Japan Sinks

by Sakyo Komatsu

A solitary fishing boat anchors for the night by a small island to the south of Japan. The next morning, the fishermen find themselves in the middle of an empty sea. Overnight, the island has vanished without a trace.

The Japanese weather service sends a vessel to investigate. They find convincing evidence of a horrifying geological change.

Thrust into existence millions of years ago when a strong shift in the underlying plates tore it away from the Asian mainland, the Japanese Archipelago has been moving inexorably toward an unseen force in the Japan Trench, and is set on a collision course that threatens to pull the economic superpower under--literally.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Japan, Japanese Literature, Thriller, Speculative Fiction, Novels

304 pages, ebook

First published January 1, 1966

About the author

Born Minoru "Sakyo" Komatsu in Osaka, he was a graduate of Kyoto University where he studied Italian literature. After graduating, he worked at various jobs, including as a magazine reporter and a writer for stand-up comedy acts.

Komatsu's writing career began in the 1960s. Reading Kōbō Abe and Italian classics made Komatsu feel modern literature and science fiction are the same.

In 1961, he entered a science-fiction writing competition: "Peace on Earth" was a story in which World War II does not end in 1945 and a young man prepares to defend Japan against the Allied invasion. Komatsu received an honourable mention and 5000 yen.

He won the same competition the following year with the story, "Memoirs of an Eccentric Time Traveller". His first novel, The Japanese Apache, was published two years later and sold 50,000 copies.

In the West he is best known for the novels Japan Sinks (1973) and Sayonara Jupiter (1982). Both were adapted to film, Tidal Wave (1973) and Bye Bye Jupiter (1984). The story "The Savage Mouth" was translated by Judith Merril and has been anthologized.

At the time of publication, his apocalyptic vision of a sunk Japan wiped out by shifts incurred through geographic stress worried a Japan still haunted by the atomic devastation of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. He was inspired to write it thinking of what would happen if the nationalistic Japanese lost their land, and ironically prefigured the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that triggered a nuclear plant disaster decades later on March 11, 2011 - the result of which he was interested in "to see how Japan would evolve" after the catastrophe.

Komatsu was involved in organizing the Japan World Exposition in Osaka Prefecture in 1970. In 1984, Komatsu served as a technical consultant for a live concert in Linz, Austria by Japanese electronic composer Isao Tomita. He won the 1985 Nihon SF Taisho Award. Komatsu was one of two Author Guests of Honor at Nippon 2007, the 65th World Science Fiction Convention in 2007 in Yokohama, Japan. This was the first Worldcon to be held in Asia.

With Shin'ichi Hoshi and Yasutaka Tsutsui, Komatsu was considered one of the masters of Japanese science fiction.

Komatsu died shortly after the destruction that followed the themes of his first and hugely successful novel. In the issue of his quarterly magazine published on July 21, Komatsu said he hoped to see how his country would evolve after the catastrophe. "I had thought I wouldn't mind dying any day," he wrote. "But now I'm feeling like living a little bit longer and seeing how Japan will go on hereafter." He died five days after publication, aged 80.

Reviews

[Metodi Markov · Rating 3 out of 5]

На моменти ми бе досаден този апокалиптичен роман - твърде много дребни подробности, ненужно наивно и остаряло политиканство е включил в него автора. Произведение на отминала епоха, то разкрива някои непознати за нас аспекти и нагласи на японското общество, които са вероятно валидни и до днес.

Навремето, може би е било популярно произведение, но сега ми се струва доста тромаво и овехтяло. Очаквах повече!

Хареса ми картинното сравнение на Японския архипелаг с могъщ морски дракон, корицата на българското издание също впечатлява.

🌋 🇯🇵 🌊

[E. G. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Map

--Japan Sinks

[Ignacio · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dentro de la línea de literatura asiática iniciada por Minotauro, Japan Sinks desempeña una doble función: traduce una novela de hace cincuenta años con el pedigrí de clásico y permite tomarle la temperatura a un subgénero, el de catástrofes, que fundamentalmente ha llegado a España desde Japón a través del manga y el cine, con una diferencia crucial respecto a la mayoría de estas muestras: lo apegado a la realidad del texto. Su especulación emerge de la geología de la década de los 70, sin dar cancha a una imaginación siempre supeditada a las riendas de la posibilidad científica de aquel momento.

Más interesante es cómo Sakyo Komatsu se sirve del argumento, los personajes y la sociedad de la época para bosquejar la relación entre el individuo y los poderes de su país. Una línea que parte de los desastres cometidos/padecidos por su pueblo tres décadas antes para trabajar la idea del bien común desde una perspectiva utópica. La colaboración global para sobrevivir a un destino apocalíptico va más allá de lo testimonial sin prescindir de matices problemáticos. Ahí está, por ejemplo, el incipiente sensacionalismo en el tratamiento de la información, donde los padecimientos, la muerte y el desplazamiento de millones de personas anticipan el acercamiento de los medios a catástrofes posteriores.

Vislumbrar todo esto es, sin embargo, azaroso. Sin conocer la geografía japonesa y sin un buen mapa del archipiélago, lo habitual es sentirse perdido. Cuesta encontrar agarre cuando se repiten los momentos de destrucción, los personajes necesariamente reaccionan de maneras similares, las causas de los desastres vuelven a ser los mismos... Komatsu se apega tanto a la imaginación disciplinada que en varios momentos la novela invita a leer en diagonal para evitar ciertas reiteraciones que ocurren sobre zonas que no sabes donde están y personajes que te importan bien poco. Esto me ha llevado a experimentar Japan Sinks prácticamente sin impacto y, lo que es peor, con un ligero, aunque pertinaz, aburrimiento.

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Average read.
The Netflix series is average as well.
Both the first story in the book and the first episode of the adaptation made me want to DNF both.

