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River of Dolls and Other Stories
These stories, many of which riff on traditional Japanese folk tales and lore, explore the lives of individuals caught between desire and duty, as well as the conflicting expectations of different cultures. For example, in ‘Day Pass,’ a college student in South Carolina befriends a female prisoner on a work release program, thinking that she will be a good influence, but then realizes that she has gotten in over her head. In ‘Blue Murder,’ a Japanese farmer troubled by the crows eating his pears becomes besotted with a kingfisher. The narrator of ‘Down the Mountain,’ a descendant of the Heike clan, recounts the tragic life and death of her beloved sister as she urges her own daughter to leave their secluded mountain village and go out into the world, and in the title story, ‘River of Dolls,’ a Japanese woman struggles with infertility. Ranging from dirty to magical realism, the stories collected here are often infused with humor, while exposing universal truths.
194 pages, Paperback
Published November 1, 2024
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About the author
Suzanne Kamata
43 books303 followersFive-time Pushcart Prize nominee Suzanne Kamata is the author of the memoir Squeaky Wheels: Travels with My Daughter by Train, Plane, Metro, Tuk-tuk and Wheelchair (Wyatt-Mackenzie, 2019); the novels Indigo Girl (GemmaMedia, 2019), The Mermaids of Lake Michigan (Wyatt-Mackenzie, 2017), Screaming Divas (Merit Press, 2014), Gadget Girl: The Art of Being Invisible (GemmaMedia, 2013) and Losing Kei (Leapfrog Press, 2008); and editor of three anthologies - The Broken Bridge: Fiction from Expatriates in Literary Japan, Love You to Pieces: Creative Writers on Raising a Child with Special Needs, and Call Me Okaasan: Adventures in Multicultural Mothering (Wyatt-Mackenzie Publishing, 2009). Her short fiction and essays have appeared widely. She was a winner in the memoir category of the Half the World Global Literati Award.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
March 9, 2025
All different great short stories. I loved each one.
March 11, 2025
River of Dolls is the latest publication by Suzanne Kamata, prolific and talented author of novels, short stories, poetry and autobiographical memoir. Consisting of fifteen stories, like many of her works, it is reflective of her life as an American ex-pat and long-term resident of Japan. Some of the stories take place in Japan, others in the States, but there is a Japanese thread running through all of them apart from the first two in the collection—'Day Pass’ and ‘France’—which feature a female American protagonist one is tempted to identify with the author. Some stories have a contemporary context while others are set in the distant past: retellings of old Japanese folk tales.
The stories are often whimsical and always compelling. They deal with dreams and despair, with hope and failure, with love and hate: with all the contradictory emotions that imbue human existence with its mystery and magic and moments of maddening misery. The characters cannot understand themselves let alone anyone else.
In ‘Blue Murder,’ for example, a Japanese pear grower frustrated and furious at crows destroying his fruit falls in love with a kingfisher. His work is tiring and tiresome, his wife has become distant since the birth of their first child, but Keita finds meaning in life and happiness in his new pursuit—taking photos of that graceful and brilliantly colorful bird—until his nemesis, the crows kill it, and he is curiously transformed.
In ‘The Incan Ice Maiden’ a young American named Solange, an anthropology lecturer temporarily resident in Japan, longs to visit Peru and see a half-century-old mummy recently unearthed. Solange identifies with this young female virgin sacrificed to strange gods to end a spell of drought. She thinks of her former boyfriend Eric, who threw her over because she wanted a child, and has a fling with a Japanese professor, becoming pregnant. Returning to the States, she dreams of saving the Incan ice maiden.
These two stories are modern, but another in the collection, ‘Down the Mountain,” refers to the famous ancient Japanese story of The Tale of the Heike—an epic tale of the struggle between the Taira and the Minamoto clans for control of Japan at the end of the twelfth century. After the decisive battle some of the defeated Taira escape to the sea or commit ritual suicide while others fled to hide in the remote terrain of Shikoku Island. It is there, long after the war has ended, that a woman counsels her daughter to leave their mountain fastness and begin a normal life in the Japanese cities far away.
Similarly, ‘The Snow Woman’ features the Japanese folkloric figure of yuki-onna or ‘snow-woman’ who often appears in Japanese literature and films. Kamata gives the figure a modern twist; she becomes the mother of the narrator who loves climbing mountains and dies on one.
