaru TaÌmasÌŠMatsuri Madness
David M. WeberWadaiko: Drumming to Our Own Beat
Daniel LilleyFollow the Sound of the Drums: My Passion for Eisa
Judy KambaraA Love of Indie Music and a Seat behind the Goal
Adrianne Verla UchidaSumo and Me
Tim CraigA Pushover for Sumo
Katrina WattsBaseball, Blogging, and Belonging
Trevor RaichuraComing Home: The Search for Belonging in Rural Japan
Victoria YoshimuraLooking for the Good Life: Living as a Local In a Zero Waste Village
Linda Mengxi DingGaijin in the Garden: Where Ganbaru is Golden
Robert McLaughlinFrom Bruce Lee to The Way of Tea
Randy Channell SoeiFrom the Land of the Indomitable Lions to the Land of the Blue Samurai: A Personal Story
Samuel NforThe Long Road from Clay to Pot, and What I Learned along the Way
Irina HolcaThe Man Who Stepped into Yesterday
Edward J. TaylorKumano Leap â Local Heritage Adopts a Wandering Soul: Q & A with Mike Rhodes
Mike RhodesLife Lessons Learned in Japanâs Mountains
Wes LangâBanzai!â on a Spanish Island: Playing Chess in Japanâs Colors
Simon BibbyWho, Me?! Volleyball Refereeing in Japan
Greg RouaultPassion in a Community: Finding My Japan through JALT
Wayne MalcolmCome Sail Away: Finding My Passion on the Ship for World Youth
John RucynskiThe Inner Game of the Japanese: Going Back Home with Tennis
Haru YamadaWho Am I? In Search of My Identity
Margaret C. KimMy Love for Traditional Rituals and Customs of Japan
Hiya MukherjeeDiscovering Japanese Fusion of Religions on the Pilgrimage Island of Shikoku
Steve McCartyFeeling at Home with the Great Literary Masters
Vicky Ann RichingsToo Many Novels I Want to Translate: Q & A With Emily Balistrieri
Emily BalistrieriLiterature and Legacy: Stories of Hansenâs Disease in Japan
Kathryn M. TanakaRoof Spotting in Japan
Wendy BiglerA Passion for the Place: Swept Off My Feet by a Japanese Farmhouse
Rebecca OtowaThe book is available exclusively on
Amazon USA / Amazon JapanFollow the book on Instagram, Facebook, and Goodreads.
At the end of the podcast, Amy asks John what his top 3 books on Japan are and why. He gives 4:
You Gotta Have Wa, by Robert WhitingThe Roads to Sata, by Alan BoothCool Japan, by Tim CraigPure Invention, by Matt AltJohn Rucynski, editor of A Passion for Japan: A Collection of Personal Narratives, is originally from upstate New York and has been living in Japan on and off since 1994. He is currently associate professor in the Center for Language Education at Okayama University. His main research interest is the role of humor in language acquisition and intercultural communicative competence, and he has edited two volumes on this topic.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, publisher of quality books on Japan and Asia for over 30 years. Go to their website at https://www.stonebridge.com/
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Stephen Mansfield, author of Tokyo: A Biography (Tuttle, 2017), is a British writer and photo-journalist based in Japan. His photo-journalism work has appeared in over 60 magazines, newspapers, and journals worldwide including the Kyoto Journal, CNN Travel and Nikkei Asia. To date, he has had twenty books published, four of them on the culture and people of Laos and several on Japanese gardens. He also has a chapter and essay in the anthology Inaka: Portraits of Rural Life in Japan (Camphor Press, 2020). In today's podcast he talks about, of course, Tokyo. o us about Tokyo: A Biography.
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In this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, host Amy Chavez sits down with writer, translator, and professor of Japanese at Western Michigan University, Jeffrey Angles. He is the first non-native poet writing in Japanese to win the Yomiuri Prize for Literature, a highly coveted prize for poetry. His translation of the modernist classic The Book of the Dead by Shinobu Orikuchi won both the Miyoshi Award and the Scaglione Prize for translation. He is with us today to talk about his translation of the just-released book by Hiromi Ito, The Thorn Puller.
Hiromi Ito, author of The Thorn Puller (Toge-nuki Jizo: Shin Sugamo Jizo engi) came to national attention in Japan in the 1980s for her groundbreaking poetry about pregnancy, childbirth, and female sexuality. After relocating to the U.S. in the 1990s, she began to write about the immigrant experience and biculturalism. In recent years, she has focused on the ways that dying and death shape human experience.
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Sarah Coomber is the author of The Same Moon (Camphor Press, 2020), a memoir about what happened when she traded out her wrecked Minnesota life for two years in rural Japan. The Same Moon is possibly the only book about the Japan Exchange and Teaching Program (JET) experience written from a woman's point of view. Sarah joined the program in 1996, when the government-sponsored program was in its infancy.
