文豪ストレイドッグス 太宰治の入社試験 [Bungō Stray Dogs Dazai Osamu no Nyūsha Shiken]

文豪ストレイドッグス [Bungō Stray Dogs] (Novel) #1

by Kafka Asagiri, 朝霧カフカ, Sango Harukawa

カタブツ理想主義者の国木田独歩は、危険な依頼を専門とする“武装探偵社”の一員。彼は謎の新入り・太宰治とコンビを組み、幽霊屋敷事件を捜査するが、予想外の展開に!?　闇が蠢く横浜で“異能力”対決、開幕!!

Genres: Manga, Light Novel, Fantasy, Mystery, Fiction, Action, Supernatural

240 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 1, 2014

About the author

See 朝霧カフカ (Asagiri Kafka).
Japanese scenario writer and novelist.

Reviews

[richa ⋆.˚★ · Rating 4 out of 5]

A cynical, genius, crazy detective narrated through the eyes of a man of staunch ideals.
------------
I cannot wait to read the light novels and catch up to manga soon ! =» only left with light novel 2-8 , the anthology and BSD wan now.

[Sima ✨ · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't want Dazai but I want his brain and mind.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a must-read for Kunikida fans and also does an excellent job with its bittersweetness.


Full review eventually appearing on ANN.

[Sara · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ok I know it's soon but this book made me want to rewatch anime.

[chai ♡ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars ⭐
kunikida your ideals too strong, your heart too kind, they'll kill you kunikida.

[Emma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bungo Stray Dogs is such a hilarious series to me… like, it’s kind of bad, but kind of brilliant; ridiculously convoluted yet super exciting, and has me screaming over a huge cast of characters who are all named after famous Japanese authors? And the mafia is in it?? And VAMPIRES?? Honestly such a wild series and I love it to bits, also Asagiri is such a legend for writing so many light novels (which are my entire life) which I can buy in lieu of the manga (I would need a mortgage) and can then read. In Japan. I READ THIS IN JAPAN-

The List has been updated :
Read “A Darker Shade of Magic” in London✅
Read “Bungo Stray Dogs” in Yokohama ✅

I’ve decided this is my new bucket list.

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Kayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a great reminder of how much I love Dazai

[lily ⊹ ₊ ⁺ · Rating 5 out of 5]

₊˚ପ⊹ • ➵ 5/5 ✧

i love u dazai. #1 fan since day one fr

[Risma · Rating 3 out of 5]

The second light novel has been read.
Yes, for those who don't want to read it can find the same storyline in the anime season 1 episode 6 & 7, but you will miss the antics of Kunikida and Dazai. The Azure Messenger case is supposed to be their first case together and, according to the title, also Dazai's entrance exam. Well, at first, I can't help to think that his exam would be like Atsushi's but then at second thoughts, that would be hilarious since the man is too perceptive for his own good. So, yes, it would be Kunikida's chance to shine. Here, I can find the idealist Kunikida who also idolized Fukuzawa just like Ranpo and the Kunikida who knows his partner from a mere answer his partner gives. Of course, the thrill part is when they played the you-are-the-culprit stage. They both did well as actors and deserve an Oscar.
This light novel portrays both the gloomy and hilarious Dazai too good that I can find the anime and the manga vibe by reading this. The smart and manipulative of him that would be the heart of Armed Detective Agency. This shows how much the agency wouldn't be without their unique duo, the idealist and the manipulative. And yes, deserves a read.

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of weird that they turned Dazai's detective agency backstory into just a filler episode in the anime. (This novel is basically Season 1 episodes 6 and 7, if you're wondering.)

Kunikida isn't one of my favorite characters in BSD. He's funny, but he can be super annoying sometimes, so reading something from his perspective was a little boring, but I liked learning about Dazai's beginnings. I also liked that it came full circle where the epilogue matched perfectly to the first volume of the manga. It makes me want to reread/rewatch BSD all over again.

[Jenn Moss · Rating 5 out of 5]

Kunikida, with all the burden of his exacting ideals, has a wonderful voice here! And I think the plot holds up so much better in this light novel than in the anime version.

In the anime, Dazai is already an established part of the ADA, and a good deal of the actual storyline is rubbed out. But here, the story fits much more naturally into the timeline: we see Dazai's introduction to the ADA, with Kunikida the one forced to show this suicidal trickster the ropes.

The mystery is decent, the character interaction is both fun and bittersweet, and the whole thing is a pleasure to read.

