Nanobe Days: a novel about the power of technology (and a zombie-less zombie apocalypse)
I’m announcing the release of the first few stories of a science fiction novel I have started writing and publishing on Amazon Vella.
Category Archives: culture
Japanese literature translation: 風の又三郎 (Matasaburo of the Wind) by 宮沢賢治 (Kenji Miyazawa) [Part 5]
This is my translation of the 5th part of Kenji Miyazawa’s famous story “Matasaburo of the Wind”, which happens to be the same story referred to in the song “Matasaburo” by the rock band Yorushika.
A hint to help improve comprehension and appreciation of Japanese literature
These days I’ve been spending a good portion of my time trying to find interesting and noteworthy Japanese fiction to translate and publish, a process I blogged about a few years ago here. But in this article I want to focus on a specific activity I discovered that really has helped me gain a better… Read More »
Japanese book review: わたしたちの家庭科 (A home economics textbook)
I reported a few years ago about a program where those with Japanese citizenship can get free textbooks each year from the Japanese consulate. We have been getting these for our son, and I have looked through many of them myself. Frankly, each of these textbooks has been extremely helpful in teaching me various things… Read More »
Say wha? The Japanese word “世話” (sewa) and related expressions
In this post I’d like to go over the common word 世話 (sewa) and some uses of it, including an important expression used in daily life. “Sewa”––usually written in kanji as “世話” and sometimes in hiragana as せわ––can be used for a variety of meanings. But I’d like to focus on the most common, and… Read More »
Japanese movie review: 夏への扉 (キミのいる未来へ) “The Door to Summer”
While I am by no means a heavy Netflix watcher, I like to browse the movies and series once in a while and try out anything that looks interesting. More often than not, I end up getting bored partway through and don’t finish the series or the movie. But just the other day I ended… Read More »
Japanese Book review: 『九十歳。 何がめでたい』 (“What’s so great about being 90 years old?”) by 佐藤 愛子 (Aiko Sato)
I reviewed the semi-biographical essay collection “What’s so great about being 90 years old?” by award-winning nonagenarian author Aiko Sato.
Japanese Radio Dramas: a unique and interesting way to study the language
My “method” for learning Japanese (if you can even call it that) is based on the idea of immersing yourself in the language and trying to actively use whatever you have learned whenever an opportunity presents itself. I’m guessing the majority of my readers are not actually living in Japan––though my stats do point to… Read More »
Japanese literature translation: 風の又三郎 (Matasaburo of the Wind) by 宮沢賢治 (Kenji Miyazawa) [Part 4]
This is my translation of the 4th part of Kenji Miyazawa’s famous story “Matasaburo of the Wind”, which happens to be the same story referred to in the song “Matasaburo” by the rock band Yorushika.
Aikido book review: 気の呼吸 (“Ki Breathing”) by 藤平信一 (Shin’ichi Tohei)
Kouichi Tohei (藤平光一) was a skilled martial artist who leveraged difficulties in his life to reach an amazing level of ability, and went on to established his own style of Aikido called Ki-Aikido, more formally known as Shin Shin Touitsu Aikido (心身統一合氣道). But he did more than simply practice physical martial arts techniques; Tohei Sensei… Read More »