[Ananna Anjum · Rating 4 out of 5]

আমার কাছে বইটি অনেক ভালো লেগেছে। বইটিতে এমন এক বিষণ্ণময় পরিস্থিতি তৈরী করেছেন লেখক যেটা আসলে মানব মনের গভীর দিক কে নাড়া দিতে সক্ষম। শেষের দিকে টান টান উত্তেজনা সৃষ্টি হয়েছিল। অনুবাদও অনেক ভালো হয়েছে, কোথাও কোন জড়তা ছিল না। বইটির প্রচ্ছদ এবং বাইন্ডিং খুব ভালো লেগেছে। একটা প্রিমিয়াম কোয়ালিটি ভাব পেয়েছি। আমার মনে হয় যারা রিডার্স ব্লক এ ভুগছেন, তারা বইটি পরে দেখতে পারেন। ব্লক কাটিয়ে তুলতে সক্ষম হবেন আশা করি।

বই: জাপান সিংকস
লেখক: সাকিও কোমাৎসু
অনুবাদক: ইমরান চৌধুরী
প্রকাশনী: পেপার ভয়েজার

ফ্ল্যাপ থেকে:
জাপান সাগরে রাতারাতি ডুবে গেল একটা দ্বীপ। অনুসন্ধানে নামলো জাপান সরকার, সাবমেরিন নিয়ে চলে গেল জাপান ট্রেঞ্চের একদম তলদেশে। সেখানকার আগ্নেয়গিরি আর ভূ-ত্বকের অস্বাভাবিক আলোড়নের মাঝে তারা আবিষ্কার করলো গা শিউরে ওঠা এক তথ্য; এক বছরের মাঝে ডুবতে চলেছে পুরো জাপান।
কী করবে এখন তারা? কোথায় যাবে? কেউ কি কখনো ভেবেছে, যখন পুরো একটি দেশ তার হাজার বছরের সংস্কৃতি, ইতিহাস, ঐতিহ্য সব বুকে নিয়ে সমুদ্রে তলিয়ে যাওয়ার দ্বারপ্রান্তে থাকে, তখন ঠিক কী করা যায়?
কোমাৎসুর বইটা আপনাকে নিয়ে যাবে সেই বিষণ্ণ বাস্তবতায়, আপনাকে ভাবতে বাধ্য করবে আরেকটি কঠিন সত্য।
যদি আমার নিজের দেশের সাথে এমন হয়, তখন কী হবে?

[Knigoqdec · Rating 4 out of 5]

Преди години попаднах на друг роман на Комацу Сакьо съвсем случайно - "Денят на възраждането". Бях силно впечатлена от историята, която бе успял да изгради авторът. С "Потъването на Япония" се е справил не по-малко възхитително.
Първото, което човек може да усети, е онази страст на японеца към детайла и подробностите. Твърде често съм попадала на японски текстове, в които авторите се изразяват като истински специалисти по неща, които понякога са много, много далеч от тях. Тук читателят е поканен да се почувства специалист по подводна геология и плаване и съвсем не се чувства не на място. Почти сякаш винаги си познавал целия този научен свят, за който става дума. Дори и книгата да е със съкращения (може би са премахнати религиозни или твърде технически елементи, едва ли ще узная скоро).
След това идва включената народопсихология. Комацу ни представя един удивителен народ по начин, по който ти е трудно да кажеш "Не, това е само фантастика, няма как да се случи". Тук, изправени пред гибелта на целия свой свят, японците, според Комацу, казват приблизително следното - "Ще помолим света за помощ, но пред никого няма да настояваме. Ако не ни позволят да стъпим на тяхната земя, няма да го направим. Ако ни е писано да потънем, заедно със своята земя, така да бъде". И не е отнело твърде много време да стигнат до този светоглед, каквото и да им е завещало миналото. Да, има напрежение, има тъга, има страх, има паника. И въпреки всичко, човек може да повярва искрено и напълно, че удари ли последният час, мнозина от тези хора ще приемат съдбата си такава, каквато е.
Това е трагична история, в която умира майката земя. Борбата срещу стихиите е невъзможна. Но героите на този роман въпреки всичко, напук на ужаса и загубата, упорито се борят за спасение за децата и любимите си. И знаят, че дори спасени, всъщност никога няма да бъдат, защото повече никога няма да открият корените си. Освен на дъното на океана.

В това издание на книгата има и някои прекрасни графични рисунки, а корицата е феноменална до последния щрих, включително идеята заглавието да е изписано така, че да наподобява хирагана. Прекрасна!
Скоро вероятно ще погледна и анимето, което пуснаха по "Нетфликс" преди няколко месеца. Въпреки че сигурно... ще падне голям рев, подобно на преживяванията ми покрай анимето "Tokyo Magnitude 8.0". (Много страховито заглавие, впрочем. Гледах го още когато излизаше. Побиват ме тръпки, когато си спомня как, когато се случи голямото земетресение от 2011-та, с ужас открих, че първите снимки от събитията се припокриват едно към едно с анимето, което е от 2009-та и целеше да представи предположения какво би било, ако се случи голямо земетресение...)

[Quiet · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm rating this book a "3," but I'd by no means say "Japan Sinks" is really an average book. I think there's quite a lot going on in this rather famous Sci-Fi novel (and actual Science-Fiction; lots and lots of accurate information to back up the plot), and the characters are, while limited, thoroughly unique and engaging. But there are two things holding me back from admiring this book more, and those are---

1) Alike what happens with most literature that puts a big emphasis on action and activity, what happens is a lot of lost focus from the reader who can't really be bothered to link up image after image that ultimately just take up space until the eventual result. I've never been a fan of books that relied heavily on action because for the most part it doesn't matter until whatever character I'm pursuing has some sort of reflection on it, or the plot moves forward following the pages of activity. In the case of "Japan Sinks" there's an increasing prevalence of dangerous activity throughout, and while it's at first exciting to read about a volcano erupting, earthquake occuring, or tidal-wave nearing, what eventually happens is that 20-40 pages continue to repeat these events and their following disasters over and over. In the end these large amounts of pages are summarized solely with, "A lot is ruined; the protagonist is further distressed." And this is okay, but the amount of text used to convey damages ultimately bridges the events of the actual story too far apart.

