For the most part, I find traditional Japanese literature quite hard to grasp. Specially since, as with most Japanese cultural aspects, the subtleties and nuances of the work represent and/or mean something else. And my lack of proper knowledge on understanding these subtleties still gets me lost.
Luckily, a good friend of mine and his wife pointed me in a very good direction with contemporary author Haruki Murakami. INCREDIBLY smart writer. He balances fictional and factual remarkably well. I'm impressed with this guy.
I bought:
This is a small collection of short stories by Murakami. An excellent introduction to his work. I haven't enjoyed a book from a Japanese author so much since I discovered (by accident) Kawabata's Thousand Cranes.
So, strongly recommended.
Also, I'm 3/4 of the way done with Pullman's The Golden Compass from the His Dark Materials Trilogy of books. Yet another gifted writer. Good flow, engaging and entertaining. I'm having a lot of luck with books this year!
I should say I was forewarned about the trilogy not being as engaging as a whole, but I reserve judgement until I'm done.
READ!
m.