In this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, she talks about being a single woman in Japan at that time, expectations at work, and how things have changed, or not, since then. Finally she gives some advice on what women should consider before moving to Japan to teach English.
At the very end of the podcast, Sarah shares with us her top three books on Japan:
1. Shogun, by James Clavell
2. The Accidental Office Lady: An American Woman in Corporate Japan by Laura Kriska
3. A Half-Step Behind: Japanese Women Today, by Jane Condon
Author Bio: Sarah Coomber has worked in public relations, journalism, science writing and advocacy, and has taught English at the college level. She has an MFA in creative writing from Eastern Washington University, a masterâs in mass communication from the University of Minnesota, and level-four certification in the Seiha School of koto. A resident of Minnesota, she writes, manages communications projects, coaches other writers, and teaches yoga.
Find her online at her website or sign up for her newsletter. You'll also find her at the following social media links:
Twitter: @CoomberSarah
Instagram: @sarahcoomberwriter
Facebook: @sarahcoomberwriter
LinkedIn: @sarahcoomber -
In this episode of the BOA podcast, host Amy Chavez talks with Azby Brown, a long-time resident of Japan and author of Just Enough: Lessons from Japan for Sustainable Living, Architecture, and Design. Some topics discussed are Edo Period sustainability measures, STGâs, architecture of old Japanese houses, the Kamikatsu Zero Waste town, and future measures Japan is taking to become more sustainable.
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In this episode of the BOA podcast, host Amy Chavez talks with Maud Rowell about her new book Blind Spot: Exploring and Educating on Blindness (404 Ink, 2021). Maud is a freelance journalist and writer from London. She went blind at 19 while traveling in South Korea. Two months later, she went on to begin a four-year degree in Japanese Studies at University of Cambridge including one year at Doshisha University in Kyoto. She trained in journalism at City, University of London, and over the course of the pandemic, wrote her first book Blind Spot: Exploring and Educating on Blindness published by 404 Ink in November 2021. In the summer of 2021, she won the Holman Prize run by San Francisco Lighthouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired and received a grant to travel around Japan and write about her experiences.
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In this episode of the Books on Asia podcast, podcast host and island-dweller Amy Chavez and Gifu countryside villager Iain Maloney discuss their experiences living in Japan's countryside. Iain's book The Only Gaijin in the Village: A Year Living in Rural Japan is dedicated to the subject of himself moving to the the countryside with his Japanese wife, while Amy in her latest book The Widow, the Priest and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island documents the countryside-living experience with an emphasis on the Japanese people she lives among. See what similarities and differences these authors reveal in this "shared experience" of moving to Japan's countryside.
Some helpful vocabulary for this episode:gaijin: a non-Japanese person
honcho: the head of a local neighborhood area or association
chonaikai: Neighborhood Association
kairanban: a notebook sponsored by the Neighborhood Association that acts as a communication tool and is passed from house to house to inform of local events. One reads the notice, checks off they've read it, then the notebook is walked to the next person's house and turned over to them.
akiya: an empty or abandoned house
akiya taisaku: measures taken to fill empty houses with tenants
fudosan: real estate agent
murahachibu: ostracization, non-acceptance of outsiders
hanko: one's seal or stamp used on official documents (mortgages, legal documents, etc.)
danka: a parishoner or member of a Buddhist temple
shimatsukuriinkai: similar to a town hall meeting as applied to an island
Amy starts off asking Iain what influenced his decision to move to Japan's countryside. They discuss the odd lack of livestock, which is one of the first things Westerners associate with the bucolic countryside.
Amy then asks Iain how he and his wife went about selecting a house, if they had to fix it up themselves, and about the process of moving in. They compare houses, repairs, especially toilets. Iain talks about the things that confounded their real estate agent when they were house hunting. Amy explains the much more complicated process of moving to the island where she lives.
Amy talks about having moved to Shiraishi Island by herself, and how she later brought a foreign husband into the mix, and asks Iain what aspects make it easier or more difficult to move to the countryside with a Japanese spouse. They talk about the pros and cons of being "accepted" into a Japanese community, including ostracism (murahachibu), which also applies to Japanese people. They also discuss good foreigner/bad foreigner stereotypes that exist for non-Japanese. Amy talks about how she grew to understand the real issues behind murahachibu.
Each village is different and every area has its own customs, rules, and ways of doing things, so Amy and Iain compare Neighborhood Associations, the volunteer fire department, and taking part in town-hall meetings as well as dealing with neighbors, their indirectness and how the power of suggestion plays a role in Japanese society.
They talk about akiya taisaku attempts to lure Japanese people into countryside living, and Amy talks about the people who helped her integrate into her community.