2) This is purely a personal thing, but I am an American reader who hasn't visited Japan. Seen lots and lots of pictures, have a career planned there in the near future, but I've never been there, and I am not familiar with the larger image of Japanese land, towns, and cities, and so what eventually happened was an even greater disconnect because of the above point then what it should have been if this were set in America. I'm listing this as 2 because it is solely a defect in addition to 1: I've read plenty of Japanese literature set in Japan before, but this is the first international novel I've read that didn't follow some structure of story/characters as the primary goal, or at least didn't keep them as a prominent focus for the majority of the text.
Basically, you'll be reading about a lot of destruction in places you can't even visualize. It's not necessarily boring, but rather it's very passive.

But overall I did enjoy Japan Sinks. Highly recommended for the Scientific type of reader, as there's quite a lot of good fun to be had with lots of descriptive dialogue centered on the Earth's core and how Earthquakes occur and convection and all sorts of good, educational stuff like that. And the characters are, while rather stiff scientist types, very enjoyable when they get a chance to show themselves. In the end I really wish there was just either greater spacing between character and destruction, or less of the latter and more of the former.

But again; recommended, definitely.

[Karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have no idea where I got the idea to read this book. None. It’s Japanese sci-fi, in translation, from 1971. It’s not on any lists that I might have encountered, and I can’t think of what else I might have been reading reviews of that would have had someone mention this; people at Amazon often refer to other books that I fairly often investigate to some degree. But I went searching for this book, and requested it from Central Storage at the library. It was waiting for me. I don’t know how many registered patrons there are of our library system, but no one wanted it. Fate? Perhaps. Apathy? Perhaps. I read it in a few days but kept it for six whole weeks, and not once did anyone appear on any kind of wait list for it. It’s weird to think that of the millions of people who could have wanted to read it, I was the only one in the city who did. One could spin this circumstance in a variety of ways… I’ll stick with being a ridiculous dork. My interest in plate tectonics iis probably why I went so far as to get and read this book.

The premise of the book is actually quite interesting: Geological processes are effecting a giant rift in the sea bed that topples the Japanese archipelago right into the chasms below. Everything is going to go. One lone scientist has predicted it. Who will listen? Is it even possible to evacuate everyone in time?

So this is a book I read in translation, and I’m not sure how that affected the book. It’s also 1971 science fiction, which is not like really like modern science fiction, in that the characters don’t have a lot of character. There are also no women in it, except for two, both of whom are brought into the story for the sole purpose of giving the main character someone to have sex with (not at the same time). Not having women in a novel really limits what the novel can do. The science actually wasn’t too bad. Now I’m no earth scientist, and I wouldn’t even call myself an educated fan (although I am a fan) but the phenomena described in the book–the ones that did all these horrible things–work for the story. They’ve got a high-tech deep submersible submarine, which is pretty cool. I forgot everyone’s names, sadly, but the two main guys are a skilled pilot of said sub and the Eccentric Scientist who makes the discovery. The two women end up having sex with Sub Pilot.

This is the first Japanese science fiction book I have read in a while, so I am not sure what uniquely Japanese science fiction conventions are at play that I am not recognizing. But basically no one believes the scientist until it is really too late to save everyone. That’s pretty common. In real life, I like to believe that with earthquakes killing people here and volcanoes killing millions of people there, at a frequency of about every couple of weeks, people would believe him and take action long before they do. More than the first half of the book is about the scientist gathering data and being frustrated and not being listened to, or being heard but no one in the government doing anything. The disaster stuff is horrifying at the edges, but you don’t see it up close until the very end.

By far this most interesting part of the book is the government’s confusion about what exactly they can do. The book is set in current times, and I have every reason to believe that it’s a pretty reasonable snapshot of Japan’s place in the world. The government really doesn’t know what to do. They are afraid to ask other nations to house their refugees. There is this striking several pages where officials are reporting on their discreet enquiries to Australia asking if it would be OK if five million or so people set up shop in the Outback if they promised not to be any trouble. The world is portrayed in the novel as generally hospitable and concerned, and countries step up with real estate and airplanes and ships to start evacuating, once the evacuation plans are in place, but it was so sad to see the Japanese characters worry about asking for help. No way would that happen in an American book. We get warning that this supervolcano beneath Yellowstone National Park is going to blow in two years, we are announcing to all our friends and political relatives that we’ll be moving into their garages and that we’ll be bringing our pets. Japan has had a very unusual century, and it is even now struggling with balancing its past reputation with its present one. (I had some sense of this already but) Wikipedia tells me that the late 1960s were just when Japan was starting to pit itself against international manufacturing competition and finding success–and there were still plenty of former prisoners of war around that were still pissed off and talking. It’s never addressed outright in the book, but one gets the impression from the characters that the Japanese people don’t quite think they deserve humanitarian aide considering, well, you know.

The other noteworthy character dilemma is the struggle with what it will mean to the Japanese people and culture to establish a diaspora. Even though people are being relocated by the tens of thousands to the same places, it’s considered a death knell for the Japanese way of life. (Which it probably would be, although Jewish people have kept it up for a very good while now.) The government is by no means forbidding anyone to leave, and is actively negotiating with other countries for space, but it’s actually wondered aloud if it would be better for everyone to die and for the world to remember the great nation of Japan and its glorious history instead of letting it trickle away ingloriously. That is not anything you would see in an American book, at least not in a regular character. Maybe in an unintentional villain–maybe. TRITENESS ALERT: They say that a picture paints a thousand words, but that one sentence (I’d tell you which one but it’s gone back to the library already) captures just about everything there is to say about what makes this a Japanese book. /TRITE If I were more conscientious, I’d read it myself, or if I had a Japanese literature scholar friend I would ask, but I’m not and I don’t, so I’ll limit myself to wondering how this 1971 novel compares to a contemporary Japanese science fiction novel. I can’t personally think of any book I’ve read from any culture or era or genre that expresses that sense of futility and hopelessness and stubborn pride at the global level.

I overuse the word “interesting.” Sorry. But I am sick of thesaurusizing.

It’s interesting that the author shows so much of this mental and internal turmoil, especially when he shows a world that positively leaps to Japan’s aid when finally asked. The island disappears, but Sub Pilot survives, so it’s not even a particularly depressing book. It makes me think of Deep Impact, which I never saw. I have the impression that Deep Impact is very depressing. This book, though, is more of a disaster romp and political crisis than swan song. I will confess that I started flipping through pages towards the very end. One gets the point once all the decisions are made. Yep. Japan sinks way far down. Eccentric Scientist was right.

