{"title":"Osamu Dazai","description":null,"products":[{"product_id":"the-flowers-of-buffoonery-paperback-dazai-osamu-and-bett-sam-paperback","title":"The Flowers of Buffoonery -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e \u003cem\u003eThe Flowers of Buffoonery\u003c\/em\u003e opens in a seaside sanitarium where Yozo Oba--the narrator of \u003cem\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/em\u003e at a younger age--is being kept after a failed suicide attempt. While he is convalescing, his friends and family visit him, and other patients and nurses drift in and out of his room. Against this dispiriting backdrop, everyone tries to maintain a lighthearted, even clownish atmosphere: playing cards, smoking cigarettes, vying for attention, cracking jokes, and trying to make each other laugh.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eWhile \u003cem\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/em\u003e delves into the darkest corners of human consciousness, \u003cem\u003eThe Flowers of Buffoonery\u003c\/em\u003e pokes fun at these same emotions: the follies and hardships of youth, of love, and of self-hatred and depression. A glimpse into the lives of a group of outsiders in prewar Japan, \u003cem\u003eThe Flowers of Buffoonery\u003c\/em\u003e is a darkly humorous and fresh addition to Osamu Dazai's masterful and intoxicating oeuvre.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Directions Publishing Corporation\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 03\/07\/2023\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 80\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.24lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.97h x 5.28w x 0.26d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780811234542\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/05\/2022","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44096452821220,"sku":"9780811234542","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9780811234542.jpg?v=1777242195"},{"product_id":"blue-bamboo-tales-by-dazai-osamu-osamu-dazai-paperback","title":"Blue Bamboo: Tales by Dazai Osamu -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"A glimpse into the humorous, sardonic world of Dazai Osamu, presenting a new and very different look at a one of the recognized masters of Japanese, and indeed global, literature. These works from the middle years of his brief career show a skilled hand, with angst muted and his penchant for subtle comedy deftly displayed. Scholars and fans often divide the career of Dazai Osamu (1909-1948) into three periods: early, middle, and late. The early and late periods tend to get all the attention, but in fact Dazai was at his very best in the middle period, which corresponds roughly to the years of the Pacific War. All the stories in this collection, with the exception of the early \"Romanesque,\" were written during that time.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Kurodahan Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 12\/25\/2012\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 218\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.53lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.00h x 5.00w x 0.50d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9784902075588\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44310583705828,"sku":"9784902075588","price":14.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9784902075588.jpg?v=1719552601"},{"product_id":"the-setting-sun-osamu-dazai-paperback","title":"The Setting Sun -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"Set in the early postwar years, it probes the destructive effects of war and the transition from a feudal Japan to an industrial society. Ozamu Dazai died, a suicide, in 1948. But the influence of his book has made people of the setting sun a permanent part of the Japanese language, and his heroine, Kazuko, a young aristocrat who deliberately abandons her class, a symbol of the anomie which pervades so much of the modern world.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Directions Publishing Corporation\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 01\/17\/1968\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 174\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.44lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.98h x 5.20w x 0.49d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780811200325","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45557134852324,"sku":"9780811200325","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9780811200325.jpg?v=1777678009"},{"product_id":"the-real-osamu-dazai-a-life-in-twenty-stories-osamu-dazai-paperback","title":"The Real Osamu Dazai: A Life in Twenty Stories -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"\u003cb\u003e\"Dazai's brand of egoistic pessimism dovetails organically with the emo chic of this cultural moment and with the inner lives of teenagers of all eras.\" --Andrew Martin, \u003ci\u003eThe New York Times\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eBest-known for his novels \u003ci\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Setting Sun\u003c\/i\u003e, Dazai was also an acclaimed writer of short stories, experimenting with a wide variety of styles and bringing to each work a sophisticated sense of humor, a broad empathy for the human condition and a tremendous literary talent. The twenty stories in this collection include: \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cul\u003e\n\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eMemories\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e -- An autobiographical tale in which Dazai relates episodes from his own childhood and adolescence, showing his relationship with his family and his tendency towards introspection and self-dramatization\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eOn the Question of Apparel\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e -- A comic tour-de-force in which Dazai examines the hold that fashion has over him and how it relates to his own pathetic self-image\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eA Poor Man's Got His Pride\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e -- A retelling of a story by 18th-century master of burlesque fiction Ihara Saikaku, about a fallen samurai who lives in poverty\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cli\u003e\n\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eThe Sound of Hammering\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e -- A love story set against the backdrop of the rebuilding of Tokyo after the city was totally destroyed during World War Two\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003cbr\u003e\u003cli\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eAnd sixteen other stories!\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/li\u003e\n\u003c\/ul\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBy turns hilarious, ironic, introspective, mystical and sarcastic, these stories present a fully rounded portrait of a talented writer who tried several times to take his own life and ultimately succeeded. An introduction by translator James O'Brien gives the background to Dazai's life and shows how the stories in this book, whether autobiographical or fictional, contribute to an understanding of one of Japan's greatest writers. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003e**Recommended for readers 16 years \u0026amp; up. Not intended for high school classroom use due to adult content.