Post: #1

Anyone have any book recommendations by Japanese authors that follow fatalist & existentialist themes with an undercurrent of redemption, spirituality & taoism? Is Haruki Murakami any good? Which books?

Post: #2

Anything by Murakami is great. Love the dreamy, melancholic world of his books. The Wind Up Bird Chronicle is my favorite.

I don't worry too much about the philosophical themes, it's just meditative magical realism to me. Murakami certainly nails the disconnected modern urban experience (particularly but not exclusively the Japanese incarnation, of course) as felt by a more artistic temperament.

Post: #3

Haruki Murakami is considered a very Westernized Japanese novelist. I'd go with Mishima, especially The Temple of the Golden Pavilion for those specific themes. (Except redemption, not too much of that in Mishima's work.)
If that's too old fashioned for you, Ryu Murakami's In the Miso Soup has some interesting and weird reflections on Japanese culture.

Post: #4

Second on Mishima. The guy had some serious issues, but at least he went out in style.

Post: #5

I thought Wind Up Bird Chronicle was pretentious bullshit, but I was reading it in Japanese. It probably reads better in English.
I've never read Mishima, but I've heard he's good. Your request is so extremely specific that I can't think of much that would apply. I can't think of any Japanese fiction books I've read (And I've read a lot) that have taoism as a major or even minor theme, outside of a book I read a long time ago called "Taoism, the religion of silence."

Maybe Natsume Soseki? He wrote some good stuff. Try Ten Night's Dreams, it's kind of what you're talking about: http://ptchanculto.binhoster.com/books/-...Dreams.pdf

Check it out, and if it's your bag he's got a thousand other stories, most of which have been translated into English.

Post: #6

I read the 4-book "Sea of Tranquility" cycle by Mishima. This was nearly 30 years ago after I had seen the movie about him. Good cycle of books which explains a lot about modern Japan.

Post: #7

Osamu Dazai - No Longer Human.

Post: #8

Thanks for all the names of authors. I'm very interested to read these kind of novels, just now put them all on my e-reader. Cheers

Post: #9

Kobo Abe, The Woman in the Dunes

Post: #10

Double rec Abe and Mishima.

For a well done western twist on Japan, you can't go wrong with Roads to Sata by Alan Booth and Bouvier's Japanese Chronicles.

Post: #11

it is a little disturbing that people can rave about haruki while completely ignoring the other more talented murakami - ryu