[elena · Rating 4 out of 5]

“no matter how brilliant an ideal may be, if the path to realization is too far, then the light at the end is nothing more than an illusion, and those ideals - meaningless.” | tw: mention(s) of suicide; suicide attempt(s); blood; slight gore

[daria · Rating 5 out of 5]

dazai is just a silly little guy

[Rin ⭐️ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5

“ However, no matter how brilliant an ideal may be, if the path to realization is too far, then the light at the end is nothing more than an illusion, and those ideals—meaningless. Thus, the quickest path to fulfillment is inscribed on the first page of my notebook: "Do what must be done.”

I love being a BSD fan and always be confused with the materials the LNs and the mangas, I was planning to read the Light novel first last year but I ended up reading the manga.

If you don’t already know the BSD LN are kinda separated but I am planning to read them in order. The first volume follows Doppo Kunikida who is an idealist and a detective who works at the Armed Detective Agency, an organization that takes on dangerous jobs even the police won't handle. Everything was going according to his plan until one day he's paired up with the agency's newest hire: a suspicious, eccentric, suicide-obsessed man named Osamu Dazai. So we follow them in their first-ever case together.

I love this duo so much they’re funny sometimes, dazai annoys me most of the time but I can’t deny how smart he is. The story is Set two years before the events of the manga series, and it was adapted in the first season with two episodes but they kind of changed some stuff.

I highly recommend reading it if you’re a bad fan you will get more material for the things you already know, it wasn’t spectacular but it was fun.

[Nova Syzygy]

I'm going to skip out on giving a rating for this one, just like for the rest of the BSD manga, simply because I don't think I'll be able to provide an accurate one. But know that I have a deep appreciation for this entire saga. It's been months and I'm still basically obsessed with it, which is unusual for someone like me. Anyway.

This was a very interesting installment, though the writing style took some time to get used to. It provided a lot more detail into the Azure Messenger arc than the show, which I liked. It had a lot of interesting insights, though I wish that Kunikida's internal monologue was more of an internal monologue instead of a series of observations on the surroundings. Reading about the characters in first-person was unusual, for some reason.

I wonder who the US informant was. He said he was from the Guild, but I wonder who... It can't be Fitzgerald, because he's too pretentious to be an informant. Not Twain either, and probably not Steinbeck. Questions, questions...

Also, Akutagawa, :(.

[toto · Rating 5 out of 5]

so so so so so so so so so gay but seriously i do enjoy getting to read something from Kunikida's pov. I think its interesting how Dazai acts here it really seems like he doesn't quite know how he's supposed to act as a good person, he's clearly trying to be good but he's not quite there like he is now. Also I fucking love how badly, how hard Dazai is trying to save Kunikida from the same fate as Oda....

[Riki (˶˃⤙˂˶) · Rating 4 out of 5]

4 💫

Even though Kunikida is one of my least favourite characters in the series, this was an interesting read. I think it gave me just a little insight into Kunikida's mindset.

All in all, a very exiting BSD story. All kinds of twists and turns, and detective shenanigans.

[Knigoqdec · Rating 5 out of 5]

Тази новела е изключително симпатична, което е в комбинация с това, че е интересна. Искрено я заобичах, въпреки че първата ми среща с това заглавие не беше от най-добрите. Може би Куникида е една от причините да изпитам много повече удоволствие от срещата си с тези странници, отколкото обикновено. Той май беше и една от главните причини да реша на мига, че искам тази книга, когато я видях. Предпочитания...
И тъй като ми е особено симпатична, изпитах нуждата от самоинициатива и се върнах в до��рото старо време. Преведох сама на себе си първата част от пролога... и незнайно защо споделям превода, на който му е интересно (твърде малка част, уви, но все е нещо)...
https://knigoqdec.blogspot.com/2020/0...

[Rui Lucas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Gostei muito, o Kunikida e o Dazai formam uma dupla muito boa e é porreiro ver essa parceria e dinâmica a nascer. Só tenho pena que o não é muito consistente com o anime, porque o caso do livro é o mesmo que o caso usado na primeira season do anime, com algumas diferenças superficiais (exceto um certo acontecimento que não está no anime mas que devia estar porque é simplesmente incrível). Vou ler mais destes light novels

[Tobi ﾄﾋﾞ · Rating 5 out of 5]

my favourite bsd light novel so far~ i’m obsessed with kunikida and dazai’s dynamic they’re just the best

[nicolette · Rating 4 out of 5]

i wish they animated it the same. instead they made it non-canon by including atsushi but eh :/

[mia-esme 𓇗 · Rating 4 out of 5]

no matter how much they disrupt each other, they’ll always have a wickedly brilliant bond and here is where it starts

[kazzle dazzle · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting light novel. i enjoyed beast/stormbringer/age 15 much more, (maybe because i can’t stand kunikida) but dazai being in this one makes it super interesting. ⭐️4.25

[RaspberryRoses]

was this novel *good*? i don't think i'd say that no.

did i have *fun* reading this? yeah. iconic freak cinema. kunikada is such a weirdo and i think he's a fun narrator because he clearly thinks he's so normal and then he proceeds to have the most insane opinions. dazai does magic mushrooms. there's even permanent character death.