The title story, ‘River of Dolls,” tells of a woman named Junko who has married a widower but suffers from her inability to conceive a child. Although she has no daughter, she observes Hinamatsuri—the girls’ festival held each March third—setting up an elaborate display of dolls representing the imperial court of the Heian period. At the story’s end, unexpectedly, she becomes pregnant.
Some aspirations are granted, others are denied. Some characters find fulfillment, others are doomed to eternal disappointment. Kamata plays with our expectations, teasing her readers, luring us to read on.
The stories are often whimsical and always compelling. They deal with dreams and despair, with hope and failure, with love and hate: with all the contradictory emotions that imbue human existence with its mystery and magic and moments of maddening misery. The characters cannot understand themselves let alone anyone else.
In ‘Blue Murder,’ for example, a Japanese pear grower frustrated and furious at crows destroying his fruit falls in love with a kingfisher. His work is tiring and tiresome, his wife has become distant since the birth of their first child, but Keita finds meaning in life and happiness in his new pursuit—taking photos of that graceful and brilliantly colorful bird—until his nemesis, the crows kill it, and he is curiously transformed.
In ‘The Incan Ice Maiden’ a young American named Solange, an anthropology lecturer temporarily resident in Japan, longs to visit Peru and see a half-century-old mummy recently unearthed. Solange identifies with this young female virgin sacrificed to strange gods to end a spell of drought. She thinks of her former boyfriend Eric, who threw her over because she wanted a child, and has a fling with a Japanese professor, becoming pregnant. Returning to the States, she dreams of saving the Incan ice maiden.
These two stories are modern, but another in the collection, ‘Down the Mountain,” refers to the famous ancient Japanese story of The Tale of the Heike—an epic tale of the struggle between the Taira and the Minamoto clans for control of Japan at the end of the twelfth century. After the decisive battle some of the defeated Taira escape to the sea or commit ritual suicide while others fled to hide in the remote terrain of Shikoku Island. It is there, long after the war has ended, that a woman counsels her daughter to leave their mountain fastness and begin a normal life in the Japanese cities far away.
Similarly, ‘The Snow Woman’ features the Japanese folkloric figure of yuki-onna or ‘snow-woman’ who often appears in Japanese literature and films. Kamata gives the figure a modern twist; she becomes the mother of the narrator who loves climbing mountains and dies on one.
The title story, ‘River of Dolls,” tells of a woman named Junko who has married a widower but suffers from her inability to conceive a child. Although she has no daughter, she observes Hinamatsuri—the girls’ festival held each March third—setting up an elaborate display of dolls representing the imperial court of the Heian period. At the story’s end, unexpectedly, she becomes pregnant.
Some aspirations are granted, others are denied. Some characters find fulfillment, others are doomed to eternal disappointment. Kamata plays with our expectations, teasing her readers, luring us to read on.
January 19, 2026
Unrivalled sensous writing, whether it is a description of escargot baked in butter, a root beer float, or the release of pheromones in the transformation of desire. It was refreshing to read stories not only set in Japan, but on the lesser known island of Shikoku, the smallest of the main islands of the Japanese archipelago. The stories are punctuated with a refreshing dry humour. My favourites are the delightful 'The Woman who loved Insects', detailing the quest for love by a Professor of Entomology, and 'A Real Job', which achieved the rare feat of making me laugh and cry at the same time.
December 18, 2024
It's something I didn't expect at all. As a reader of Japanese literature, I was looking forward to reading more folklore from Japan, but this book didn't start that way. It doesn't even offer you the folklore straightforwardly. The author takes you into quite a different path in acquainting with the story. It calls out to something deeper within the reader that I can't quite put into words. Some stories will make you feel uncomfortable, but the whole vibe of this book is quite decent.
August 10, 2025
📖✨ A beautifully woven collection of 15 short stories that reflect Kamata’s life as an American expatriate in Japan.
Blending traditional Japanese folk tales with modern themes, these stories explore desire, duty, and cultural identity. Whether set in Japan or the U.S., each piece carries a distinct Japanese essence, offering readers a glimpse into both personal and cultural intersections.
Whimsical, thoughtful, and rich in cross-cultural nuance — a delightful read for lovers of short fiction with a global lens.
Blending traditional Japanese folk tales with modern themes, these stories explore desire, duty, and cultural identity. Whether set in Japan or the U.S., each piece carries a distinct Japanese essence, offering readers a glimpse into both personal and cultural intersections.
Whimsical, thoughtful, and rich in cross-cultural nuance — a delightful read for lovers of short fiction with a global lens.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews