Fantasy books set in Japan (18)
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1.
The Wind-Up Bird Chronicle by Haruki Murakami EN
JapanDescription:
Toru Okada's cat has disappeared. His wife is growing more distant every day. Then there are the increasingly explicit telephone calls he has recently been receiving. As this compelling story unfolds, the tidy suburban realities of Okada's vague and blameless life, spent cooking, reading, listening to jazz and opera and drinking beer at the kitchen table, are turned inside out, and he embarks on a bizarre journey, guided (however obscurely) by a succession of characters, each with a tale to tell. *Murakami's new book Novelist as a Vocation is available now* 'Visionary...a bold and generous boo... continue
2.
Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi EN
Description:
*NOW AN LA TIMES BESTSELLER* *OVER ONE MILLION COPIES SOLD* *AN INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER* If you could go back in time, who would you want to meet? In a small back alley of Tokyo, there is a café that has been serving carefully brewed coffee for more than one hundred years. Local legend says that this shop offers something else besides coffee—the chance to travel back in time. Over the course of one summer, four customers visit the café in the hopes of making that journey. But time travel isn’t so simple, and there are rules that must be followed. Most important, the trip can last only as long... continue
3.
Kafka on the Shore by Haruki Murakami EN
Description:
A teenage boy, Kafka Tamura, who runs away from either to escape a gruesome oedipal prophecy or to search for his long-missing mother and sister; and an aging simpleton called Nakata, who never recovered from a wartime affliction and now is drawn toward Kafka for reasons that, like the most basic activities of daily life, he cannot fathom.
4.
Lonely Castle in the Mirror by Mizuki Tsujimura EN
Description:
"How can you save your friend's life if she doesn't want to be rescued? In a tranquil neighbourhood of Tokyo, seven teenagers wake to find the mirrors in their bedrooms are shining. At a single touch, they are pulled from their lonely lives into to a wondrous castle filled with winding stairways, watchful portraits and twinkling chandeliers. In this new sanctuary, they are confronted with a set of clues leading to a hidden room where one of them will be granted a wish. But there's a catch -- if they don't leave by five o'clock, they will die. As time passes, a devastating truth emerges -- only... continue
5.
People from My Neighborhood : Stories by Hiromi Kawakami EN
Description:
Nominated for the 2021 Shirley Jackson Award From the author of the internationally bestselling Strange Weather in Tokyo, a collection of interlinking stories that masterfully blend the mundane and the mythical—"fairy tales in the best Brothers Grimm tradition: naïf, magical, and frequently veering into the macabre" (Financial Times). A bossy child who lives under a white cloth near a tree; a schoolgirl who keeps doll's brains in a desk drawer; an old man with two shadows, one docile and one rebellious; a diplomat no one has ever seen who goes fishing at an artificial lake no one has ever hear... continue
6.
The Tatami Time Machine Blues by Tomihiko Morimi EN
Description:
In the boiling heat of summer, a broken remote control for an air conditioner threatens life as we know it in this reality-bending, time-slipping sequel to The Tatami Galaxy. During a scorching August in Kyoto, our protagonist and his worst friend, Ozu, are locked in a glaring contest in a four-and-a-half-tatami-mat room. Ozu has spilled Coke on the air conditioner's remote control--the only AC in Shimogamo Yusuisuiso, their famously shabby sweatbox of an apartment building. Vengeful and despairing, our protagonist discusses countermeasures with his secret crush, the reliably blunt Akashi, whe... continue
7.
Bakemonogatari, Part 1 by NISIOISIN EN
Description:
There’s a girl at their school who is always ill. She routinely arrives late, leaves early, or doesn’t show up at all, and skips gym as a matter of course. She’s pretty, and the boys take to whispering that she’s a cloistered princess. As the self-described worst loser in her class soon finds out, they just don’t know what a monster she is. So begins a tale of mysterious maladies that are supernatural in origin yet deeply revealing of the human psyche, a set of case files as given to unexpected feeling as it is to irreverent humor. So begins the legendary novel that kicked off the MONOGATARI s... continue
9.
The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya (light novel) by Nagaru Tanigawa EN
Description:
Haruhi holds the fate of the universe in her hands . . . lucky for you she doesn't know it! Meet Haruhi - a cute, determined girl, starting high school in a city where nothing exciting happens and absolutely no one understands her. Meet Kyon - the sarcastic guy who sits behind Haruhi in homeroom and the only boy Haruhi has ever opened up to. His fate is now tied to hers. Meet the S.O.S. Brigade - an after-school club organized by Haruhi with a mission to seek out the extraordinary. Oh, and their second mission? Keeping Haruhi happy . . . because even though she doesn't know it, Haruhi has the ... continue
10.
