Japanese Novels Gaining Popularity in China

Shanghai, Jan. 4 (Jiji Press)--Japanese novels are increasingly popular in China, with mainly young people showing interest in contemporary works by authors such as Keigo Higashino and Haruki Murakami. At one of the largest bookstores in Shanghai late last month, half of the 10 bestselling foreign novels were Higashino works, including "Namiya Zakkaten no Kiseki" (The Miracles of the Namiya General Store), which ranked second. A novel by Japanese-born British author Kazuo Ishiguro, who won the 2017 Nobel Prize in Literature, was in first place. Until then, Higashino novels had topped the list for a while, according to a staff employee at the bookstore. Higashino's works started to become popular four or five years ago, and the bookstore has set up an area dedicated to the Japanese author, where his novels are stacked in piles. The fad over Higashino's works began in the coastal districts of China and then spread to inland areas, an official of a publishing company said, adding that novels by Miyuki Miyabe and Kotaro Isaka are also seen winning acceptance from people in China. Also, more and more Chinese people are showing interest in Japanese modern and classic literature. Sales of "Ningen Shikkaku" (No Longer Human) by the late renowned novelist Osamu Dazai began to shoot up about a year ago, and "Genji Monogatari" (The Tale of Genji), a classic work, is also selling well. A local researcher said that China is culturally close to Japan. Chinese people's interest in Japanese novels is increasing, as an improvement in their living standard has made it easier for them to understand the contents of the books as events familiar to them, the researcher added. END