Kenji Miyazawa

Julianne Neville

Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) is one of Japan's most beloved writers and poets, known particularly for his sensitive and symbolist children's fiction. This volume collects stories which focus on Miyazawa's love of space and his use of the galaxy as a metaphor for the concepts of purity, self-sacrifice and faith which were near and dear to his heart."The Nighthawk Star" follows an lowly bird as he struggles to transform himself into something greater, a constellation in the night sky; "Signal & Signal-less" depicts a pair of star-crossed train signals who dream of eloping to the moon; and "Night on the Galactic Railroad," Miyazawa's most famous work, tells the story of two boys as they journey upon a train that traverses the cosmos, learning the true meaning of friendship, happiness and life itself along the way.

Night on the Galactic Railroad & Other Stories from Ihatov

A collection of classic, fantastical tales from Northern Japan that are equal parts whimsical and sophisticated, perfect for readers of all ages. Kenji Miyazawa is one of modern Japan’s most beloved writers, a great poet and a strange and marvelous spinner of tales, whose sly, humorous, enchanting, and enigmatic stories bear a certain resemblance to those of his contemporary Robert Walser. John Bester’s selection and expert translation of Miyazawa’s short fiction reflects its full range from the joyful, innocent “Wildcat and the Acorns,” to the cautionary tale “The Restaurant of Many Orders,” to “The Earthgod and the Fox,” which starts out whimsically before taking a tragic turn. Miyazawa also had a deep connection to Japanese folklore and an intense love of the natural world. In “The Wild Pear,” what seem to be two slight nature sketches succeed in encapsulating some of the cruelty and compensations of life itself.

The Tales of Kenji Miyazawa

Once and Forever

Japanese fairy tales - enchanting, enigmatic stories of animals, human beings and the great natural world. Dark and innocent, sublime and whimsical, Miyazawa's stories have the ageless feel of the best fairy tales. There are animal allegories such as 'The Ungrateful Rat' where a rude rodent insults all the objects he meets - until he meets the Rat Trap/ There are morality tales such as 'The Restaurant of Many Orders', where two hunters become the hunted. There are also transcendent stories of childhood and mortality like Miyazawa's best-known 'Night Train to the Stars', where a magical steam train carries children through the night and up to the heavens. These stories reveal the unique brilliance of one of Japan's most beloved early twentieth-century writers. 'For readers who relish the disturbing material of fairy tale, the specificity and surprise of tanka, collisions of the everyday with the supernatural and glimpses of Japan right on the brink of industrialization, Kenji Miyazawa's masterly stories will be a delight' New York Times 'In several decades of translating Japanese into English, few works have given me so much pleasure (and hard work) as the tales of Miyazawa Kenji [...] more genuine originality, and a more universal appeal, than almost anything else I have done.' John Bester, translator 'Kenji Miyazawa fables are international-class' David Mitchell

Night Train to the Stars

Giovanni and his friend Campanella, who is dead from drowning, travel on a celestial railway which is a ferry of souls journeying to the afterlife.

Night of the Milky Way Railway

Two arrogant hunters from the city find themselves in a world where fantasy and reality merge when they enter the Wildeat House Restaurant. The lesson they learn will stay with them forever. A classic tale by a master storyteller which reaches out to readers of all ages and from all cultures.

The Restaurant Of Many Colors

selected poems

Strong in the rain

Collects English translations of Miyazawa Kenji's poetry that provides a portrait of life in Japan in the early twentieth century.

Selections

Miyazawa Kenji

Milky Way Railroad

Elizabeth Plain

JAPANESE EDITION with notes in English Two tales from the master storyteller Kenji Miyazawa Matsuri no Ban - Ryoji goes to the autumn festival that takes place in the village near his home. There he encounters a giant man with eyes the colour of "grubby gold." Is he, as the villagers claim, the Mountain Man of legend and is Ryoji wise to try to help him? Kenji Miyazawa is well known for his tales of fantasy, but this story, although it contains an element of the supernatural, is firmly based in reality. Futari no Yakunin - Very early one Sunday morning, two young boys set out to visit the fields outside the town where they live. When they are nearly at their destination they find that a notice board has been erected telling the public to "Keep Out." Despite the warning they decide to continue with their outing... Told in the first person, this is a superb example of Miyazawa's "un-magical" writing. The characters and locations are acutely observed and lovingly described in a way which powerfully evokes the lost days of childhood. In both these stories the characters very often speak colloquially, using language that is outside the province of most language learning text-books. Because of this extra pains have been taken to highlight and explain idiomatic expressions and contractions in speech and, although it is never possible to make a word for word translation from one language to another, all the speech has been translated, as literally as possible, into English. This Japanese-English edition features: - Modern Japanese text - Kanji with furigana readings - Detailed notes in English *Recommended for intermediate and advanced students. About the author: - Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) is often referred to as a writer of children's literature, but although his stories may appear simple they are far from child-like in conception or execution. Among his best known tales are Gingatetsudo no Yoru and Cello Hiki no Goshu both of which been made into animated films. Other books in this series include: Taketori Monogatari - retold by Dr. Mankichi Wada Inu to Fue - by Akutagawa Ryunosuke

Niwa

Una notte sul treno della Via Lattea e altri racconti

La constelación de los cuervos

Japonyadan Öyküler

みにくさゆえに嫌われていたよだかは、星になりたいとオリオンに頼みますが...。

よだかの星

布、糸、ビーズやクリスタルで織りなす宇宙―空前絶後の名作『銀河鉄道の夜』決定版。

銀河鉄道の夜

台風のくる二百十日に、東北の小さな山村に転校してきた高田三郎を、子どもたちは、伝説の風の子「又三郎」だとして、親しみとおどろきをもってむかえた。宮沢賢治の代表作のひとつ『風の又三郎』をはじめ、『洞熊学校を卒業した三人』『気のいい火山弾』『ねこの事務所』『虔十公園林』『からすの北斗七星』『よだかの星』『ふたごの星』など、自然や星空をテーマにした作品の数々。小学中級から。

宮沢賢治童話集 2

風の又三郎

Kojuro, a reluctant hunter, agrees to grant one of the bears he meets two years to put its affairs in order. Later a huge bear kills Kojuro, but the bears of the mountain mourn him.

なめとこ山の熊

Helen Smith

Junko Morimoto

Although he is laughed at by the villagers, a young boy creates a special legacy that is enjoyed by future generations.

Kenji Miyazawa

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