Lastly, Iain's names his favorite books as related to Japan's countryside:
Inaka: Portraits of Rural Life in Japan (an anthology)
Lost Japan, by Alex Kerr
Unbeaten Tracks in Japan, by Isabella Bird
Kanazawa, by David joiner
The Easy Life in Kamusari by Shion Miura (transl. Juliet W. Carpenter)
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at www.stonebridge.com.
Your podcast host is Amy Chavez, author of Amyâs Guide to Best Behavior in Japan, and The Widow, the Priest and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island.
Donât miss out on upcoming episodes with Asia's best authors and translators by subscribing to the Books on Asia podcast.
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Podcast host Amy Chavez talks to Robert Weis, curator of the Luxembourg Natural History Museum's upcoming exhibit, âSpirit of Shizen â The Nature of Japan through 72 Seasons,â running from July 1 to August 31, 2022.
An accompanying catalogue, in the form of an anthology, will be published featuring essays by prominent writers on Japan's seasons.
Amy starts off the show asking Weis, a paleontologist, how he ended up curating the exhibition âSpirit of Shizenâ Weis explains his childhood fascination with fossils, his work at the museum, and his love for Japan. He says Mark Horvane, a Kyoto-based garden designer, was an adviser to the exhibition.
Amy expounds upon the meaning of "72-microseasons" as outlined in Mark Horvane's essay of the same title included in the museum catalogue/anthology.
While some Japanese arts and activities have obvious links to nature, such as Ikebana flower arrangement, bonsai, gardens or cherry-blossom viewing, Weis notes that other links may not be so obvious, such as those in haiku poetry, Japanese sweets, or even the passing of time. These tie-ins to the seasons will brought into focus via workshops, demonstrations, and a publication that focuses on Japanese culture and nature.
Workshops include a Miksang contemporary photography workshop with John Einarsen, a calligraphy session by Japanese artist Rie Takeda, an exploration into the tea ceremony by Bruce Hamana, and a workshop on the seasons as related to Zen, presented by French Buddhist nun and author Kankyo Tannier. A movie, produced by Felicity Tillack especially for the exhibition, will delve into the seasons of Kyoto, and a gastronomic event coordinated with a local Japanese restaurant will look at the role of the seasons in Japanese cuisine. Visitors can enjoy a mock tea-house with tatami mats or enjoy tea in the museum's garden.
"Spirit of Shizen" (shizen means "nature" in Japanese), also offers an accompanying catalog/anthology of essays penned by prominent writers on Japan. The publication will be available in the Museum Store and as an online purchase.
Following is the contents of the publication, which is divided into four parts, with Pico Iyer penning an introductory essay for each section/season.
"Spirit of Shizen" Anthology
Table of Contents
AUTUMN â Radiant Wistfulness, by Pico Iyer
Momiji-gari - Tracking Down the Colored Leaves, by Rebecca OtowaA Late Autumn Walk in Nara, by Robert WeisNaturally Attuned to the Seasons, by Edward LevinsonThe Japanese 72 Micro-seasons, by Mark HovaneWINTER â Blue Invigoration, by Pico Iyer
First Winter in Ohara, by Patrick ColganOntakesan - Seasonal Elements of a Sacred Japanese Mountain, by Jann WilliamsKigo: Seasonal Words and Seasonality in Haiku, by Kawaharada MayumiNature is Culture, by SĂ©bastien RaizerSPRING â Pink-and-white Flutter, by Pico Iyer
Petals on a Wet Black Bough, by Amanda HugginsSakura, by Naoko AbeSeasons of the Seto Inland Sea, by Amy ChavezThe Beauty of Japanese Gardens, by Yuri UgayayaSUMMER â Festivals in the Sultry Nights, by Pico Iyer
The Message in the Garden, by Marc Peter KeaneAwareness of the Seasons in the Tea Ceremony (Chanoyu), by Bruce HamanaMosses for the Ages, by Karen Lee TawarayamaNotes on Ikebana, by Mark HovaneTsuyu â Between the Sheets, by Edward J. TaylorWeis advises that there are no coronavirus restrictions right now for visiting Luxembourg or the museum.
At the end of the show, Amy asks Weis to name his favorite books on Japan:
The Lady and the Monk: Four Seasons in Kyoto, by Pico Iyer
South of the Border, West of the Sun, by Haruki Murakami
The Japanese Chronicles, by Nicolas Bouvier
About Robert Weis
Robert Weis is the author of over thirty scientific publications about Jurassic fossils. He has nourished a deep interest in Eastern Asian cultures, and especially Japan, since his childhood. He practices Zen meditation and the art of Bonsai and is especially interested in Japanese garden culture. Accounts on his Japanese travels can be found on his blog theroutetokyoto.com. He is the curator of the exhibition âSpirit of Shizen â The Nature of Japan through 72 seasons,â to be held at the Luxembourg Natural History Museum during summer 2022. He is also a travel writer for Luxembourgâs travel magazine "DIARIES OF." His book Rocklines: A Geopoetic Journey across the Minett Unesco Biosphere, co-authored with Italian geopoet Davide S. Sapienza, will be on release in July 2022.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at www.stonebridge.com.
