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The siren’s lament

£12.00

A new selection and translation of short stories by a hugely prominent classic Japanese writer, filled with eroticism and fantasy. The sage Confucius travels to a kingdom ruled by a struggling duke, whose pursuit of virtue is threatened by his consort’s desire for pleasure. A naive servant elopes with his master’s daughter, only to be plunged headlong into a world of murder and corruption. Exhausted by a lifestyle of never-ending debauchery, a young prince finds himself in possession of a dazzling, beguiling mermaid.

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Description

Lavishly opulent stories of sensual obsession, cultural heritage, and mythological creatures-translated into English for the first time-from a classic Japanese writer

Featuring “The Qilin,” “The Siren’s Lament,” and the novella Killing O-Tsuya, this gorgeous new edition of 3 classic works translated by Bryan Karetnyk distills the essence of Jun’ichiro Tanizaki’s shorter fiction: the co-mingling of Japanese and Chinese mythologies, the chillingly dark side of desire, and the paper-thin line between the sublime and the depraved.

  • “The Qilin”: The sage Confucius travels to a kingdom ruled by a struggling duke, whose pursuit of virtue is threatened by his consort’s obsession desire for pleasure.
  • Killing O-Tsuya: A naïve servant elopes with his master’s daughter, only to be plunged headlong into a world of murder and corruption.
  • “The Siren’s Lament”: Exhausted by a lifestyle of never-ending debauchery, a young prince finds himself in possession of a dazzling, beguiling mermaid.

The essential short works of one of the most important and widely-read figured in modern Japanese literature, author of hugely popular works including In Praise of Shadows, The Makioka Sisters, and Naomi; renowned for his investigations of family dynamics, eroticism, and cultural identity.

Read a sample here

Additional information

Weight 0.176 kg
Dimensions 16.4 × 12.1 × 1.5 cm
Author

Publisher

Imprint

Cover

Paperback

Pages

192

Language

English

Edition

Short stories

Dewey

895.6344 (edition:23)

Readership

General – Trade / Code: K