Record of a Night Too Brief (Japanese Novellas)

The Akutagawa Prize-winning stories from the author of Strange Weather in Tokyo

In these three haunting and lyrical stories, three young women experience unsettling loss and romance.

In a dreamlike adventure, one woman travels through an apparently unending night with a porcelain girlfriend, mist-monsters and villainous moneys; a sister mourns her invisible brother whom only she can still see, while the rest of her family welcome his would-be wife into their home; and an accident with a snake leads a shop girl to discover the snake-families everyone else seems to be concealing.

Sensual, yearning, and filled with the tricks of memory and grief, Record of a Night Too Brief is an atmospheric trio of unforgettable tales.



'Slippery and unfamiliar places where logic is internal and surreal... gives the reader the strange sense of being led through a collection of dreams' -- Asymptote

'A truly fantastical story... rewards with rich imagery that will challenge anyone's powers of imagination' -- The Japan Society

'At once funny and humane, the author's estranging fiction is bewitching. If Japan were in need of a Lewis Carroll, look no further' -- South China Morning Post

'Evocative... Astonishing, strange, and wonderful' --Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

'Baffling, unsettling and haunting, these stories have a dreamlike atmosphere' -- The Lady

'Beautifully translated... surreal, twisted and allegorical - pushing the reader onto unsafe, uncomfortable ground and never granting us an explanation' --Gaijinpot

'Fans of Haruki Murakami and Banana Yoshimoto will enjoy immersing themselves in Kawakami's magical worlds' -- Booklist

'Fascinating... the stories in this collection spark and inspire the imagination' --Contemporary Japanese Literature