japanamerica

From my latest column in the Daily Yomiuri : "Last month's sudden bankruptcy filing by Yohan, Japan's largest and oldest distributor of English-language publications, has cast a shadow over American shores, despite its relative lack of coverage in the U.S. media. Only a couple of years ago, Yohan announced life-saving investments in Stone Bridge Press and Cody's Bookstore, two San Francisco Bay Area institutions. The former is a smartly run independent publisher specializing in Japan-focused books, and the latter was a much-lauded independent local bookstore chain. Both have long been landmarks of the Bay Area's book scene. Stone Bridge is soldiering on, but Cody's has closed. The usual suspects are cited as catalysts--poor management, unsustainable investment and debt accrual, archaic labor structures. But the demise of Yohan in the 21st century may signal something broader and even more worrying: a Japanese public turning increasingly inward, becoming mor...

Herewith, a partial and preliminary list of autumn 08 bookings for Japanamerica -related events on the East and West Coasts: Sept. 14th , New York, NY, A Public Space @ Brooklyn, NY, Brooklyn Book Festival Sept. 23rd , New York, NY, Art Space Tokyo US Launch, KINOKUNIYA Bryant Park, 6:00pm Sept. 24th , New York, NY, Happy Ending Reading Series fall schedule Sept. 27th , Berkeley, CA, Anime Masterpieces W est Coast Launch ; UC Berkeley/PFA Sept. 28th , New York, NY, NY Anime Festival **NOTE: Event Date Change to February 11, 2009 Boston, MA, Anime Masterpieces East Coast Launch Oct. 2nd , Williamstown, MA, The Clark Museum Oct. 11th , Berkeley, CA, Live Conversation with H aruki Murakami Dec. 6th, Washington, DC, Anime Masterpieces Smithsonian Event More details forthcoming. Hope you can join us.

Kaiju monsters battled in Brooklyn and Bird received his annual celebration in Tompkins Square this weekend. Met with NPR folks today in Soho and am looking forward to this autumn's events on both coasts. On the heels of Gotham Knight , the bi-cultural Batman anime project, Marvel and Madhouse have linked up for a series of anime re-inventions of American comics heroes, due out in 2010. (Thanks to Andrew in Tokyo for the NY Times tip. Full story here .) Beijing wrapped and the conventions commence. Fall is falling into place.

A-G of the Japanamerican Devil's Dictionary , published by Kodansha in PANDORA. Just wrapped H-N for forthcoming Fall releases. Illustrations by Taketomi-sensei; humble apologies to "bitter Bierce." (click below to enlarge in two tongues)

I received several calls from the restlessly independent and adroitly irreverent folks at Adbusters magazine at the start of this year. Their goal was to broaden and deepen their coverage of the Asian region in general, and Japan in particular, a goal I naturally laud. I've now begun contributing stories from and about today's Japan for the magazine's globally-minded editors and readership. My first submission is here: "We Grew Up Too Comfortable to Take Risks." What's interesting to me is that I've received emails from readers suggesting that (a) today's Japan is not really as bleak as the nation I've described, and (b) that it's far, far worse. Most of the (a) responses emanate from non-Japanese. The (b)'s are overwhelmingly from Japanese nationals. Is this a case of domestics overreacting to recent violence in a country whose comparative overall crime rate remains exceptionally low? Of course, as a peripatetic writer whose anchor is...

... or at least for those who read Japanese. I'm told by authoritative sources that you don't actually have to be Japanese in order to read the language. Yet I also hear from selfsame sources that you ought to at least know someone who is. Or you ought to try to get to know them. Or be nice to them, at least. Or show a flicker of recognition, like widening one eye, for example. About a month ago, Brutus magazine , one of Japan's largest circulation twice-monthlies, devoted an entire issue to 40-something manga artist Takehiko Inoue, creator of Slam Dunk and Vagabond . Inoue's work now graces the second-floor walls of Kinokuniya's still-fresh New York outlet on Bryant Park, where he painted his mural live before an audience of entranced media folk. A writer for Brutus contacted me in the early summer to obtain my comments on Inoue's aesthetic style and his burgeoning presence in the US manga market. The issue was apparently among the magazine's bes...

... where it hurts oh so good. A little Japanamerican riffing on the Batman here . And the original Yomiuri column:

These days, anime Festivals, Conventions and Expos conjure images of masses amassing en masse, seas of sequins and flesh ... and so on. But SubVersion's virgin run this weekend in downtown Portland, Oregon offered something fresh: an intimate venue (the lovingly restored Bagdad Theater above), cozy confines, free food--and a focus on the films over the peripherals. Cosplay contests, forums, panels and presentations are all fine. But focusing on the anime medium felt like a welcome respite from the chaos of trade show extravaganzas. An additional respite for me: low humidity and temperate air as soon as I hit the tarmac. I feel like a refugee fleeing the stultifying summers of Tokyo and New York, and finding amnesty at last in the Pacific Northwest. Plus: did I mention the complimentary cuisine? (Organizers Extraordinaire: Jonathan and Meg.)