The Disappearance of Haruhi Suzumiya (light Novel) by Nagaru Tanigawa EN
Description:
"First published in Japan in 2004 by Kadokawa Shoten Publishing Co.,"
11.
Kiki's Delivery Service by Eiko Kadono EN
Description:
Read the modern classic about a young witch and her clever cat that started it all! Nostalgic fans of the Hiyao Miyazaki film, Kiki's Delivery Service and newcomers alike will love this exciting new translation of the beloved fantasy story. "This new translation is perfect." --School Library Journal Half-witch Kiki never runs from a challenge. So when her thirteenth birthday arrives, she's eager to follow a witch's tradition: choose a new town to call home for one year. Brimming with confidence, Kiki flies to the seaside village of Koriko and expects that her powers will easily bring happiness... continue
12.
My Neighbor Totoro: The Novel by Tsugiko Kubo EN
Description:
One of Studio Ghibli’s most beloved classics, Totoro celebrates its 25th anniversary! The beloved animation classic by legendary Studio Ghibli director Hayao Miyazaki, My Neighbor Totoro, is now a novel. This edition features original illustrations by Miyazaki himself, accompanying a story by veteran children’s author Tsugiko Kubo. Eleven-year-old Satsuki and her sassy little sister Mei have moved to the country to be closer to their ailing mother. Soon, in the woods behind their spooky old house, Satsuki and Mei discover a forest spirit named Totoro. When Mei goes missing, it’s up to Satsuki ... continue
13.
Before We Forget Kindness by Toshikazu Kawaguchi EN
Description:
In the fifth book in the Before the Coffee Gets Cold series, translated from Japanese, the mysterious café where customers arrive hoping to travel back in time, welcomes four new guests:
- The father who could not allow his daughter to get married
- A woman who couldn't give Valentine's Day chocolates to her loved one
- A boy who wants to show his smile to his divorced parents
- A wife holding a child with no name . . .
14.
The Beast Player by Nahoko Uehashi EN
Description:
An enthralling and sophisticated fantasy story from one of Japan's most popular writers of teen fiction, which has been turned into a popular anime series
15.
The Beast Warrior by Nahoko Uehashi EN
Description:
A companion to The Beast Player, this is the conclusion of an epic YA fantasy about a girl with a special power to communicate with magical beasts and the warring kingdom only she can save.Ten years after the fateful clash between two opposing sides of the Divine Kingdom of Lyoza, Elin lives a peaceful life with her family. She tries to stay as far away from her past as possible?the girl who communicated with creatures and befriended a Royal Beast wants no part in the power struggles of humans. But when Elin is called upon to investigate a mysterious illness that's stricken the Toda, she uncov... continue
16.
Kafka am Strand by Haruki Murakami DE
Description:
Der Held in diesem Entwicklungs- und Liebesroman heisst Kafka Tamura und ist fünfzehn Jahre alt. Er läuft von zu Hause fort, um der stärkste 15-Jährige der Welt zu werden. Eine kafkaeske Reise voller Mythen und Mysterien beginnt.
17.
Description:
Novelist Hiromi Goto effortlessly blends wry, observational slice-of-life literary fiction with elements of the fantastic in the tender and gripping graphic novel Shadow Life, with haunting art from debut artist Ann Xu. When Kumiko’s well-meaning adult daughters place her in an assisted living home, the seventy-six-year-old widow gives it a try, but it’s not where she wants to be. She goes on the lam and finds a cozy bachelor apartment, keeping the location secret even while communicating online with her eldest daughter. Kumiko revels in the small, daily pleasures: decorating as she pleases, e... continue
18.
Spy x Family, Vol. 1 by Tatsuya Endo EN
Description:
An action-packed comedy about a fake family that includes a spy, an assassin and a telepath! Master spy Twilight is unparalleled when it comes to going undercover on dangerous missions for the betterment of the world. But when he receives the ultimate assignment—to get married and have a kid—he may finally be in over his head! Not one to depend on others, Twilight has his work cut out for him procuring both a wife and a child for his mission to infiltrate an elite private school. What he doesn’t know is that the wife he’s chosen is an assassin and the child he’s adopted is a telepath!... continue