This anthology gathers translations of 16 stories written between 1895 and 2008 by 16 female Japanese authors, including four from before 1934 and six from after 1987. Written by authors from
various classes, regions, and ethnicities, the stories touch on themes such as ethnicity, motherhood, marriage, and conflict between home and work, as well as the legacy of the atomic bomb and
tensions between mainland Japanese and Okinawans. Some of the authors experiment with modern written or spoken styles at a time when archaic styles were still common; others use dialect or
ethnic language. Each story includes notes explaining historical and cultural references for Western readers. A substantial introduction surveys periods in Japanese literature and translation
and offers insight into each writer’s life and career. Separate one-page author bios are also included. The anthology complements the publisher’s previous collection, Japanese Women Writers:
Twentieth Century Short Fiction (1991), which is an enlarged edition of Stories by Contemporary Japanese Women Writers (1982). Selden has edited other anthologies of Japanese fiction. Mizuta is
professor and chancellor of Josai University. Annotation ©2011 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
