ジャスミン

by Noboru Tsujihara

Intrigue, betrayal, family secrets, forbidden passions - this tale of adventure and suspense links the Tiananmen Massacre of 1989 and the Kobe earthquake of 1995 through the story of Akihiko Waki, who is living a quiet life as a think-tank director in Kobe, Japan, when he hears rumours that his father, presumed long dead, is in fact alive and in danger. Akihiko undertakes a dangerous journey to China, and in Shanghai learns that what he thought he knew about his father is in fact far from the truth. Here he meets the intriguingly secretive actress Li Xing, who as a pro-democracy activist is herself in danger, and as events gather pace Akihiko's search for his father also becomes a desperate battle to save her from the brutal authorities...This new translation of a Japanese novelist famed for his creation of suspense and his Hitchcock-style plotting is a rewarding and gripping read. This new translation of a Japanese novelist famed for his creation of suspense and his Hitchcock-style plotting is a rewarding and gripping read.

Genres: Japan, Japanese Literature

Tankobon Hardcover

First published October 1, 2012

About the author

Noboru Tsujihara (辻原 登 Tsujihara Noboru?, born 1945) is a prize-winning Japanese Novelist.

1990 Akutagawa Prize for Mura no namae (村の名前, A Village's Name)[1]
1999 Yomiuri Prize for Tobe kirin (Fly, Kirin!)
2000 Tanizaki Prize for Yudotei Enboku (遊動亭円木)
2005 Kawabata Yasunari Prize for Kareha no naka no aoi honoo (枯葉の中の青い炎, Blue Flames Among the Dry Leaves)

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Tenma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jasmine is an incredible novel and a worthwhile read. Although written by a Japanese with a Japanese main character, Aki, a significant portion of the novel takes place in China, and particularly in Shanghai. It is primarily a romantic novel with a political backdrop and themes of a spy thriller. It is also very unusual in that it deals with the Sino-Japan relationship. It was written by Noboru Tsujihara who seems very familiar with Chinese culture and history. There are many references in the novel to factual events in the Chinese history and a significant discussion of the Japanese aid to China post WWII.

The novel could be divided into two acts of almost equal lengths. The first act starts with Aki discovering that his father, who was thought to have died decades earlier, might be alive and imprisoned somewhere in China. This leads Aki to travel to Shanghai few months after the Tien'anmen incident. There he falls in love with a Chinese actress who happened to be involved with the underground pro-democracy movement. This part of the novel is fairly intense and although fictitious it eludes to serious topics relating to the Japanese aid package to China, the oppression by the Chinese authorities following the Tien'anmen incident, and how the average Chinese views the Japanese people in the aftermath of WWII.

The second act of the novel commences several years after Aki’s return to Japan. Although themes of politics and espionage remain, this act is primarily focused on the romantic relationship between the two main characters and how it has been used and abused for political gains. Although exciting and unpredictable, I found this part a bit slow which prompted me to give the novel three and half stars (since that is not an option I gave it 4 stars). Yet, I would readily give the novel five stars for its educational insight into Chinese political history around the time of the Tien'anmen incident.

I would recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys political or spy thrillers that have elements of romance. Those with interest in Chinese history will find this an absolute joy. The fact that it was written from a Japanese perspective rather than a western perspective gives it an added value.

P.S. The title of the novel “Jasmine” refers to Jasmine tea. There are numerous references to Jasmine tea in the novel where its consumption takes almost an iconic status to represent the intimate affection of the characters to China.

[Christian · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about it... It's well-written, the descriptions are evocative and make you feel like you're there. It goes back and forth between Japan and China and there were a couple of Chinese words here and there which kind of made me want to pick up my dusty Assimil book!

The plot is uneven: the mixture of spy, romance and quest to find the protagonist's father can be entertaining, but it sometimes felt a bit cheap, or unnecessarily complicated. I lost track of who's who a couple of times. It seems that every character knows all the other characters, which makes it even more complicated for us. Oh and the fact that they all change names!

I would have preferred a clearer focus (be it on the spy, romance or quest stuff...for instance I thought the Kobe earthquake got us completely side-tracked), but it was nonetheless enjoyable.

[S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tsujihara demonstrates that Japanese novelists are capable of the straight literary novel as opposed to the surrealist post-modern piece or purely crowd-pleasing thriller hit. Jasmine takes on the extremely tough issue of Sino-Japanese relationships against the backdrop of the 1989 Tiananmen affair and the '95 Kobe earthquake. Mo Hayder told us in tokyo that the country of Japan is composed almost entirely of gangsters covering up their complicity in the Nanjing Massacre opposed only by the young English women who risk life and fortune to bring out the truth. and was it Natsuo Kirino in Grotesque (Vintage International) who seems to think China is a country inhabited 80% by male prostitutes? (?) fortunately we have Tsujihara whose experiences of the Japanese community in Shanghai and the city itself are informed by his real life experience, so instead of stereotypes pandering to home audience appeal, we get nuance, local knowledge, and plenty of intertwining incidents, a diplomat and historian's eye view rather than paper-thin cut-out characters if the occasional didact's lesson steps in here or there.

