A superb introduction to modern Japanese fiction as well as a memoir of
his own love affair with Japanese literature and culture, this volume
consists of chapters on five modern Japanese novelists whom Donald Keene
knew personally: Yasunari Kawabata, Yukio Mishima, Jun'ichiro Tanizaki,
Ryotaro Shiba, and Kobo Abe. Each chapter opens with a vignette
describing Keene's personal encounters with these famous men, blending
his autobiographical observations with literary and cultural analysis.