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Winds from Afar
Sixteen short stories with underlying nature themes.
164 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1972
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About the author
Kenji Miyazawa
992 books344 followersHis name is written as 宮沢賢治 in Japanese, and translated as 宮澤賢治 in Traditional Chinese.
Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) was born in Iwate, one of the northernmost prefectures in Japan. In high school, he studied Zen Buddhism and developed a lifelong devotion to the Lotus Sutra, a major influence on his writing. After graduating from an agricultural college, he moved to Tokyo to begin his writing career but had to return home to care for a sick sister. He remained in his home in Iwate for the rest of his life. One of his best-known works is the novel Night on the Galactic Railroad, which was adapted into anime in the late twentieth century, as were many of his short stories. Much of his poetry is still popular in Japan today.
Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) was born in Iwate, one of the northernmost prefectures in Japan. In high school, he studied Zen Buddhism and developed a lifelong devotion to the Lotus Sutra, a major influence on his writing. After graduating from an agricultural college, he moved to Tokyo to begin his writing career but had to return home to care for a sick sister. He remained in his home in Iwate for the rest of his life. One of his best-known works is the novel Night on the Galactic Railroad, which was adapted into anime in the late twentieth century, as were many of his short stories. Much of his poetry is still popular in Japan today.
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February 11, 2017
Another book from Miyazaki's favorites list*, this book has some of the most magical, lyrical, and unique children's stories I've read. No wonder he's a legend in Japan! "Gauche the Cellist" is a world-class piece of fiction, strange and stirring as any short stories I've encountered so far. No wonder Isao Takahata (the other Ghibli mastermind) made a film out of it, a few years before Ghibli began.
Miyazawa's stories are unpredictable and near-uniformly beautiful. Almost all of them deal with nature in some way, and he utilizes a slew of different "species" as his characters: Generals and hunters, dahlias and lilies, a sympathetic rat trap and an ungrateful rat, golden acorns wearing red trousers, a fox and a bashful birch tree, a dustpan, a wildcat, a little boy. He illustrates how snowstorms are created by an Old Snow Woman, a Snow Boy, and a handful of Snow Wolves. He works wonders almost without even trying, it seems. Living most of his life in the snowy, northern part of Japan, he apparently wrote stories and poetry to while away the long winters. Miyazawa is tangible proof that a lifetime of nature and snow can truly infiltrate a person's soul and being. Thankfully Miyazawa was able to articulate these impressions in such a beautiful and inspiring way, both to children and adults.
*Miyazaki included one story, "The Restaurant of Many Orders", on his list. That story is included here, and if you ask me, it's not any better or worse than many of the other stories in this collection. Perhaps there was an edition in Japanese with wonderful illustrations; this book has no illustrations done for the book, although it does include various brush paintings depicting animals and nature scenes.
Another note: this book includes all of the stories from another English collection entitled Winds and Wildcat Places, but it does not include any of Rokuro Taniuchi's brilliant illustrations that were featured in that book (only a few of which I've seen, reproduced as the art of a fantastic Laura Nyro album called Seasons of Light). Shame, really, though this is still a beautifully printed book (made in Japan).
LOL:
The spider went back behind the branch, and his six eyes gleamed bright as he sat motionless, watching the web.
"Where would this be, now?" inquired a blind mayfly who came along, walking with the aid of a stick.
"This is an inn, sir," said the spider, blinking all his six eyes separately.
The mayfly seated himself in the web with an air of weariness. The spider ran out.
"Here's some tea for you," he said, and without warning sank his teeth into the mayfly's body.
The mayfly raised his hand with which he had been going to take the tea and threshed about helplessly, at the same time beginning to recite in a piteous voice [his death poem].
Miyazawa's stories are unpredictable and near-uniformly beautiful. Almost all of them deal with nature in some way, and he utilizes a slew of different "species" as his characters: Generals and hunters, dahlias and lilies, a sympathetic rat trap and an ungrateful rat, golden acorns wearing red trousers, a fox and a bashful birch tree, a dustpan, a wildcat, a little boy. He illustrates how snowstorms are created by an Old Snow Woman, a Snow Boy, and a handful of Snow Wolves. He works wonders almost without even trying, it seems. Living most of his life in the snowy, northern part of Japan, he apparently wrote stories and poetry to while away the long winters. Miyazawa is tangible proof that a lifetime of nature and snow can truly infiltrate a person's soul and being. Thankfully Miyazawa was able to articulate these impressions in such a beautiful and inspiring way, both to children and adults.
*Miyazaki included one story, "The Restaurant of Many Orders", on his list. That story is included here, and if you ask me, it's not any better or worse than many of the other stories in this collection. Perhaps there was an edition in Japanese with wonderful illustrations; this book has no illustrations done for the book, although it does include various brush paintings depicting animals and nature scenes.
Another note: this book includes all of the stories from another English collection entitled Winds and Wildcat Places, but it does not include any of Rokuro Taniuchi's brilliant illustrations that were featured in that book (only a few of which I've seen, reproduced as the art of a fantastic Laura Nyro album called Seasons of Light). Shame, really, though this is still a beautifully printed book (made in Japan).
LOL:
The spider went back behind the branch, and his six eyes gleamed bright as he sat motionless, watching the web.
"Where would this be, now?" inquired a blind mayfly who came along, walking with the aid of a stick.
"This is an inn, sir," said the spider, blinking all his six eyes separately.
The mayfly seated himself in the web with an air of weariness. The spider ran out.
"Here's some tea for you," he said, and without warning sank his teeth into the mayfly's body.
The mayfly raised his hand with which he had been going to take the tea and threshed about helplessly, at the same time beginning to recite in a piteous voice [his death poem].
Displaying 1 of 1 review