The Guest Cat

(Author) (Translator)
Available
4.9/5.0
21,000+ Reviews
Bookshop.org has the highest-rated customer service of any bookstore in the world
Product Details
Price
$14.95  $13.90
Publisher
New Directions Publishing Corporation
Publish Date
Pages
144
Dimensions
5.0 X 6.9 X 0.5 inches | 0.3 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9780811221504

Earn by promoting books

Earn money by sharing your favorite books through our Affiliate program.

Become an affiliate
About the Author
Takashi Hiraide was born in Moji, Kitakyushu in 1950. He has published numerous books of poetry as well as several books of genre-bending essays, including one on poetics and baseball. He currently lives in the west suburbs of Tokyo with a cat and his wife, the poet Michiyo Kawano.
Eric Selland is a a poet, translator, and the author. His translation of The Guest Cat, a novel by Takashi Hiraide, was on the New York Times bestseller list in February 2014. He has also published articles on Japanese modernist poetry and translation theory. He is the author of The Condition of Music, Inventions, and an essay in The Poem Behind the Poem: Translating Asian Poetry. Eric currently lives in Tokyo, where he works as a translator of economic reports.
Reviews
What initially reads like free association turns out to be a near-microscopic record of emotion and phenomena.--Alan Gilbert "The Believer"
The best novels are often the ones that change us. Over time, they stay with us- like small miracles. Takashi Hiraide, the Japanese poet and novelist, blindsided me- he shows himself to be a poet of the highest grade. A rare treasure, beautiful and profound; whether you're a cat lover or not, don't pass this one up. ultimately, it's about what it means to love and to lose. Even dog lovers will relate.--Juan Vidal "NPR"
A beautiful, ornate read, brimming with philosophical observation, humor and intelligence.-- "Publishers Weekly"
An unusually intimate, detailed and vivid picture of a place that is simultaneously private and open.--V.V. Ganeshananthan "The New York Times Book Review"
The little feline sets off a chain of disquisitions on nature, destiny, joy, pleasure, and sorrow--Nina Sankovitch "Huffington Post"
A wonderful tale about the desire to possess and the pain of absence. And such writing! Precise, delicate, enchanting.-- "Atmospheres"
Hiraide's work really shines--Kenzaburo Oe
It's clear there is a tradition of literary works centering on or featuring cats in modern Japanese, and we now have from New Directions a translation of a splendid addition to that list. (...) a work of subtleties revealed only with repeated readings. I recommend it unreservedly to the general reader.--Paul McCarthy "The Japan Times"