Things Remembered and Things Forgotten
- Downloads：4472
- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-08-23 09:50:58
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Kyōko Nakajima
- ISBN：1908745967
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
- Download
Summary
'If we want to understand what has been lost to time， there is no way other than through the exercise of imagination 。。。 imagination applied with delicate rather than broad strokes'。 So wrote the award winning Japanese author Kyoko Nakajima of her story， Things Remembered and Things Forgotten， a piece that illuminates， as if by throwing a switch， the layers of wartime devastation that lie just below the surface of Tokyo's insistently modern culture。
The ten acclaimed stories in this collection are pervaded by an air of Japanese ghostliness。 In beautifully crafted and deceptively light prose， Nakajima portrays men and women beset by cultural amnesia and unaware of how haunted they are - by fragmented memories of war and occupation， by fading traditions， by buildings lost to firestorms and bulldozers， by the spirits of their recent past。
The ten acclaimed stories in this collection are pervaded by an air of Japanese ghostliness。 In beautifully crafted and deceptively light prose， Nakajima portrays men and women beset by cultural amnesia and unaware of how haunted they are - by fragmented memories of war and occupation， by fading traditions， by buildings lost to firestorms and bulldozers， by the spirits of their recent past。
Reviews
Rebecca
，
A collection of nostalgia with sad forebodings and surprising twists。 As with her novel The Little House， Nakajima's take on history seems to be it is written by those whose memories survived （death， time， war， etc。）。My take on it here: https://www。instagram。com/p/CSpD9OkjQ90/ A collection of nostalgia with sad forebodings and surprising twists。 As with her novel The Little House， Nakajima's take on history seems to be it is written by those whose memories survived （death， time， war， etc。）。My take on it here: https://www。instagram。com/p/CSpD9OkjQ90/ 。。。more
Niral
，
The premise of the collection is intriguing， it gives a snapshot of Japanese traditions and customs for the passing of a person。 The ten stories hint at connections between the people and the spirits and whilst interesting it does become repetitive as it is encountered in nearly every story。 I wasn't moved by any of the stories， especially towards the last half of the book where the themes were similar between stories。 Reiterating my first point， it's a good snapshot of Japanese customs and trad The premise of the collection is intriguing， it gives a snapshot of Japanese traditions and customs for the passing of a person。 The ten stories hint at connections between the people and the spirits and whilst interesting it does become repetitive as it is encountered in nearly every story。 I wasn't moved by any of the stories， especially towards the last half of the book where the themes were similar between stories。 Reiterating my first point， it's a good snapshot of Japanese customs and traditions for remembering the dead and serves as an educator for those who are interested 。。。more
Ellie Kakoulli
，
Things remembered and Things forgotten” by Kyoko Nakajima is a collection of 10 short， simple， yet deeply completive and hauntingly written stories， all tied to themes of loss -whether that a person， place， memory or culture。While most are drawn from real life scenarios， there is a brush with the supernatural and surreal in parts -especially those in the latter half， which for me， didn’t work quite as well as some of the earlier stories。 An example of which， and one that was probably my favourit Things remembered and Things forgotten” by Kyoko Nakajima is a collection of 10 short， simple， yet deeply completive and hauntingly written stories， all tied to themes of loss -whether that a person， place， memory or culture。While most are drawn from real life scenarios， there is a brush with the supernatural and surreal in parts -especially those in the latter half， which for me， didn’t work quite as well as some of the earlier stories。 An example of which， and one that was probably my favourite and most noteworthy of the lot， was “When my Wife Was a Shiitake”。 Which was a heartwarming tale， all about a retired and recently widowed old man， who learns -through cooking， how to survive his grief and honour and keep alive his wife’s previous passions in life。This is truly a delightful morsel of a book， which you can easily dip in and out of at your leisure。 3 stars 。。。more
Areeb Ahmad （Bankrupt_Bookworm）
，
