Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #20881 in Books
• Published on: 2007-02-06
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Synopsis
Natsume Soseki's importance to Japanese literature can be compared to that of Dickens to Britain or Henry James to America. Like these writers, his work now holds a hugely popular and important place in the literary imagination of his country. Unlike them, his work is only recently coming to the attention of readers from overseas. "Kokoro" joins the recent publications of "The Gate", "The Tower of London" and "the Three Cornered World" from Peter Owen as part of an international programme to bring one of Japan's best known authors to a new English speaking audience. As Damian Flanagan says in his new critical introduction "Kokoro" is the Soseki novel that has been given most attention by critics and the public in Japan. On one level, a meditation on the changing face of Japanese culture and its attitudes to honour, friendship, love, death, it is also a sly subversion of all of these things. The novel centres around the friendship between the narrator and the man he calls Sensei, who is haunted by mysterious events in his past. As the friendship grows and the narrator gets to know more about the man he so admires he is increasingly intrigued by this hidden history.

The Sensei, however, refuses to reveal anything until the third part of the book when the narrator is called away to look after his sick father and the truth is revealed in tragic circumstances, etching itself onto the narrator - and the reader's - "Kokoro" : Heart.

Customer Reviews

A classic by a Grand Master
This book must rate as one of the great works in world literature. It is a story so simple in the telling and yet so complex in meaning. A simple hook will draw you into the world of the narrator and compel you to read on until you reach the stunning conclusion. The confessional tone of the novel will make you feel like a witness to the events as they unfold.The unordained writing style serves to add authenticity to the tale and acts as a counterpoint to the 'haiku style' poetic descriptions littered throughout the book. There can be no summary of the plot for this would spoil the impact on the reader. It is a work that poses so many questions but whose answers you can only 'swim around' and come tantalizingly close to resolving but ultimately realize that they will remain elusive. However, in seeking to answer the unanswerable you will discover many things and be drawn back to read the book again. I consider myself well read and I felt considerable embarrassment at my ignorance of Soseki's work before I purchased this book on a friend's advise. Incomparable.

A thought provoking novel!
If you love Japanese literature this is one of the best! As many reviewers have already said it could have been written last week. It concerns itself with human relationships, family ties and friendships.It explores how these can be destroyed by acts of selfishness, greed and foolishness. I particularly like how the story left me wondering what would happen next to one of the main characters.