Your podcast host is Amy Chavez, author of Amyâs Guide to Best Behavior in Japan, and The Widow, the Priest and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island.
Donât miss out on upcoming episodes with Asia's best authors and translators by subscribing to the Books on Asia podcast.
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Amy asks Poulton to explain the difference between reading Noh plays and seeing a Noh performance. Poulton goes into great detail on the subject, including why and how the same Noh play covered in a few pages of text becomes a one-and-a-half hour play when performed. He quotes from Arthur Waley's The Noh Plays of Japan to explain the concept of length and time.
He further introduces Kan'ami and Zeami, father and son, who elevated the art of Noh to what it has become and discusses the Tokugawa Shogunate's influence on Noh and gagaku (court music). Poulton notes that the flute, drum, and howling in Noh are designed to help take the audience into a different time and space. This is especially important to plays that focus on stories of ghosts, demons, and natural spirits (such as those of trees and plants).
Noh performances are known for their ability to induce drowsiness and even sleep among the audience. Poulton explains how this induced hypnotic state can effectively transport the audience to a liminal awareness between reality and dreams.
"There is a transcendental boredom to Noh. We have to slow down our consciousnesses to get into the space of the performance. Time and space expand into infinity and eternity and this is how we can contact those things." âCody Poulton
Next Poulton expands on the structure of Noh plays and the use of dreams as devices in two well-known performances: "Hagoromo," an encounter of a human being and a supernatural creature, and "Yamamba" the mountain crone (See BOA Podcast 14: Yamamba: Japanese Mountain Witch with Rebecca Copeland and Linda Erlich). He explains the role of Noh masks and costumes. He further comments on "Funabenke" a demon play.
Amy mentions "Takasago" and its continued reference in modern-day Japan. Poulton responds that Noh often has a liturgical purpose, a way of blessing or commemorating an event similar to a requiem, and gives three modern examples of Japanese tragedies linked to Noh plays. He sum up his comments with:
When bad things happen, we go back to ceremony, to ritual, to try to give shape to our feelings, and Noh is a beautiful device for doing that.
Next is a discussion about the author Izumi KyĆka and how he came from a long line of Noh musicians and artists. Kyoka himself wrote plays about the supernatural and became a model of the counterculture of the 1960s in Japan. His uncle, Matsumoto Kintaro, was a famous Noh actor of the Meiji period. Poulton mentions the plays "Uta andon" and "Ama."
"Saigyozakura" (Saigyo's Cherry Tree) is a play about the poet's trip to a temple to get away from the crowds at cherry-viewing time in search of a quiet and peaceful place to view the trees. But the cherry tree he finds at the temple chastises Saigyo for being a party pooper, telling him that people partying under the blossoms are celebrating his and the other trees' beauty. Poulton uses this as an example of how flowers and trees come to life and talk back to the humans via Noh plays.
Lastly, Amy asks Poulton to recommend some books for those wanting to learn more about the Japanese performing arts:
History of Japanese Theatre (Cambridge University Press, 2016), edited by Jonah Salz
Traditional Japanese Theater (Columbia University Press), edited by Karen Brazell
Japanese No Dramas (Penguin Classics, 1993) by Royall Tyler
Kabuki Plays on Stage (4 Vols) (University of Hawaii Press, 2002-3) by James R. Brandon and Samuel L. Leiter
Backstage at the Bunraku (Weatherhill, 1985) by Barbara C. Adachi
The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Drama (Columbia University Press, 2017), co-edited by M Cody Poulton with Thomas Rimer, Mitsuya Mori, et al.
Anthology of Japanese Short Stories (Oxford University Press, 2010), edited by Theadore W Goosen, which includes the story "Portrait of an Old Geisha" by Okamoto Kanoko (trans. Cody Poulton)
About Cody Poulton:
Cody Poulton taught Japanese literature, theater, and culture in the Department of Pacific and Asian Studies at the University of Victoria, Canada, for thirty-two years before retiring in 2021. Active as a translator of Japanese fiction and drama, he is author of Spirits of Another Sort: The Plays of Izumi KyĆka (2001) and A Beggar's Art: Scripting Modernity in Japan, 1900-1930. He is also co-editor, with Mitsuya Mori and J. Thomas Rimer, of The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Drama and a contributing editor to History of Japanese Theatre. He is editor and chief translator of Citizens of Tokyo: Six Plays by Oriza Hirata (2019) and co-editor, with Barbara Geilhorn, Peter Eckersall, and Andreas Regelsberger, of Okada Toshiki and Japanese Theatre (2021).