"Surveying the little scene around her， it occurred to Satsuki that the belief that the ancestral spirits returned at Obon wasn't something mystical or paranormal， nor was it a metaphor for human existence it was an expression of how the dead were resurrected through the gestures and actions of the living in the performance of traditional customs and practices。" Nakajima's stories are quiet， not resorting to flashy tactics to make their mark， employing rich tiny details and subdued flights of fan "Surveying the little scene around her， it occurred to Satsuki that the belief that the ancestral spirits returned at Obon wasn't something mystical or paranormal， nor was it a metaphor for human existence it was an expression of how the dead were resurrected through the gestures and actions of the living in the performance of traditional customs and practices。" Nakajima's stories are quiet， not resorting to flashy tactics to make their mark， employing rich tiny details and subdued flights of fancy in order to pull contemporary Japan on the page。 The past sits very close to the present， the dead with the living， the forgotten & the remembered。 Ghosts appear frequently， out of time and place in limbo yet the sense they generate isn't one of horror or terror but this deeply familiar feeling of great loss， the relentless passage of time and the marks it has left on the country and its inhabitants。 A pervading nostalgia， a constant echo of the ephemeral。The Second World War's dark shadow looms large over the narrativescape of her stories， perceptible and unbroken。 Its sustained trauma， personal and collective， manifests itself in different forms in our rapidly changing new world where no matter how strongly we hold on to the old days， they slip & slide out of our grasp。 The prose is simple but engaging and the stories usually progress linearly， working with cuts to flashbacks and reminisces that fill in the gaps。 They can be clunky， basic， easily figured out， but reading pleasure lies in the way they are told & narrated， full of unsettlement。My favourites were "The Last Obon"， about one family saying farewell to an ancestral home which has been told， coming together for a final memorial。 "Kirara's Paper Plane"， about the ghost of a homeless boy stuck in a death loop who has fun with the daughter of a sex worker who's been left on her own。 "Childhood Friends" follows a trans woman and her friend getting together in their late forties when he finally returns to Tokyo。 In "Global Positioning System" an old man is set up with a trackable phone to make him locatable as he has dementia。 Overall， it i a capable collection looking at memory & its recollection。 Ian McCullough MacDonald and Ginny Tapley Takemori have translated five stories each。（I received a finished copy from the publisher in exchange for an honest review。） 。。。more
John
，
4。5 stars。 Very high quality short story collection。
Adam Cook
，
8 GREAT stories， 1 decent story and 1 not-very-good story （The Last Obon）
Momina Kamran
，
4 1/2
Melos Han-Tani
，
Collection of short stories - very easygoing， wholesome style。 Didn't hold my interest enough to finish all of them， but I think in particular it's nice how many old-age characters are in this。 Some of the short stories have nice twists near the end - surreal things like a person perhaps having been an animal， entire buildings disappearing， etc。 I like the story about the life cycle of a sewing machine the most， from pre-war to present day。 Collection of short stories - very easygoing， wholesome style。 Didn't hold my interest enough to finish all of them， but I think in particular it's nice how many old-age characters are in this。 Some of the short stories have nice twists near the end - surreal things like a person perhaps having been an animal， entire buildings disappearing， etc。 I like the story about the life cycle of a sewing machine the most， from pre-war to present day。 。。。more
F͙R͙A͙N͙🌛☆
，
This gem full of contemporary Japanese short stories was so joyful and heartfelt to read！ From memories of a wife who loved cook and was a shiitake to the life story of a seeing machine， Kyoko Nakajima has the natural way of drawing you in to the story she is telling。Not only is the cover stunning， you’ll also enjoy reading about the themes of traditional and modern with past and present blending in — memories and ghosts come alive in these stories！
Richard Swan
，
‘All stories are about loss and redemption。’ （I do wish I could remember who said that。） The key story in this collection is ‘When My Wife Was a Shiitake’， about a man whose wife dies and who finds redemption through cooking。 It exemplifies the principle perfectly。There are ten stories here， inevitably of variable worth， but the best are memorable and resonant， and all deal with the relationship between the past and the present， the dead and the living。 Recommended。
William
，
Most of these stories are very reflective。 Quite a few have unsettling elements， which I was never expecting when those turns occurred。Some stories were weaker and some of the word choices by the translator were weird。 Most of the stories were good though and overall I enjoyed this book。
menonjayshreegmail。com
，
Barring for one or two stories， this collection felt like a warm chamomile tea with honey on a sun-kissed winter day。 The sewing machine story was particularly one that will not be forgotten。
Daniel
，
3 is an unfair score in some ways as some short stories were a 5 easy and others were less， on average a 3 is where I landed。 Some of these stories are beautiful and a joy to read， teaching the reader so much about Japanese culture。 Others dragged or felt unfinished to me， overall a good read that I would recommend though。
Books on Asia
，