[David Corleto-Bales · Rating 3 out of 5]

A rather plodding, but classic, novel by Sakyo Komatsu where Japan, (nobody does disasters like Japan) suffers through intense earthquakes and violent volcanic eruptions and sinks into the ocean; every Korean's dream.

[Monica San Miguel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Mas que un libro de ciencia ficción (porque aunque se adelante a su tiempo la tectónica de placas ya era una teoría, eso si, curiosamente esta fue descartada por el mundo científico en 1970, años por los que se escribió el libro) para mi es un ensayo sobre un evento castastrófico natural y digo lo de ensayo porque, aunque la estructura es de novela y además está muy bien desarrollada y escrita y hace que enganche mucho, entra profusamente tanto en datos de física terrestre como de las consecuencias que un cataclismo tendrían tanto en el plano socioeconómico como cultural. En definitiva un libro muy interesante y a pesar de ser de 1973 muy actual tanto en temática como en narrativa, es una lástima que el autor nunca consiguiera realizar esa segunda parte que tenia en proceso. Muy recomendable y mas aun si os interesa esta temática

[hotsake (André Troesch) · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.75/5

Without a doubt, one of, if not the best, natural disaster stories I've ever read. This would've gotten 5 stars if it had a little more characterization, but most of the page count was reserved for the hard science.

[Md. Niaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

প্রিয়জন যখন মৃত্যুর সাথে পাঞ্জা লড়ে তখন আমরা তাকে বাচানোর জন্য কত কিছুই করি। কখনো আমরা সফল হই যমের মুখ থেকে তাকে কেড়ে আনতে, কখনো যমদূত অট্টহাসি হেসে তার কাজ করে যায়।
বলবো দেশপ্রেম নিয়ে, প্রিয় মাতৃভূমির প্রতি ভালোবাসার কথা। জাপানের গৌরবময় ইতিহাস,ঐতিহ্য ও সংস্কৃতির কথা বিশ্বের সবাই কম বেশি জানে। দ্বিতীয় বিশ্বযুদ্ধের ডকুমেন্টারি, বই, মুভিতে দেখা যায় যখন তারা পরাজয়ের দ্বারপ্রান্তে ছিল তখন তারা পরাজয়ের লজ্জায়, নিজ দেশ অন্যের কাছে ছোট হবে তাই অনেকেই আত্মহত্যা করছে।
জাপান সিংকস বইটি জাপানিজদের দেশপ্রেম এর একটি সচিত্র বয়ানের মতো। ধুকে ধুকে মৃত্যুর দিকে এগিয়ে যাচ্ছে প্রিয় মাতৃভূমি, তাকে বাচাতে এবং দেশমাতার সন্তানদের প্রান রক্ষায় নিরলস কাজ করে যায় একদল মানুষ। এখানে সরকারের ভূমিকাও প্রশংসনীয়, অন্যান্য জায়গায় দেখা যায় কর্তাব্যক্তিরা নিজের কথাই শুধু চিন্তা করে কিন্তু এখানে তারা সাধারণ জনগনের জন্য যথেষ্ট কাজ করে।
জাপান সিংকস এক দিক দিয়ে প্রেমের গল্পও বটে, আর অন্য সব বিখ্যাত প্রেম কাহিনির মতো এখানেও দেখা মিলে ট্রেজেডির। অনেক সায়েন্টিফিক কথা আছে বইতে, তবে অনুবাদক যথেষ্ট সাবলীল অনুবাদ করায় বুঝতে তেমন কষ্ট হয় নি, অন্তত সায়েন্স ব্যাকগ্রাউন্ডের মানুষ বাদে অন্যরা কাজ চালানোর মতো ধারনা নিতে পারবে।
সবমিলিয়ে একটি ভালো বই, শেষের দিকে জাপানিজদের দেশপ্রেমের বর্ননা আমার মনকে নাড়া দিয়ে গেছে। সাজেশন থাকবে হাতে সময় নিয়ে বইটি পড়ার, কাহিনী তেমনটা ফাস্ট নয়।

[Antonio J Morales · Rating 1 out of 5]

Darle 1 estrella ya me parece agradecimiento suficiente... Es un libro denso, farragoso y que mete tramas inconexas e inconclusas, y que [SPOILER... para colmo, no termina, sino que deja por escrito que necesita una segunda parte que el autor nunca escribió... SPOILER]. Prefiero dedicar el tiempo a leer algo que pueda interesarme más...

[Ghostcat · Rating 3 out of 5]

While this book lacks style and real characters development it is a page turner and the plausibility of the events makes it really scary. The most interesting part in my opinion was the political aspect of such an event and what it reveals of the humanity of governments.

[Lei · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a good book, but I cannot give it a high rating. It's not friendly to non-Japanese reader and requires lots of different knowledge.

[Sagahigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Japan Sinks (nhan đề tiếng Nhật "Nihon chinbotsu", 日本沈没, "Nhật Bản trầm một", hiểu nôm na là "Nước Nhật chìm xuống biển") có thể là một cuốn sách không thành công lắm nếu như bạn muốn tìm trong đó một cốt chuyện hấp dẫn xoay quanh một số nhân vật đặc sắc, với tính cách riêng, trọn vẹn, đa chiều, mỗi người một số phận riêng, được đẩy đến cùng. Trong "Nhật Bản trầm một", hầu hết các nhân vật đều đơn điệu, đơn diện, tính cách không phát triển, không có số phận riêng - trừ vài ngoại lệ như Onodera, giáo sư Tadokoro..., tuy nhiên những ngoại lệ đó không cứu được điểm yếu này như một tổng thể.

