Child of Fortune

(Paperback)

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New in Penguin Japanese Classics- an innovative feminist novel about motherhood and girlhood Introducing Penguin Japanese Classics- a collection of some of Japan's most celebrated and ground-breaking 20th century writers, with covers inspired by Japanese art and design. Taking us from a sun-drenched affair in a seaside town to an underground 'ark' full of shadows and eccentrics, with stops at mountains of skulls, lonely apartments and boarding school dormitories, this series is perfect for new and long-time readers of Japanese literature. Koko won't do what is expected of her. Defying her family's wishes, she has brought up her eleven-year-old daughter alone in her apartment. And now, after a casual affair, she is unexpectedly pregnant again. What will this mean for her already troubled relationship with her daughter Child of Fortune is an unflinching portrayal of a woman's innermost fears and desires. 'A terrific novel' Angela Carter Translated by Geraldine Harcourt

Reviews

A classic novel as relevant today as when it was published nearly 40 years ago . . . at once powerfully uplifting and achingly sad, Geraldine Harcourt's elegant translation captures Tsushima's poignant wisdom on the female struggle with societal expectations. * Japan Times *
depicts the multiple layers of a woman's consciousness, her fears and longings, her willingness to endure suffering yet resistance to pressures to conform. * The Mountain is Moving *

Author Bio

Yuko Tsushima was born in Tokyo in 1947, the daughter of the novelist Osamu Dazai, who took his own life when she was one year old. Her prolific literary career began with her first collection of short stories, Shaniku-sai (Carnival), which she published at the age of twenty-four. She won many awards, including the Izumi Kyoka Prize for Literature (1977), the Kawabata Prize (1983) and the Tanizaki Prize (1998). She died in 2016.