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at www.stonebridge.com. Read a BOA review of their publication Yamamba: In Search of the Japanese Mountain Witch (edited by Rebecca Copeland and Linda C Ehrlich).
Your podcast host is Amy Chavez, author of Amyâs Guide to Best Behavior in Japan, and The Widow, the Priest and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island.
Donât miss out on upcoming episodes with Asia's best authors and translators by subscribing to the Books on Asia podcast.
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This week author and translator John Stevens joins us from Hawaii. Stevens has penned many books over his long career, mainly dealing with Japanese martial arts, poetry, and biography.
âA book should be enlightening for the writer, and for the people reading it.â âJohn Stevens
Amy starts off the show mentioning the books of Stevens that she has read: The Marathon Monks of Mt. Hiei; The Essence of Aikido: Spiritual Teachings of Morihei Ueshiba; Dew Drops on a Lotus Leaf: Zen Poems of Ryokan; and Mountain Tasting: Haiku and Journals of Santoka Taneda. Yet that is only a fraction of the works that Stevens has produced over his life.
He explains his translation style and how he manages to capture the essence of haiku in his translations. He names Arthur Waley as an exemplar of the craft.
âA good translation has to be good literature, fine literature."
Stevens talks about his first book, One Robe, One Bowl (Tuttle Publishing).
His second book was Mountain Tasting: Haiku and Journals of Santoka Taneda (White Pine Press). Of his books on aikido, he says the most popular has been The Art of Peace: Teachings of the Founder of Aikido (Shambhala), which has over 2,300 ratings on Amazon and has been further translated into over 20 languages.
Amy reads a poem from Dew Drops on a Lotus Leaf (Shambhala), which prompts Stevens to talk about his passion for poetry and translation:
"If you donât feel the passion and the poignancy, then itâs not a translation.â
When talking about the writing process:
"Writing a book should be enlightening, for both you writing it and for the people reading it," says Stevens. "My writing was an extension of my [Aikido] practice.â
Other popular books by Stevens are The Essence of Aikido: Spiritual Teachings of Morihei Ueshiba (Kodansha International), and The Marathon Monks of Mt. Hiei (Echo Point Books & Media).
Stevens tells a story of going to Sendai to meet a master Aikido teacher, Shirata-sensei, in Yamagata. "Iâd arrive at the dojo, no one was there. He was there. He was never not there. And he was sitting, meditating. I learned something: that if youâre a teacher, youâve got to be there all the time.â
The author and translator also talks about his book Lust for Enlightenment (Shambhala) and why it was controversial, as well as Tantra of Tachikawa Ryu: Secret Sex Teachings of the Buddha (Stone Bridge Press).
More recently, Stevens has been working with art exhibitions and writing exhibition catalogues. He is currently working on a display in Spain centered around the Kyoto poet and Buddhist nun Rengetsu at the Gothic Monastery of Pedralbes in Barcelona until May 27, 2022. If you need a primer before you go, get a copy of Stevens's Rengetsu: Life & Poetry of Lotus Moon (Echo Point Books & Media). The Barcelona exhibit, which has been open to the public since November 2021 and is titled "La lluna de Lotus" in Spanish, includes 36 ceramic pieces and 30 paintings and calligraphy by the female artist.
Lastly, Amy asks Stevens what his favorite books on Japan are:
Poetry and Zen: Letters and Uncollected writings of R.H. Blyth by R.H. Blyth and Norman Waddell
Zen and Japanese Culture by Daisetzu T. Suzuki
The Unknown Craftsman: A Japanese Insight into Beauty by Soetsu Yanagi and Bernard LeachDon't miss John Stevens next book The Art of Budoh: Painting and Calligraphy by Japanese Masters (Shambhala, Dec 2022).
More Books by John Stevens:
Seeing Zen (Floating World Editions)
Sacred Calligraphy of the East (Echo Point Books & Media)
Extraordinary Zen Masters; A Maverick, A Master of Masters, and a Wondering Poet (Echo Point Books & Media)
Budo: Teachings of the Founder of Aikido (Kodansha USA)
The Secret Teachings of Aikido (Kodansha USA)
The Heart of Aikido; The Philosophy of Takemusu Aiki (Kodansha International)
Wild Ways: Ikkyu (White Pine Press)Philosophy of Aikido (Echo Point Books & Media)
And many, many more!
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Abby Denson is the award-winning author of Cool Japan Guide: Fun in the Land of Manga, Lucky Cats and Ramen, Cool Tokyo Guide: Adventures in the City of Kawaii Fashion, Train Sushi and Godzilla and the Kitty Sweet Tooth series (with Utomaru).
Her most recent book, which weâre going to talk about today, is Uniquely Japan: A Comic Book Artist Shares Her Personal Faves - Discover What Makes Japan The Coolest Place on Earth!