Cái làm cho "Nhật Bản trầm một" đáng đọc là câu hỏi lớn của nó - câu hỏi đủ lớn để khiến tác giả phải dồn hầu hết tâm trí và năng lượng vào và, do vậy, không thể chu toàn được khía cạnh "thuần túy tiểu thuyết". Câu hỏi lớn này không phải là "Liệu một tai họa khiến cả nước Nhật chìm xuống biển có thể xảy ra trong thực tế hay không - nếu có, thì với xác suất bao nhiêu phần trăm?" Câu hỏi lớn là: Nếu một thảm họa như vậy xảy ra thật, thì thế giới sẽ làm gì khi bị đặt trước bài toán khó giải là phải cứu cho được hơn trăm triệu người Nhật mà từ nay vĩnh viễn mất tổ quốc? Và: nếu anh là một người Nhật, thì anh sẽ làm gì? Liệu anh nên hộc tốc lên con tàu đầu tiên vớ được, chạy đến một nước bất kỳ nào đó, nước nào cũng được miễn là một mảnh đất mà từ nay có thể sẽ là quê nhà của anh dù anh muốn hay không, hay là, giống như một số người đã làm, là ở lại chết cùng nước Nhật, như chết cùng Mẹ, chết cùng Người Yêu Lớn Nhất của mình, bởi Người mà không còn thì người Nhật - người Nhật đúng nghĩa - cũng không còn?

Đó rồi sẽ là câu hỏi còn lớn hơn khi mà, một lúc nào đó, bản thân Trái đất này không còn là một nơi thích hợp cho sự sống - vì sự tham lam và vô đạo của loài người - thì, các chính phủ, các nhà đại tư bản, các tài phiệt, những người thực sự nắm quyền lực cao nhất, họ sẽ làm gì? Và con người, từng cá nhân một, sẽ làm gì?

Một trường hợp khác mà ở đó câu hỏi trung tâm là quá lớn khiến cho câu chuyện cá nhân bị lu mờ - và bởi vậy làm giảm phần nào sự hấp dẫn của câu chuyện - là tác phẩm "Ensaio sobre a Lucidez", nghĩa đen là "Luận về sự sáng" (bản tiếng Anh dịch là "Seeing") của José Saramago, phần tiếp theo ("sequel") của cuốn nổi tiếng hơn là "Ensaio sobre a Cegueira" ("Luận về sự mù", bản tiếng Việt là "Mù lòa" do dịch từ bản tiếng Anh "Blindness"). Cũng phải: ở "Luận về sự mù" hay Mù lòa", câu hỏi lớn được hiện thân qua số phận cá nhân của một số nhân vật chính, những nhân vật chính có tính cách riêng, câu chuyện riêng đủ tính cá biệt và phức tạp để thu hút người đọc. Còn "Luận vềsự sáng" thì, cũng giống như ở "Nhật Bản trầm một", trên thực tế là không có nhân vật theo nghĩa hẹp - câu hỏi lớn bao trùm và chi phối tất cả.

So với hai cuốn này, "Một ngày dài hơn thế kỷ" của Chingiz Aitmatov là một thành tựu mẫu mực. Ở đó, câu hỏi lớn được phát lộ ra một cách từ từ, đĩnh đạc, thông qua câu chuyện và số phận riêng tư vô cùng đặc sắc của nhân vật chính Edigey cùng với những người xung quanh ông. Cái lớn thấm nhuần trong từng cái nhỏ nhặt nhất như con cáo xuất hiện ven đường sắt, như cái mõm của con lạc đà "linh hoạt như đôi cánh bướm", và, đọc hết câu chuyện về những cái nhỏ, ngồi ngẫm nghĩ, ta không khỏi lạnh mình khi nhìn thấy cái tổng thể, cái dấu hỏi vượt ngoài năng lực trả lời của hầu hết loài người hiện thời. Một kiệt tác đích thực, đáng tiếc là đang bị lãng quên.

[Eloy Nogueira · Rating 4 out of 5]

El libro me ha gustado. Tiene partes algo paradas en las que parece que no pasa gran cosa y estás deseando que lleguen los terremotos y tsunamis. Las partes del clímax están muy bien y es todo catastrófico y terrible de imaginar. Hoy ya estamos acostumbrados a esto por las películas de Hollywood, pero hay que recordar que el libro es de 1973 y entonces esto era una novedad. El final es algo abrupto y te deja con ganas de más, pero por desgracia no hay continuación.  

[Kamakana · Rating 3 out of 5]

60215: this is not a particularly well-written book, in terms of poetics, character, plot, theme. this book is very easy to read, short, in describing why i give it a three- it is the disaster movie to end all disaster movies, at least before films like day after tomorrow or 2012. it is a fascinating portrayal of how japanese society might react, politically, to this entire existential threat. perhaps it only works if you look past the writing, if you have read much japanese literature, seen films, read some manga, know critical histories, know how many japanese want to see themselves- as brave, selfless, also resigned to fate, attached almost metaphysically to the home islands. i have not read any disaster books, though seen a few films. there are numbers here, numbers and passages early in the book insisting on validity and possibility of the geophysics involved. there are some vignettes following scientists, politicians, monk, but for me, beyond all this, the value of this book is entirely the idea, the way it plays out, and perhaps great writing would only be a distraction...

[vetathebooksurfer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Moved me to tears.

What do you do when your country is about to disappear? Do you let the people live the time they have unbothered? What do you do as a scientist? And what if you are a minister? ...And what if other countries interfere and make it public as a freaking sensation?

And what do you when westerns treat you as these weird freaks with your whole country shaking and falling? And you've spent decades ruining relationship with locals?

These scientists are practicaly the same: they love their country, they feel greatful they grew up here. And if one has a chance to die together with their land, some of them take it as an honour.

To be honest, I loved Onodera's voice, he's really down to earth, a hard-working guy.

If you pick this book up, be aware it might involve deep insight into sea bed research, geography and 1970s politics. Many issues covered here are outdated - the equipment is way better and faster now. They had to literally build a model to recreate the earthquake, and were fascinated with the holographic map. Considering almost everyone can surf the net for online date fathering and analyses, some of that stuff seem a bit naive.

Rus:
Ваш остров скоро перестанет существовать. Вы - ученый, инженер, шарите за тектонические процессы, имеете вес в обществе. Что вы будете делать? Дадите людям спокойно доживать последние дни или срочно кинетесь на амбразуру? Будете держать все это дело в секрете? А если какая-нибудь тварь заморская, не посоветовавшись, возьмет и объявит "А прикиньте, эти чуваки тонут! Во тупые! Сами не поняли, что тонут, а мы поняли!"