[julia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dazai i kunikida najlepsze duo

[Jos · Rating 5 out of 5]

Esta novela ligera es una precuela al manga de Bungou Stray Dogs pero a su vez vemos los sucesos aquí narrados en la primera temporada del anime.

Si me preguntan, es preferible leer la novela ya que el anime dejó algunas cosas de lado y además intercalaban los sucesos de esta precuela con la trama principal de Atsushi.

Aquí nos encontramos con Dazai, el miembro más nuevo de la Agencia Armada de Detectives, quien tiene que resolver su primer caso para pasar el examen de admisión y ser oficialmente un miembro de la Agencia y además, el compañero de Kunikida.

La mayor parte de la novela la vemos narrada desde el punto de vista de Kunikida y me he encariñado aun más con el personaje, me gusta la voz que le dió Kafka Asagiri y no me molestaría leer más novelas desde su punto de vista, y a pesar de que ya sabía el desenlace de todo (gracias a que ya me vi el anime), hubo ciertas cosas que me sorprendieron puesto que no se mencionan en el anime pero que sí dan pistas de situaciones que pasan después en el manga y en el propio anime.

Si quieren sumergirse en el mundo de Bungou Stray Dogs pero no les termina de convencer leerse el manga o verse el anime, esta es una muy buena opción, es una novela corta, rápida y fácil de leer que además te introduce a varios personajes de gran importancia en la obra, como lo son Dazai, el propio Kunikida, mi favorito de todos Akutagawa, Ranpo, etc.

Y para los fans del manga o del anime, específicamente aquellos que aman a Kunikida y su interacción con Dazai, esta es una lectura obligada.

Aquí unas de mis frases favoritas y escenas que tuvieron un impacto en mí como fan de BSD:

⚠️⚠️HAY SPOILERS EN ALGUNAS FRASES⚠️⚠️

• «“But I’m just an ordinary woman. Even if I was with someone who lived for his ideals, I wouldn’t be of any help. Even if I devoted myself to supporting those ideals, I would only end up getting in the way and exhausting us both… Ultimately, he would choose his ideals over me, and things would end there. So I think I will abstain from dating any idealists in the future.”»
• «For someone so full of eccentricities, there is something about his behavior that makes it seem as if he has an unobstructed view of the world. I don’t know exactly why, but all his emotions strike me as an act to some degree. Is he just playing dumb? Could there be more to him than he’s letting on, lurking behind his ambiguous mannerisms?»
• «“See? You wear your heart on your sleeve. You don’t hide how you’re really feeling. It’s nice. You know what else is nice? Just knowing that you’re going to be worrying later to yourself, ‘Am I really that simple?’”»
• «“What do you want?! Why did you threaten the detective agency?! What was the point of killing the missing people and setting the bomb?! You… You were…” You were so talented. I couldn’t have asked for a better partner.»
• «A brief taste of freedom from the enemy’s watch—Dazai didn’t tell me what was really going on and continued to play the villain just to create this moment for us. I am once against struck with admiration. The man is incredible.»
• «“A cry for righteousness is like a sword. Just as it may harm the weak, it will also never be able to protect or save them. The Azure King’s righteousness is what killed Miss Sasaki.”»
• «“Kunikida. As long as you continue to pursue those ideals and remove those who get in your way, then one day you, too, will come to harbor the Azure King’s rage. There will be nothing left around you then—only ash. I’ve seen it happen all too often.”»

[Amilatun Sakinah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ini seru sih, lihat interaksi Kunikida dan Dazai dari awal. Huft, kasihan Kunikida harus menghadapi Dazai kayak gitu sejak ketemu. Tapi ya, ternyata itu pilihannya Kunikida sendiri. Bahwa bagi dia kalau Dazai itu lolos ujian masuk, sekalipun dia sudah sangat aware akan jengkel terus ke Dazai soal kerjaan formal, tapi Kunikida mengesampingkan itu karena melihat kemampuan Dazai sbg detektif itu ngga bisa diremehkan.

Bahkan bagi Kunikida, Dazai itu partner terbaik, huaaaa :')

Sayangnya, SAYANGNYA, ketika dijadikan anime banyak yang ngga masuk dan diubah. Padahal pengen lihat keseruan mereka yang utuh dari LN ini. Dijadikan movie tersendiri bagus deh ini, dibanding cuma dua episode di anime canon-nya.