Review by Tina deBellegardeKyoko Nakajima tackles the past and present， the mundane and the ethereal in her delightful collection of short stories Things Remembered and Things Forgotten， translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori and Ian McCullough MacDonald。 The glue that holds these stories together is memory: how the characters remember， wish to remember， or even remember events they never experienced。This collection includes love stories， narratives of lost memories， and several tales where time-sl Review by Tina deBellegardeKyoko Nakajima tackles the past and present， the mundane and the ethereal in her delightful collection of short stories Things Remembered and Things Forgotten， translated by Ginny Tapley Takemori and Ian McCullough MacDonald。 The glue that holds these stories together is memory: how the characters remember， wish to remember， or even remember events they never experienced。This collection includes love stories， narratives of lost memories， and several tales where time-slips and parallel worlds work their magic。 Along with other flights of fancy， ghosts make appearances or are implied in almost all the stories。 Subtle， charming， they are not always even clearly ghosts， but rather a wish or desire。 The apparitions serve a purpose; they are there to blur the past and present， and as they do， they blur reality as well。 As readers we begin to understand that perhaps some of the ghosts aren’t there at all， that the character’s desire for the encounter is enough for it to transpire。Among my favorites， in “Kirara’s Paper Plane” （transl。 MacDonald） a ghost remembers when he was alive， and in “The Life of a Sewing Machine” （transl。 Takemori） a thrift shop customer experiences nostalgia for times and places she’s never seen， setting the stage for the telling of the “life” of a dilapidated old sewing machine。 Through the history of the appliance we learn the evolving struggles of the humans in its orbit。 These two stories are particularly rich in cultural and historical details of wartime Japan。 They demonstrate how the war， post-war and then modernity changed the world these characters inhabited and how that， in turn， shaped them。 The translators are very successful in conveying the nuances of the culture of Japan while not losing the intimacy or immediacy of the story。“When My Wife Was a Shiitake” （transl。 Takemori） is the most fanciful in the collection。 A grieving widower is introduced to an unknown side of his wife when he discovers her cooking journal。 In it she shares not only recipes but her reflections on life。 One of her musings is about remembering when she was a shiitake; she lingers in this memory with all her senses。 He learns to cook， fashions a new memory of his wife， and soon he too learns to remember when he was a shiitake。The final and capstone story is the longest and my personal favorite。 In “The Last Obon，” （transl。 MacDonald） all the elements of the prior stories converge。 Here memories lost and found blur， and the corporeal and the ethereal are indistinguishable。 It is also the story where the main character is most self-aware。 As Satsuki prepares the festival to honor her ancestors， the last Obon in her ancestral home before it is sold， her faulty memory causes her to stumble through the process。 Consequently， each event， conversation， and image evokes a faint memory， reminds her of her childhood， and dredges up long forgotten memories。 “…an image flitted through her mind of her and her two sisters running around the garden with some children whose names she had long since forgotten。 Who was the girl in a red pinafore she was chasing？ Satsuki sensed that her real childhood had been gradually overwritten with scenes from movies and TV shows set in an imagined， nostalgic past， and the unexpected shallowness of her memories appalled her。” （p。 233）Finally， Satsuki comes to the realization that her intentional engagement with her ancestors allows the past to take its rightful place。 “Obon wasn’t something mystical or paranormal， nor was it a metaphor for human existence – it was an expression of how the dead were resurrected through the gestures and actions of the living in the performance of traditional customs and practices。” （p。 256）Each story in Things Remembered and Things Forgotten shimmers with nostalgia and delight， yet at the same time reminds us how ineffective our memory is。 The inaccuracy of our recollections and our desire to remember things a certain way blur our reality and intrude on our ability to see the present clearly。 These stories assure us that we are not alone in these shortcomings。 This collection leaves the characters and reader with the unsettling yet familiar feeling of trying to remember something just beyond reach。For more on Japanese short stories， see the BOA Issue 8: The Art of the Short Story where you’ll also find a podcast episode with Tina deBellegarde about what makes a good short story and why some short-story writers are so appealing。Read the full review at Books on Asia 。。。more
Emmi
，
Loved it！ Ten beautiful， haunting， sweet， tragic ghost stories mixing the past and present in Tokyo。 Excellent collection of short stories。
Lauren
，