А если еще и от вас отвернутся все ближайшие соседи, ибо ваша страна на них все время сверху вниз смотрела? А если все это вообще не имеет смысла, когда из гибели вашей страны устраивается какой-то масштабный спектакль?

Нехилый коктейль, да?

За что мне нравятся советские издания, так это за то, что они не держат читателей за дураков: если профессор начинает объяснять устройство земной коры - это нужно проиллюстрировать, описывает чувак процесс приливов и отливов - надо схемку нарисовать, не переводится идиома - надо оставить сноску. Поэтому читать было очень интересно.

Очень зашел Онодэра как персонаж, за ним было интересно наблюдать. Понимаю, что некоторые его поступки вызывают вопросы, но в целом он производит впечатление по-настоящему хорошего человека - в мирное время людям не хамил, в жесткое время - работал. Под конец начал сдавать, но тут бы кто угодно не выдержал

Ближе к концу, во время монолога профессора Тадороко, рыдала горькими слезами

[Aeo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Buena lectura, sobria, paciente, descriptiva, pero ha sido un gusto recorrer la mentalidad nipona ante un desastre como sería el del hundimiento del archipiélago japonés y todas las consecuencias asociadas. Este hombre tan pronto te mete en el fondo del mar, como te muestra la política y los asuntos más delicados internacionales, como te explica cómo se vive un desastre... Me ha faltado algunas sensaciones más de novela, que a veces parecía que estaba leyendo una crónica, pero en general muy contento con esta lectura.

[Sacha · Rating 4 out of 5]

Très bon livre mêlant science et politique. J'ai aimé le lire, même si on peut se perdre avec les personnages. L'ambiance générale du livre est très triste, mélancolique, concernant l'avenir du Japon.

[Asraful Shumon · Rating 4 out of 5]

কখনো কি ভেবেছেন, যদি পুরো একটা দেশ সমুদ্রগর্ভে হারিয়ে যাওয়ার আশঙ্কা তৈরি হয়, তখন সেই দেশের মানুষের কী অবস্থা হয়? হাজার বছরের সংস্কৃতি, ইতিহাস, ঐতিহ্য সব নিমিষেই গিলে নেবে জলের দানো।

কাহিনি এমন যে জাপান সাগরের এক দ্বীপে ফিশিং বোটের লোকজন আশ্রয় নেয় রাত কাটানোর জন্যে। সকালে নিজেদের পানিতে আবিষ্কার করে তারা। এক রাতের মাঝে ডুবে যায় পুরো একটা দ্বীপ। ঘটনা সম্পর্কে জানার জন্য সাবমেরিন পাঠায় জাপান ট্রেঞ্চের তলদেশে। তারা সেখানকার আগ্নেয়গিরি আর ভূত্বকের অস্বাভাবিক আলোড়নের মাঝে একটা কঠিন সত্য জানতে পারে। এক বছরের ভেতরেই ডুবতে চলেছে পুরো জাপান।

কোমাতসুর বইটার ইউনিক দিক এটাই, থিম। বইটা ফাস্ট পেসড না, খুব থ্রিলিং না, টুইস্ট নির্ভর না। যারা বই পড়েই এই তিনটির জন্য বইটা তাদের জন্যেও না। বইটা তাদের জন্��� যারা এরকম পরিস্থিতিকে চোখের সামনে দেখতে চায়। মানুষের কষ্টটা অনুভব করতে চায়। পড়েন, গা শিউরে উঠবে। ভীষণ ডিপ্রেশনে পড়ে যাবেন। চোখে জলও আসতে পারে।

এটা ৭০ দশকের বই। এখনকার স্টোরিটেলিং আর তখনকার স্টোরিটেলিং এ আকাশ পাতাল পার্থক্য। তাই পড়ার সময় ব্যাপারটা মাথায় রাখতে হবে। চরিত্রগুলোর ভেতর সবচেয়ে ভালো লেগেছে ওনোদেরা আর প্রফেসর তোদোকোরোকে। আর অবশ্যই, বৃদ্ধ ওয়াটারিকে। শুরু��ে জলের নিচে সাবমেরিনের সেই দৃশ্যটা টুয়েন্টি থাউজ্যান্ড লীগস আন্ডার দ্য সি এর ফিল দিচ্ছিলো।

গল্পে খানিকটা স্থানে কড়া সায়েন্স আছে। আর একটা দৃশ্যে কড়া রাজনৈতিক আলোচনা, অর্থনৈতিক সমস্যার প্রতি আলোকপাত। এই জায়গাগুলো কঠিন লাগতে পারে। এর বাইরে বাকিটা বেশ সহজ।

বইটা পড়ে একটা উপলব্ধি এসেছে মাথায়। জাপান ডুবে যাবে শুনে বিশ্বের বিভিন্ন দেশ জাপানি মানুষদের আশ্রয় দিতে প্রচণ্ড উৎসাহী হয়ে পড়েছিলো। কারণ তারা ভীষণ পরিশ্রমী, দক্ষ, ভদ্র এক জাতি পাচ্ছে।

উপলব্ধিটা হচ্ছে, জাপানিদেরকে নাহয় জায়গা দেয়ার জন্য বিশ্ব উন্মুক্ত হয়ে আছে, কিন্তু বাংলাদেশ যদি কখনো ডুবে যায়, এই অসভ্য জাতিকে কেউ নিতে রাজি হবে?

[Maike · Rating 3 out of 5]

**big YIKES on female representation here**

So. Yeah. I am aware this book was published in the 70s. The portrayal of the few women is disappointing. Everytime a female character appeares on the page, I wanted to agressively strike out the lines about them. With the ebook, that was sadly not possible.

The Plot: For me, the first part was very slow and hard to get into. From the second part onwards it does get consistently better though. I enjoyed all the scienece talks (even though I did not always understand everything about it), and later on the political few we got to see.

All in all, I think the book and the animated Netflix show compliment each other very well, as the novel focuses on the scientific, logistical aspects, while the show portrays the personal drama of the average Japanese.

[Noel Thingvall · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a story, not the easiest to get into. The characters aren't interesting, which doesn't give us a personal anchor for much of the story, and are so briskly described that it's hard to keep track of who most of them are. Plus what few women there are fall into very typical dad lit sexist tropes that are pretty eye-rolling at times.