Misalnya ketika Kunikida terjebak tapi juga tahu dia dijebak oleh kriminal yang dihadapi sehingga menganggap Dazai yang baru masuk detektif itu sbg kriminal itu sendiri. Hah, ini bakalan keren kalau dianimasikan.

Aku suka bagian Dazai lagi ngomong sama anak kecil yang terjebak di pesawat yang akan jatuh. Ngga aneh Dazai bisa punya kemampuan ngobrol sama anak2, karena ketika di Port Mafia dia kan main sama Q yang masih kecil banget. Dan Q-nya juga suka main sama Dazai kayaknya.

Yang keren dari Kunikida adalah, Kunikida membiarkan dirinya dipermainkan oleh Dazai dan mau-mau aja meladeni. Ini yang bikin Dazai betah usil ke Kunikida. Sama kayak Chuuya. Chuuya tahu kalau Dazai itu ya seusil itu sama dia, tapi Chuuya-nya juga iya iya meladeni setiap omongan dan keusilannya Dazai.

Kalau Kunikida dan Chuuya berhenti kayak gini dan bodo amat sama Dazai, ngga merasa terganggu lagi, Dazai bisa jadi akan bosan dan kemungkinan dia kehilangan semangat hidup juga besar. Somewhat, I kinda think that Kunikida has this awareness.

[aki ूाीू · Rating 3 out of 5]

“No dejes que tus ideales te maten”

La única razón por la que leí está novela fue porque necesitaba una lectura corta para cerrar el mes de enero, realmente tenía planeado leer todos los volúmenes de corrido pero bueno, aquí estamos.

La historia va del examen de entrada de Osamu Dazai, narrado por Doppo Kunikida y muestra algunas cosas que salieron en la primer temporada del anime (yo aún no leo el manga porque me da flojera pero he visto la serie animada). Fue más divertido leer la novela porque entendí más los sucesos, en el anime está intercalado con otras cosas y realmente no le había tomado tanta importancia.

Además que se toma más importancia al arco del Rey Azur que en el anime, pude sentir más intriga por los sucesos y me divertí leyendolo.

Ahora, esto está narrado en primera persona, por Kunikida y esa voz que le da Kafka Asagiri es muy divertida, no creí que fuera a tomarle más cariño al personaje de lo que ya le tenía. Eso sí, desearía que su monólogo interno no fuera tan poco monólogo y más pequeñas observaciones, hubiera sido interesante ver un unrealible narrator con la clase de personaje que es Doppo.

Sus interacciones con Dazai son muy divertidas, es un personaje que me gusta mucho y también me gustó la voz que le dieron acá, además que mostraron también a Akutagawa y su relación con la Port Mafia. Simplemente exquisito.

Para terminar, siento que la novela es un medio muy fácil para adentrarse al mundo de Bungo Stray Dogs, claramente no cuenta los sucesos del anime o del manga pero si hqy parte de ello y es interesante interactuar con personajes secundarios de esta manera. Estoy ansiosa por leer los siguientes volúmenes.

[Nouran · Rating 3 out of 5]

This story has already been adapted in the anime but it's really nice to actually finally read it as a novel. Although Asagiri doesn't have the same knack for writing novels as he is for creating manga but I was excited nonetheless because as you can tell I love this manga and these characters.

This novel is 2 years prior to the events of the manga, it focuses on Kunikida and his ideals and his method of living and the detective agency fits into that equation. We get to meet the mysterious 'Dazai' that apperantly 'has no past' and had started to work for the agency, the director gave the responsibility to Kunikida to have Dazai take his entrance exam which was not simple because Dazai just kept pressing kunikida's buttons from start to finish.

It's generally fun to read, if you are interested in checking anything and everything related to your favorite manga. You just need to push through some of the dullness here and the fact that this is Asagiri's first and that it's translated in English which will always be the downside of reading manga in general because of how things can be lost in translation but you'll enjoy this.

[Aldana · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Si pregunta sobre Dazai, entonces ya tengo mi respuesta: ese hombre es lo peor. Él ignora mis órdenes, desaparece al azar durante el trabajo, esta obsesionado con el suicidio, coquetea con cualquier mujer que ve, rechaza hacer labores físicas y es francamente perezoso. Él es claramente no apto para la sociedad. No haría tres días en otro trabajo antes de que lo echaran.” Hago una pausa breve antes de pronunciar el veredicto que preparé. “.... sin embargo, como detective él tiene un excepcional talento. Sin duda alguna él podría ser nuestro mejor detective en nuestra agencia en los siguientes años... Él pasó la prueba.”

Leer a Dazai desde la perspectiva de Kunikida de verdad es de las mejores cosas que leí. A pesar de ya conocer la historia, el pov de Doppo, un idealista extremista, fue muy entrañable :( los amo mucho