Abby has scripted comics for Amazing Spider-Man Family, Powerpuff Girls comics, Simpsons comics, Sabrina The Teenage Witch, Josie and the Pussycats, Disney Adventures, and many others.
We start off the show with Abby helping define for our listeners the difference between Japanese manga, graphic novels, superhero comics, and American style comics.
Amy talks about how she used to read Japanese manga to study Japanese language, and tells what she thinks distinguishes manga from other types of comics including Abbyâs. She gives some of the features of Abby's books that make them stand out from others.
Abby talks about the role of color in her comic-drawing and names Keith Haring as one of her inspirations. She especially loves drawing desserts and all kinds of foods!
Abby talks about some of the challenges of putting together her two Japan guides and her latest, Uniquely Japan, which was much more of a multimedia effort.
Amy mentions she especially likes the tips in the book, such as suggesting people order the teishoku daily special (set menu) when people go to a restaurant to get the chance to sample as many amazing Japanese foods as possible.
Abby says the book aims to provide a fun way to learn about different Japanese topics. Parfaits for example! âYou can see gorgeous parfait displays everywhere,â she says, referring to the plastic food models in the display window of many restaurants and cafes in Japan. "I find them so dazzling,â Abby says. This launches into a discussion of Japan being a very visual culture.
Abby says Uniquely Japan is different from her previous books because Cool Japan and Cool Tokyo were conceived as guidebooks. They have travel tips and information helpful for tourists planning their first trip to Japan. Uniquely Japan can be read just to learn about Japanese culture.
Abby elaborates on the reception of her books in Japan and some surprising feedback she received from Japanese readers of the book.
She also elaborates on the âStreet Sitesâ chapter in her book that highlights decorative manhole covers, police boxes, and the specific design motifs of each town you can discover. "As a visual artist, it really makes you feel validated to see all this amazing graphic design everywhere. I feel like it's used so much more aesthetically, and in a more visually pleasurable manner in Japan than other in other places. The little accents and the motifs come together for a visually pleasurable experience.â
Amy mentions Abbyâs use of stamps in Uniquely Japan, referring to the rubber stamps at every railway station that you can press into your diary or journal. The stamp features a graphic of the place you visited along with that townâs motif. This leads to a discussion of âstamp ralliesâ (and where to find them) and also collecting the beautifully brushed goshuin stamps from temples.
When Amy asks Abby for an interesting backstory to one of her books, Abby tells the story of writing Kitty Sweet Tooth, a collaboration that started with a random meeting of an artist in a bar. The first book, Kitty Sweet Tooth, was published last year and the next book, Kitty Sweet Tooth Makes a Movie, will be published this fall.
Lastly, Abby reveals her 3 favorite books on Japan and why:
1. Manga! Manga!: The World of Japanese Comics by Frederik L. Schodt
2. Tokyo on Foot: Travels in the City's Most Colorful Neighborhoods by Florent Chavouet
3 Himawari House, a fictional graphic novel by Harmony Becker
Amy ends the podcast by suggesting what Abbyâs next book should be to which Abby responds that her husband keeps telling her the same thing. So maybe, just maybe âŠ
You can find Abby Denson on social media and at the following places:
Instagram @abbydenson
Twitter @abbydenson
website: abbydenson.com -
In this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, podcast host Amy Chavez talks with novelist David Joiner about his new novel that takes place in Kanazawa, in Japanâs Ishikawa Prefecture.
The novel introduces the city of Kanazawa, its connection to the famous Japanese literary master Izumi KyĆka, and its setting for the novel. The story revolves around an American married to a Japanese, and the Japanese family's dynamics. Highlighted are some of the differences between traditional and modern Japan and the foreignerâs place in it.
Finally, Amy asks Joiner what his 3 favorite books on Japan are, and he elaborates on his choices:
1. Snow Country and Sound of the Mountain, both by Yasunari Kawabata.
2. Dawn to the West by Donald Keene
3. Roads to Sata, by Alan Booth
Read a review of David Joinerâs novel Kanazawa by Tina DeBellegarde.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at the publisherâs website. Amy Chavez, podcast host, is author of Amyâs Guide to Best Behavior in Japan and the upcoming The Widow, the Priest, and the Octopus Hunter: Discovering a Lost Way of Life on a Secluded Japanese Island (May, 2022) Subscribe to the Books on Asia podcast.
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In this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, host Amy Chavez talks with anthropologist, shamisen player, author, and translator Liza Dalby about her books and her new translation of the recently deceased novelist cum Buddhist nun JakuchĆ Setouchi's memoir "Places."
Liza is author of the Geisha, Kimono: Fashioning Culture, East Wind Melts the Ice: A Guide to Serenity Through the Seasons, and Hidden Buddhas: A Novel of Karma and Chaos. Her previous translations include Little Songs of Geisha: Traditional Japanese Ko-Uta.