Where this book succeeds is the macro perspective it takes on the premise, not just the massive scenes of devastation as Japan is gradually broken up by nature and driven into the sea, but the way it explores the emigration of the refugees, finances, issues of cultural identity and how a country can be preserved after the land itself is gone. Those threads are more than rich and compelling enough to have made this worth a read. I just wish more work had been put into the characters pulling us through that event to drive the emotion of the story.

[Dave Taylor · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent, rather frightening and intense classic sci-fi novel from Komatsu. It's just as much about the Japanese culture and people as about the entirely believable cataclysm that causes the entire Japanese archipelago to be torn asunder by earthquakes and volcanic eruptions and eventually to sink below the waves of the Pacific. Recommended if you can find a copy.

[Stephen Rowland · Rating 2 out of 5]

Impressively technical but thoroughly dry, devoid of emotion.

[Repix Pix · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pasable.

[Carito ✿ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"—Quería preguntarle una cosa más. ¿Qué cree usted que es lo más importante en un científico?

—La intuición —contestó Tadakoro de inmediato.

—¿Cómo? — preguntó el anciano poniéndose una mano tras la oreja—. ¿Qué ha dicho?

—La intuición —repitió Tadakoro con convicción—. Quizá le suene raro pero para un científico, sobre todo para alguien dedicado a las ciencias, [pero] lo más importante es tener una aguda intuición. Las personas sin intuición nunca podrán convertirse en grandes científicos, no podrán realizar grandes descubrimientos.

—Muy bien. Entendido. —asintió enérgicamente el anciano—. Con esto es suficiente."

Disclaimer: leí la edición reeditada que sacó Minotauro el 2023 con motivo de los 50 años de la publicación de la novela. Esta edición tiene 494 páginas, a diferencia de sus ediciones en inglés, por lo que no pude ir registrando bien el avance de lectura xd

Respeto mucho el trabajo de los traductores, pero la traducción deja harto que desear. Siendo el japonés un idioma que no se traduce literalmente, hay una idea tras la expresión que se puede literar diferente en otro idioma, por lo que pudo haber sido mejor.


🌸🌸🌸🌸🌸

La novela es bien buena, a momentos un poco caótica o muy repetitiva cuando se realizan las explicaciones científicas geodésicas o geológicas del asunto en cuestión. Siento que a 50 años de su publicacion (ya casi 52, con esta reseña escrita el 31 de diciembre) es muy pertinente de leer aún.

Habiendo nacido y crecido en un país del Cinturón de Fuego, la contraparte más sísmica y con más actividad volcánica de Japón dentro del Cinturón, leía la novela y venían recuerdos de catástrofes que hemos tenido toda la vida. Lo peor de todo, me imagino muy posible todo esto, pues aún con todo el tiempo que ha pasado, poco se conoce sobre el fondo marino y la teoría tecnónica es muy joven también.

Destaco muchísimo el entramado político nacional e internacional descrito por el autor. Si bien esto se escribió en 1973 y el orden político y económico mundial era otro en ese entonces, es catastrófico en términos de las relaciones internacionales pensar en la desaparición de Japón. ¿Qué pasaría con China, Taiwán, Corea del Sur y Estados Unidos en el Pacífico? Brutal.

Es una novela que recomiendo leer si les gusta una distopía con bases científicas, porque de ciencia ficción no tiene mucho en realidad (un poquito con temas tecnológicos para esa época, pero no el Sci-Fi que uno acostumbra). Es una novela que profundiza mucho en la sociedad japonesa, sus traumas, sus imperfecciones y su sentido de nación (ausente o presente), que hace cuestionar efectivamente qué es lo que te hace ser parte de una nación. ¿Es el territorio, las costumbres, la gente o la nacionalidad en sí?

Recomendación: tener un mapa de Japón y de sus mares y fosas alrededor mientras leen. La edición de Minotauro trae una, y lo agradecí mucho, pero hubiese sido mas bacán un mapa detallado de Japón a dos planas de hoja, para ver el avance de todo.

Termino la reseña más larga que he escrito hasta ahora con otra cita que me gustó mucho, cerca del final de la novela.

"—Los japoneses no somos simplemente un pueblo que llegase de alguna parte y comenzase a vivir en estas islas. (...) Ser japonés no es algo que se refiera solo a la persona. Ser japonés es formar parte de su naturaleza de estas islas, de sus montañas, de sus ríos, de sus bosques. Ser un todo con los seres vivos, con los pueblos y ciudades, con las tradiciones que nos legaron nuestros antepasados. Ser japonés es lo mismo que ser el monte Fuji, los Alpes japoneses, el río Tonegawa, el cabo Ashizuri. Si se destruye y desaparece nuestra delicada naturaleza, nuestras islas y todo lo que hay en ella, ya no podemos seguir siendo japoneses."

[Sagor Reza · Rating 2 out of 5]

জাপান সিংকস'এর প্লট বেশ চমকপ্রদ। একের পর এক ভূমিকম্প, অগ্নুৎপাত হানা দিতে থাকে জাপানে। তাছাড়া জাপান সাগরে রাতারাতি নিখোঁজ হয়ে যায় একটা দ্বীপ। বিজ্ঞানীরা কিছুতেই কোন শক্তিশালী কারন দেখাতে পারছিল না এই ভূমিকম্পের পেছনে। কেবলমাত্র প্রফেসর তোদোকোরো বললেন এক অদ্ভুত কথা। আড়াই বছরের মধ্যে সমুদ্রে বিলীন হয়ে যাবে জাপান। স্বাভাবিক ভাবেই কেউ পাত্তা দেয় নি তাকে, তবে তার কথার সত্যতা যখন সবাই বুঝতে পারল, তখন একটু বেশিই দেরি হয়ে গেছে।