oddly enough, I found this novel's tone similar to the 1992 bestseller Fatherland: A Novel. anyone is free to disagree, of course, but the idea of people searching for things in a totalitarian country whilst various underground or police forces battled has the same airy, but gray-toned mood feel as a fictional Germany in the 60s. hmmm. finally, the ending is really quite good. congrats to Tsujihara on his impressive 2004 work, and to the Cultural Affairs Ministry for subsidizing this English translation. 5/5

[Bridget · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jasmine is an epic tale set between two very different countries. Spanning generations, filled with intrigue, tragedy, and the intricate delicacy of the art of drinking tea.

The story

Aki is a successful middle aged Japanese business man who is travelling through his life in an average way. His wife died some years ago, and his only family are his younger half sister and his mother, who has a degenerative illness. Or so he thinks. One of the missing links in his past is that of his father, a mystery to both him and his mother, who disappeared to China when Aki was small. Presumed dead. But in Aki's adulthood he does a bit of digging, and finds out from an old friend of his fathers in China that the circumstances around his disappearance were far from clear, and he may in fact still be alive.

Aki travels to China to trace his father. Having discovered his father was a well known comedic actor with a Chinese name, and a serious actor with a Japanese name, he goes to visit his old friend the movie director, who is currently making a movie about the life of his father as a double agent for Japan. But it turns out, art imitates life through the generations. Aki becomes inexplicably entangled with the woman playing the love interest of his father, the actress Li Xing. At first, she's just a beautiful actress. But it turns out not only does she have family ties to one of the families he knows in his hometown of Kobe, but she has a fugitive boyfriend who is the most wanted list after Tiananmen Square. In the name of political intrigue and infatuation, Aki sets out to help Xingxing any way he can. But he has caught the notice of the Chinese secret police.

Aki has to make a choice about his life, and not forget about the reason he started his journey in the first place. But life always throws up the unexpected, and what happens now, what happened before, and what happened to his family before him, shape the person he is becoming.

The style

Translated by Juilet W Carpenter, Jasmine is a heavy read. Not that this is, I think, the fault of the translation or the original work, but mainly because of my ignorance about contemporary Chinese Japanese relations. Sure, I know what happened in world war two. I remember Tiananmen Square, I was standing in the three years after it happened while holidaying in China. I've read a bit about China and how their governance works. But I really, really struggled to get my head around the cultural implications of what was happening in Jasmine at the beginning. Not that there isn't some assistance, of course. There are carefully constructed chapters and paragraphs which attempt to explain some of the history between the two nations, and various bits about China's changing political climate, but the whole thing is pretty far out of my comfort zone. I had no idea how little I knew about the whole business until I read this story, and unlike some fictions, this book does require a bit of prior knowledge to reap the full benefits of the storyline.

This aside, the story is good. Solid. It moves, it's set in a lot of different spaces. All the character development is sound. Aki, the director, and Xingxing are all fantastic, well rounded. The story spans time-frames and generations, and follows through years even though it may have been easier from a plot point of view to rap it up more neatly. This makes the story seem more like real life; messy and complicated where things happen that aren't necessarily neat and don't necessarily make sense. Just when you think, as a reader, everything is going to be okay or resolved, something else happens. It's relentless, with no down spots.

Finally, the writing itself is tactile and powerful. I spent the whole reading experience wishing the green tea I was drinking was better, because the way they made tea in the story, the smell and the experience and the visual nature of it, made me jealous. I could smell the wet streets, see the big cities. Like I said, a really good book, and only my own lack of basic knowledge impacted negatively on my reading experience.

Who is this book for?

I would strongly recommend a basic knowledge of Sino-Japanese relations over the last, say, fifty years, including the cultural revolution in China, and how the Japanese responded as a nation. You know, the stuff I didn't know. I feel like you could certainly get a lot more out of the plot. Also, although Jasmine has a contemporary setting, it would be appropriate for someone who enjoys historical fiction. It's not a light read, or a small read, but it's interesting and well written. But not for the faint hearted.

If you like this book, you would also like...

This isn't like any of the previous Japanese and Chinese literature I've previously read, but Ha Jin writes about contemporary Chinese life (in the country, not the cities) and he is amazing. So for the lack of knowledge about anything else to recommend I'm going with him. Also, as I said above, epic historical fiction.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

This may as well have been called "Nobody is faithful to their marriage partner" or to anyone else for that matter, the intrigue runs high in this one. Nevertheless, a great read especially if you're interested in learning more about how the people of China have dealt with their crazy government over the years, or if you're just looking for good high-stakes suspense novel. It was definitely a little cheesy in some places, but I enjoyed it, especially the treatment of the father-son relationship. I'm looking forward to reading more by Tsujihara.