Amy and Liza talk about Liza's long career writing about Japan, starting with Geisha and how that world of women changed along with the modernization of Japanese society, why the geisha survive today, and the meaning of the word "kimono." They also discuss different kinds of kimono, the difference between the yukata (often called a "summer kimono") and a robe. Liza lets us in on the controversy behind the original cover of Tale of Murasaki and how and why she convinced the publisher to change it to the current one.
They also talk about the controversies behind Setouchi JakuchĆ, how Liza came to translate her autobiography, and how she missed a chance to talk to JakuchĆ during a visit to KyĆto.
Lastly, Liza reveals her favorite books on Japan:
The Tale of Genji, by Murasaki ShikibuRobin Gill's translations of haikuthe woodblock prints of Yoshi Toshi and the late John Stevenson's booksVisit Liza Dalby's website.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press. Check out their books on Japan at the publisher's website.
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In this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, podcast host Amy Chavez talks with Kathleen Burkinshaw in the U.S. about her book The Last Cherry Blossom, and about hibakusha, the Japanese word that refers to victims of the atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki that ended WWII.
"My mother was 12 and a half when the bomb was dropped. She grew up in Hiroshima and she was about two miles away from the epicenter. So the journey of the book is kind of how I found out about my mother's story because I did not know she was from Hiroshima until I was 11. She always told people she was from Tokyo."
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On this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, we have guest interviewer Lisa Wilcut speaking with award-winning writer and translator Meredith McKinney. McKinney is translator of many Japanese classics such as Sei Shonagon's 11th-century "The Pillow Book" and the 14th-century "Essays in Idleness," which was published along with "HĆjĆki." She has also translated "Kusamakura" and "Kokoro" (see our review) by Natsume SĆseki, one of Japan's most celebrated modern writers. Today, she is going to talk about her long career and also about her just-released book on the wandering poet SaigyĆ called "Gazing at the Moon" (Shambala, September, 2021).
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, publisher of fine books on Asia for over 30 years. Subscribe to the Books on Asia Podcast.
About the Interviewer
Lisa Wilcut is a writer, editor, translator, and educator based in Yokohama. She writes and edits works on Japanese culture for both scholarly and general audiences and teaches courses in Japanese society and culture as well as philosophy at the University of Maryland Global Campus in Yokosuka. She holds an MA in Japanese language and literature from Stanford University and an MA in philosophy from San Francisco State University. She also writes short fiction and poetry. Find her on LinkedIn.
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On this episode of the Books on Asia Podcast, sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, Alex Kerr is returning to the show.
Alex is author of such notable books as Lost Japan, Dogs and Demons, Finding the Heart Sutra, and Another Kyoto. Today he talks to podcast host Amy Chavez about his latest book, Another Bangkok, released on July 1, 2021. He introduces Thailand's capital city via its architecture, arts, and culture, and shows us how they are similar to Japan's. NOTE TO LISTENERS: In addition to the podcast, Alex has provided some visuals of the interior pages of the book, which can be accessed on the Books on Asia YouTube channel.
Show Notes
Kerr starts out the show explaining that Another Bangkok is not a "new" book but a rewrite of a book previously called Bangkok Found. He talks about why and how he rewrote major sections of the book. (The previous version of the book was published by River Books, and "Another Bangkok" is with Penguin. The book is available on Amazon Japan and Amazon.com from July 1.)
Alex says that in this version of the book, the subjects are broader, with topics such as living in an old house vs. living in a modern apartment, modern Thai design, Thai etiquette, and Thai food. But what all the topics share is a deep penetration into the traditional Thai culture. Alex reads a few lines from the preface that point out that while tourists come to Japan to see and experience the culture, people visit Thailand for fun, shopping, and beaches. People don't see Thailand as a place to go for rich culture and thus often dismiss it because there is nothing written down that explains the culture. Thus, this book.
Amy asks Alex what kind of changes were made to the original and what the experience of rewriting it was like.
He says that after writing Finding the Heart Sutra, he learned to simplify his writing and streamline it to make the book shorter, sharper, and more readable. He also updated it, as a decade had passed since it was first published as Bangkok Found. In all, it took him three years to rewrite the current book.
Getting back to what the book contains, Alex says there is a chapter on traditional Thai ceramics, such as the bowl seen on the cover of the book, and he focuses on one of the Thai hallmarks of their culture, sanuk, which means "fun."
The story starts with Alex as a student in the 70s visiting Thailand (the video shows a photo of the City Pillar) and how difficult it was for him to find the history about this Pillar, the known geographical center of Bangkok. He reveals that in Thailand there are multiple meanings of so many things, including history. Alex's quest was to unearth this history and its roots.