১৯৭০ এর দিকের সায়েন্স ফিকশন ঘরানার বই এটি। ভূতত্ত্ব নিয়ে জানাশোনা না থাকলেও বইয়ের ব্যাখ্যা গুলো ভালো লেগেছে। চরিত্র খুব বেশি ছিল না প্রায় দু'শ পৃষ্ঠার এই বইতে। তবে তার মধ্যে তোদোকোরো আর ওনোদেরা কে ভালো লেগেছে। বইয়ের একটা বিশেষ দিক হলো সরকারের দিক থেকে কীভাবে এই পরিস্থিতির নিয়ন্ত্রণ করা হয়েছে সেটা। একসময় দেখা যায়, কেউ আসলে বুঝতে পারছে না পরবর্তী পদক্ষেপ কি হবে। তীব্র সঙ্কটাপন্ন অবস্থাতেও রাজনৈতিক প্রভাব ভালো ভাবেই দেখানো হয়েছে। বিশ্বের ছোট-বড় দেশগুলোকে এখানে মানবিক এবং অতিথিপরায়ণ হিসেবে দেখানো হয়েছে। দেখা যায়, যে যেভাবে পারছে জাপানকে সাহায্য করছে, কেউ বা শেল্টার দিয়ে, কেউ বা এয়ারক্রাফট দিয়ে উদ্ধারকাজে অংশ নিয়ে।

বইয়ের কিছু নেগেটিভ দিকে আসি। বইটা দ্রুতগতির না, মানে পেইজ টার্নার না। তবে পেইজ-টার্নার না হলে যে বই খারাপ হয়ে যায় বিষয়টা সেরকম না। বরং কিছু বই আস্তেধীরে পড়তেই ভালো লাগে, বিরক্তির উদ্রেক হয় না। এখানেই মূলত সমস্যা, পড়তে গিয়ে অনেকবার আটকে গিয়েছি এবং বিরক্তও হয়েছি। জাপানি বই খুব বেশি পড়া হয়নি। এ বইতে প্রচুর জায়গার নাম আছে, হরহামেশাই এসব জাপানি শব্দ পড়ার রিদম এর ব্যাঘাত ঘটিয়েছে।
তবে সবচেয়ে বড় সমস্যা এটা না। বইতে বেশ কয়েকটা ভূমিকম্প এবং অগ্নুৎ্পাতের তান্ডবলীলার বর্ননা দেওয়া হয়েছে, এবং প্রতিটার বর্ননা খুবই কাছাকাছি। ১৫-২০ পৃষ্ঠা একটা দুর্যোগের বর্ননা পড়ে দেখবেন পরের ১০ পৃষ্ঠায় সিমিলার একটা আর্থকুয়েক এর বর্ননা দেওয়া হয়েছে অন্য একটা জায়গায়। প্রথমবার সেটা পড়তে হয়ত ভালো লেগেছে, তবে জিনিসটা এতটা রিপিটেটিভ যে একসময় বিরক্ত না হয়ে পারা যায় না।

অনুবাদ নিয়ে একটু কথা বলতে হয়। অনুবাদকের প্রথম অনুবাদ এটা। কিছু কিছু জায়গায় ভালো করেছেন, আবার কিছু কিছু জায়গায় হয়ত আরেকটু ভালো করার জায়গা ছিল। তিনি ইংরেজ�� অনুবাদ থেকে অনুবাদ করেছেন নাকি সরাসরি জাপানিজ থেকে করেছেন জানা নেই। মাঝে মাঝে একটু আক্ষরিক মনে হয়েছে, যেমন একটা জায়গায় অনুবাদের একটা অংশ:
"এত কাজের মাঝেও দু-একদিন কোথাও ঘুরে আসলে ভালো লাগতো, ব্র‍্যান্ডি গ্লাসের দিকে তাকিয়ে ভাবছেন তিনি। জৈনদের মতো মেডিটেশন, যেন তার আত্মা শান্ত হয় এবং সামনের ভয়ানক পরিস্থিতি উপলব্ধি করতে পারেন, সাথে বৃদ্ধ লোকটার সাথে আলোচনা।" (পৃষ্ঠা ১০২-১০৩)

প্রোডাকশন নিয়ে বলতে গেলে বলতে হয় এটা সম্ভবত সুলভ সংস্করন। পেপারব্যাক বই। প্রচ্ছদটা বেশ কালারফুল, তবে আউটস্ট্যান্ডিং বলব না। পৃষ্ঠার কোয়ালিটি বেশ বাজে, পৃষ্ঠা ওল্টানোর সময় ভেঙ্গে যাচ্ছিল। আরেকটু ভালো হলে ভালো হত।

সবশেষে বলব, এই বইটা যে পড়তেই হবে, না পড়লে বিরাট কিছু মিস হয়ে যাবে, সেরকম না। প্লট পছন্দ হলে এবং ধীর গতির বই পছন্দ হলে পড়া যেতে পারে। রেকমেন্ড করব না, পড়তে চাইলে পড়তে পারেন।

রেটিং: ৫/১০

বই: জাপান সিংকস
লেখক: সাকিও কোমাৎসু
অনুবাদক: ইমরান চৌধুরী
প্রকাশক: পেপার ভয়েজার
মুদ্রিত মূল্য: ২৫০
পৃষ্ঠা: ১৮৯

[Anca · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars (not 4. For me a 4 stars is a book that I would read again)

I wouldn't say this was an enjoyable read but it wasn't a bad one either. The book raises a lot of intriguing questions about what would happen if we were to face a disaster of such scale.
Credit where credit is due, it didn't bore me, I wanted to keep on reading even if I already knew what's going to happen (because it's all in the title ha ha ha).
I feel like the subject has been tackled quite well and a lot of thought has gone into it, with some nice little touches, like when the older people chose not to be saved and let the younger generations move on but also to give them more chances to be saved. I thought that was very neat. If I was an elderly person and my whole country was about to sink I'd probably do the same thing (not out of patriotism, but for a lifetime of love for the place where home is).
The science part seems believable enough, I'm not an expert on earthquakes and volcanoes but I wasn't bombarded with unbelievable facts so that my mind starts wondering off.
As for the characters, they do feel a little sketchy and robotic but that adds to the charm of the book. For me this really worked, there's a bird's eye view on the whole situation, jumping from this person to that, and we dont really connect with any of them but that's fine somehow, because really, the book is about destruction and to destruction is given the spotlight, it almost becomes a character on it's own.