3。5 starsThis book started off incredibly strong - I loved the first three stories in this collection which were all 5 star reads for me， the fourth story was （imho） very slow and I really didn’t enjoy it， the fifth story was another strong entry but the last five stories all seemed to be conveying similar things and just merged into underwhelming and repetitive reads which is a great shame as I was certain this was going to be a new favourite。 These stories are subtle and discuss familial loss 3。5 starsThis book started off incredibly strong - I loved the first three stories in this collection which were all 5 star reads for me， the fourth story was （imho） very slow and I really didn’t enjoy it， the fifth story was another strong entry but the last five stories all seemed to be conveying similar things and just merged into underwhelming and repetitive reads which is a great shame as I was certain this was going to be a new favourite。 These stories are subtle and discuss familial loss twinned with ghostly goings-on。 Japan has an incredibly rich culture and it was wonderful to see the various rituals they undertake at certain festivals to remember their ancestors but ultimately I found that a lot of these stories were pretty samey and few really stood out or packed an emotional punch。 A nice read for those who enjoy subtle Japanese literature。 。。。more
Alison Fincher
，
When grieving is over， when no one pauses to remember， things will be forgotten forever。Things Remembered and Things Forgotten is a collection about memory， but it is also a collection about grief。 Gathered from author Kyoko Nakajima’s published work， the stories assembled here speak about loss—of a loved one， of a place， of a culture—and what comes next。。。Nakajima has commented that she is fascinated by Japan’s post-war period: “Even seventy years after the end of the war， I feel we still have When grieving is over， when no one pauses to remember， things will be forgotten forever。Things Remembered and Things Forgotten is a collection about memory， but it is also a collection about grief。 Gathered from author Kyoko Nakajima’s published work， the stories assembled here speak about loss—of a loved one， of a place， of a culture—and what comes next。。。Nakajima has commented that she is fascinated by Japan’s post-war period: “Even seventy years after the end of the war， I feel we still have not completely come to terms with what happened。” Woven throughout the stories in Things Remembered and Things Forgotten is an indictment of Japanese society for collective amnesia about their past， particularly the destruction and painful aftermath of World War II。 Characters in her stories remember buildings demolished to stop fires from spreading during the American firebombing。 Ghosts of war orphans haunt Ueno Station。 One character’s mother once unknowingly interviewed at a brothel set up to satisfy the sexual desires of American GIs。 “Are you prepared to serve as a sexual breakwater to protect and nurture the purity of our race for the next hundred years？” the interviewer asks her， using the actual language of the “Recreation and Amusement Association” established by historical Japanese authorities。Read the full review at Asian Review of Books 。。。more
Ecem Yücel
，
Beautiful short stories mostly about ghosts and families。 I couldn't go on reading them back to back quickly as usual since each story made me stop for a while and think about them。 My favorite story among them was "Kirara's Paper Plane"。 I'll probably think about that one for a long time。 Beautiful short stories mostly about ghosts and families。 I couldn't go on reading them back to back quickly as usual since each story made me stop for a while and think about them。 My favorite story among them was "Kirara's Paper Plane"。 I'll probably think about that one for a long time。 。。。more
Tilly
，
Things Remembered and Things Forgotten by the Japanese author Kyoto Nakajima is a collection of short stories with that melancholic and ethereal undertone I've come to expect from Japanese literature。There's a subtlety about these ten short stories and a silvery chord that connects one to another like a delicate spiderweb。 Each story deals with similar themes， bringing together reflections upon the past and musings of times and possessions left hidden or buried， only to be resurfaced or unearthe Things Remembered and Things Forgotten by the Japanese author Kyoto Nakajima is a collection of short stories with that melancholic and ethereal undertone I've come to expect from Japanese literature。There's a subtlety about these ten short stories and a silvery chord that connects one to another like a delicate spiderweb。 Each story deals with similar themes， bringing together reflections upon the past and musings of times and possessions left hidden or buried， only to be resurfaced or unearthed。 An air of ghostliness pervades throughout the prose， echoed within descriptions of the ephemeral spirits of dead loved ones， the haunting remnants of war， the fading of memory， and the destruction of the landscape （through natural disasters and at the hands of man）。 One of my favourite short stories was 'When My Wife Was a Shiitake’。Newly translated into English by Ian McCullough MacDonald and Ginny Tapley Takemori， this collection is worth reading if you've enjoyed books by other Japanese women in translation， such as Sayaka Murata （Convenience Store Woman）， Hiromi Kawakami （Strange Weather in Tokyo） and Yūko Tsushima （Territory of Light）。*Thank you to the publisher for kindly gifting me an advanced copy of this book。 All thoughts are my own。 。。。more
Iina
，
A selection of short stories making connections between the past and the present， often with a ghostly presence or some other quirk。 I liked these， but none were earth-shattering reading experiences; they would be perfect to read alongside a hot cup of tea on a rainy and misty day。 Thank you to the publisher （Sort Of Books） for sending me a review copy。
Robert Gebhardt
，