He uses the Grand Palace in Bangkok as another example, citing the fact that most people don't really understand what the meaning of the Grand Palace is. This launches into a discussion of architecture, and Alex explains how Thai buildings resemble other Asian structures but are elongated to have soaring stupas and spires. He talks about an old traditional house he lived in as well as some street scenes such as a street vendor, the BTS sky train entrance, and Motorcycle boys who act as taxis by taking on pillion passengers.
The conversation turns to etiquette, which Alex is very aware of as one of Amy's passions (see Amy's Guide to Best Behavior in Japan) and talks about how etiquette is very important in Thai society and, as in Japan, is so much more than what one sees or can observe on the surface. There is much more, for example, to the Thai smile that tourists find so charming. Marayat, as Thai etiquette is called, compares to Japanese keigo in that it is complex and used to create a mood of gentleness. Thais are horrified by loud talk or slamming of doors, getting angry or showing anger, etc.
Amy asks how it is different from Japanese etiquette, since she thinks the Japanese are also threatened by such inharmonious behaviors.
Alex agrees that indeed, they are similar, which is why Japanese people are so comfortable visiting Thailand. Thailand has the same concepts such as seiza (proper sitting) and enryo (self-restraint), but the difference is more obvious in Japan's bolder gestures, which aren't present in Thai culture: The militaristic rigidness and the shouting of "Arigato gozaimasu!" are absent among Thais, who prefer gentleness in every aspect. Etiquette is also ingrained in Thai culture from childhood as marayat is taught in school, and there are even marayat contests, judged not just on how correctly you perform an act, but how beautifully you do it. This is one of the keys to the charm of Thailand.
Amy, fascinated, asks Alex to explain a photo showing four kinds of the wai, the Thai gesture of putting the hands together in a prayer gesture in front of the chest while bowing the head. In each photo, the placement of the thumb and fingers change. In the first illustration, showing the wai given to a friend or equal, the hands are at the chest height, head not bowed. In the second, used to a superior, the hands are held further up toward the nose. The third, with hands placed yet further up the face to the forehead, is for a salutation to a monk, and the fourth with the finger tips touching the hairline, is afforded a king or royal. Kerr says there are equally specific ways to walk, sit, and receive something.
He briefly discusses the Three Worlds Cosmology used by Thais to navigate their own level in the wider world. He compares this to a mandala, a Japanese pagoda, and other symbols in Asia.
He shows Lai Thai designs, that, like Japanese calligraphy, have an ancient tradition of lines and styles that stretch back to Angkor Wat, Java, and India. Flame-like designs and roof finials are examples as well as some more contemporary digitized versions. (Images of these and other subjects discussed on the podcast are available on the YouTube video.)
Kerr elaborates on the Thai Food and costume chapters, contrasting them with Japan. Whereas Japanese food is about the feel of the moment, the seasonal and distinct tastes, Thai food is mixed and mingled with other flavors to create a fusion, which is what makes the food so fantastic. Thais applied the same concept to clothing, by incorporating Western styles and mixing them with their own, something that never really happened with Japanese clothing. As a result, the Japanese kimono is basically the same as it has always been, but also remains too impractical for modern, everyday activities.
Kerr also has a chapter in his book on baisri, which is Thai flower arrangement. He notes that, unlike Japanese ikebana, nothing ends up looking like it did when it started. Things are folded and shaped into very different representations, some very elaborate, while others are subject to much modernization. He has also included a chapter on Thai dance, known for its two classic hand gestures, and talks about the evolution of contemporary Thai dance.
Of course, Kerr also talks about his Thai art collection, including prehistoric pots and modern Thai ceramics.
There is also a chapter on foreigners in Thailand and how for him the tables were turned when he started visiting Thailand as a foreigner who didn't speak the language or know much about the culture. In Thailand, he finds himself more in the role of an expat than he does while living in Japan, since so many of his friends in Japan are Japanese. He highlights the long tradition of foreigners being welcomed to Thailand and suggests that in some ways Japanese culture is easier to penetrate and to be accepted in as a foreigner than Thailand is.
Lastly, there is a chapter on religion, folk religions, and customs like the good-luck beckoning lady similar to Japan's maneki neko beckoning cat.
Another Bangkok is a cultural guidebook but served with a bit of lightness, intended to introduce Thailand to people in a gentle, fun, sanuk kind of way.
Kerr winds up the podcast by introducing his new YouTube channel "Secrets of Things," where he introduces Asian arts such as paintings, screens, scrolls, and other pieces, mostly from his own collection, and tells what makes these pieces so special.
Listen to our previous podcast with Alex Kerr about Finding the Heart Sutra.
The Books on Asia Podcast is sponsored by Stone Bridge Press, publisher of fine books on Asia for over 30 years. Subscribe to the Books on Asia Podcast.
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