Farewell to my book

Author: (Japan) Kenzaburō ōe
Translator: Xu Jinlong (Japan/Japan)
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-09-01
Features: This is the new long novel by the renowned Japanese writer and Nobel Prize laureate Kenzaburō ōe. The protagonist, Chō Kiyoshi, is based on ōe himself, an internationally acclaimed writer. His long-lost friend, the architect Tatsuo Katsura, suddenly returns from the United States with a secret plan, attempting to awaken people to the violent tendencies in the course of human societal development through an almost action. Tatsuo tries to involve Kiyoshi in the plan, but Kiyoshi is deeply conflicted. It is a work filled with a sense of foreboding. The militaristic nationalism in Japan and the global spread of violence under the guise of terrorism and counterterrorism after "9/11" serve as the real-world backdrop for the novel, with the author expressing deep concern through his work. The novel sparked a strong response in Japan upon its release. The renowned writer Yasuhiko Shima wrote in Asahi Shimbun that the novel is no less than a "bomb thrown at contemporary society." Yomiuri Shimbun praised Kenzaburō ōe for daring to confront the chaotic world with his "foolish acts." In today's world, where anxiety over terrorist incidents has become "normalized," the novel carries profound significance. Literary critic and Tokyo University professor Michio Noma hailed the work as the "masterstroke of Kenzaburō's literary career." This is an individual foreign translation of the book.