**\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Tuttle Publishing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/24\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 320\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9784805318348\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eOsamu Dazai\u003c\/b\u003e (1909-1948) was the pen name of Shuji Tsushima, the tenth of eleven children born to a wealthy landowner and politician in the far north of Japan. Dazai studied French literature at the University of Tokyo, but never received a degree. He first attracted attention in 1933 when magazines began to publish his work. Between 1930 and 1937, he made three suicide attempts, a subject he deals with in many of his short stories. Despite his troubled life and rebellious spirit, Dazai wrote in a simple and colloquial style, conveying his personal torments through literature. Dazai's life ended early in a double suicide with a married lover. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cb\u003eJames O'Brien\u003c\/b\u003e is Professor Emeritus at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and has published several translations of modern Japanese fiction and poetry. His most notable work is the short story collection \u003ci\u003eCrackling Mountain and Other Stories\u003c\/i\u003e by Osamu Dazai. He has published modern translations of poetry by Hagiwara Sakutaro, Kitahara Hakushu, Miyoshi Tatsuji, Takamura Kotaro, and Murano Shiro, and modern tanka by Yosano Akiko.","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45723381563620,"sku":"9784805318348","price":11.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9784805318348.jpg?v=1729119087"},{"product_id":"no-longer-human-osamu-dazai-hardcover","title":"No Longer Human -- Osamu Dazai, Hardcover","description":"\u003cem\u003eMine has been a life of much shame. I can't even guess myself what it must be to live the life of a human being.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cp\u003ePortraying himself as a failure, the protagonist of Osamu Dazai's \u003cem\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/em\u003e narrates a seemingly normal life even while he feels himself incapable of understanding human beings. His attempts to reconcile himself to the world around him begin in early childhood, continue through high school, where he becomes a \"clown\" to mask his alienation, and eventually lead to a failed suicide attempt as an adult. Without sentimentality, he records the casual cruelties of life and its fleeting moments of human connection and tenderness. Still one of the ten bestselling books in Japan, \u003cem\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/em\u003e is an important and unforgettable modern classic: \"The struggle of the individual to fit into a normalizing society remains just as relevant today as it was at the time of writing.\" (\u003cem\u003eThe Japan Times\u003c\/em\u003e)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Directions Publishing Corporation\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 11\/15\/2022\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 192\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.75lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.27h x 5.43w x 0.79d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780811232432","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45779797508324,"sku":"9780811232432","price":16.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9780811232432.jpg?v=1777376108"},{"product_id":"self-portraits-stories-osamu-dazai-paperback-1","title":"Self-Portraits: Stories -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"\u003cp\u003e\"Art dies the moment it acquires authority.\" So said Japan's quintessential rebel writer Osamu Dazai, who, disgusted with the hypocrisy of every kind of establishment, from the nation's obsolete aristocracy to its posturing, warmongering generals, went his own way, even when that meant his death--and the death of others. Faced with pressure to conform, he declared his individuality to the world--in all its self-involved, self-conscious, and self-hating glory. \"Art,\" he wrote, \"is 'I.'\"\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn these short stories, collected and translated by Ralph McCarthy, we can see just how closely Dazai's life mirrored his art, and vice versa, as the writer\/narrator falls from grace, rises to fame, and falls again. Addiction, debt, shame, and despair dogged Dazai until his self-inflicted death, and yet despite all the lies and deception he resorted to in life, there is an almost fanatical honesty to his writing. And that has made him a hero to generations of readers who see laid bare, in his works, the painful, impossible contradictions inherent in the universal commandment of social life--\u003cem\u003efit in and do as you are told\u003c\/em\u003e--as well as the possibility, however desperate, of defiance.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eLong out of print, these stories will be a revelation to the legions of new fans of \u003cem\u003eNo Longer Human\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Setting Sun\u003c\/em\u003e, and \u003cem\u003eThe Flowers of Buffoonery\u003c\/em\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e New Directions Publishing Corporation\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 02\/06\/2024\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 256\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.60lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.98h x 5.30w x 0.42d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780811232265\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 12\/04\/2023\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 01\/01\/2024","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":45780277985508,"sku":"9780811232265","price":10.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9780811232265.jpg?v=1778241781"},{"product_id":"retrograde-osamu-dazai-paperback","title":"Retrograde -- Osamu Dazai, Paperback","description":"Three stories of the ruined and the lost: Osamu Dazai at his most tormented. This collection unearths the Japanese literary legend's most controversial and exhilarating early-career writing with first-time and original translations. \"Retrograde\" traces the life of an anguished youth in reverse; \"Das Gemeine\" features an aspiring literato with a dark past who hitches his wagon to an eccentric violinist; \"Blossom-Leaves and the Spirit Whistle\" tells of an old woman recalling the final breaths of her beautiful, sickly sister. Experience the twisted agony of the prose that propelled Dazai to the top of the literary world.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Osamu Dazai\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e One Peace Books\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 09\/16\/2025\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 128\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eBinding Type:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.37lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 7.00h x 5.00w x 1.00d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781642735130","brand":"Osamu Dazai","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46750365876452,"sku":"9781642735130","price":8.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0611\/9587\/8628\/files\/9781642735130.jpg?v=1777093710"}],"url":"https:\/\/bookandmortar.com\/collections\/osamu-dazai.oembed","provider":"BookandMortar","version":"1.0","type":"link"}