Category: reviews of translations
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Worst Kind of Dystopia: Hon Lai Chu’s Mending Bodies” by Luca Griseri ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaonΒ Mending Bodies. Hon Lai Chu (author), Jacqueline Leung (translator), Mending Bodies, Two Lines…
![[REVIEW] “The Worst Kind of Dystopia: Hon Lai Chu’s πππππππ π΅πππππ ” by Luca Griseri](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/hon-lai-chu-author-jacqueline-leung-translator-mending-bodies-two-lines-press-2025.-240-pgs.jpg?w=938)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on A Woman Burnt. Imayam (author), GJV Prasad (translator), A Woman Burnt, Simon and Schuster India, 2023. 336 pgs. “Every woman adores a Fascist, / The…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βPortrait of a Burning Woman: Imayam’s π΄ πππππ π΅π’πππ‘β by Swagatika Rath](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/a-woman-burnt-1.jpg?w=952)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Hiroko Oyamada. Hiroko Oyamada (author), David Boyd (translator), The Hole, New Directions Publishing, 2020. 112 pgs. As a…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βUnanswered Questions of Balance: Hiroko Oyamadaβs πβπ π»πππβ by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/hiroko-oyamada_the-hole.jpg?w=778)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS DΖ°Ζ‘ng HΖ°α»ng (author), Quan Manh Ha and Charles Waugh (translators), No Man River, Penguin Random House SEA, 2025. 248 pgs. The recent publication of the English edition of DΖ°Ζ‘ng…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βNo Human Being is Spared from Its Crimson Claws: DΖ°Ζ‘ng HΖ°α»ngβs ππ πππ π
ππ£ππβ by Rebecca Maine](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/no-man-river-duong-huong-1.jpg?w=938)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Quan Manh Ha and Paul Christiansen (translators). Light Out and Modern Vietnamese Stories, 1930β1954. Northern Illinois University Press, an imprint of Cornell University Press, 2024. 228 pgs. Light Out…
![[REVIEW] βWriting Against Empire: πΏππβπ‘ ππ’π‘ and Survival in Colonial Vietnamβ by Josie Miller](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/light-out.jpg?w=1000)
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πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Mending Bodies. Hon Lai Chu (author), Jacqueline Leung (translator), Mending Bodies, Two Lines Press, 2025. 240 pgs. For those who haven’t read the original Chinese…
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Life Ceremony. Sayaka Murata (author), Ginny Tapley Takemori (translator), Life Ceremony, Granta Books, 2022. 266 pgs. Whenever I encounter the name Sayaka Murata,…
![[REVIEW] “Tender Aberrations: Reading Sayaka Murata’s πΏπππ πΆππππππ𦔠by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/sayaka-murata-author-ginny-tapley-takemori-translator.png?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Also read “Feature: Lu Xun” in Cha. Lu Xun (author), Eileen J. Cheng (translator), Theodore Huters (editor), Wild Grass & Morning Blossoms Gathered at Dusk, Harvard University Press,…
![[REVIEW] “One of the Greatest Writers, Full Stop: Lu Xun’s ππππ πΊπππ π & πππππππ π΅πππ π πππ πΊππ‘βππππ ππ‘ π·π’π π” by Robert Postings](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/wild-grass-and-morning-blossoms-gathered-at-dusk-harvard-university-press-2022.-272-pgs.jpg?w=955)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Uketsu (author), Jim Rion (translator), Strange Pictures, HarperVia, 2025. 240 pgs. In the Prologue, we are told: βAll right, everyone, now Iβm going to show you a picture.β…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] βThe Reader as Detective: Uketsuβs ππ‘πππππ ππππ‘π’πππ β by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/uketsu-author-jim-rion-translator-strange-pictures-harpervia-2025.png?w=974)
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πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Mending Bodies. Hon Lai Chu (author), Jacqueline Leung (translator), Mending Bodies, Two Lines Press, 2025. 240 pgs. For those who haven’t read the original Chinese…
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Han Kang (author), e. yaewon and Paige Aniyah Morris (translators), We do Not Part, Hogarth, 2025. 272 pgs. Kyungha struggles to sleep or eat, suffers from persistent…
![[REVIEW] βThe Persistance of Memory: Han Kangβs ππ π·π πππ‘ ππππ‘β by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/05/https-www.penguinrandomhouse.combooks718535we-do-not-part-by-han-kang-translated-by-e-yaewon-and-paige-aniyah-morris.png?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Cho Nam-joo. Cho Nam-Joo (author), Jamie Chang (translator), Saha: A Novel, Liveright, 2023. 161 pgs. Cho Nam-Jooβs Saha: A Novel (γμ¬ν맨μ γ, 2019) presents a dystopian…
![[REVIEW] βNarrating the Margins of the Future: Cho Nam-Jooβs ππβπβ by James Au Kin-Pong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/cho-nam-joos-saha.jpg?w=789)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [ESSAY] βA Harrowing Future of Waste in Chen Qiufanβs Waste Tideβ by Loritta Chan Chen Qiufan (author), Ken Liu (translator), Waste Tide, Tor Books, 2019. 352 pgs. They call us “the…
![[ESSAY] βA Harrowing Future of Waste in Chen Qiufanβs πππ π‘π ππππβ by Loritta Chan](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/chen-qiufan-author-ken-liu-translator-waste-tide.jpg?w=798)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Asako Yuzuki (author), Polly Barton (translator), Butter: A Novel of Food and Murder, Fourth Estate, 2024. 464 pgs. Butter is inspired by the true story of a…
![[REVIEW] βAsako Yuzukiβs π΅π’π‘π‘ππ: Tasting the Essential Selfβ by Jennifer Eagleton](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/04/butter-a-novel-of-food-and-murder-1.jpg?w=985)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS For Gab Angeles, who lent me the book. Natsume SΕseki (author), Meredith McKinney (translator), Kokoro, Penguin Classics, 2010. 256 pgs. Kokoro is the final novel written by Natsume SΕseki.…
![[EXCLUSIVE] βThe Virtue of Melancholy: Reading Natsume SΕsekiβs πΎπππππβ by Ramzzi FariΓ±as](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/kokoro.png?w=1024)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] βA Shifting, Unstable World: Can Xueβs I Live in the Slumsβ by Zalman S. Davis Can Xue (author), Karen Gernant and Chen Zeping (translators), I Live in the Slums, Yale…
![[REVIEW] βA Shifting, Unstable World: Can Xueβs πΌ πΏππ£π ππ π‘βπ πππ’ππ β by Zalman S. Davis](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/i-live-in-the-slums-1.jpg?w=968)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Xiaofei Tian (editor), Reading Du Fu: Nine Views, Hong Kong University Press, 2020. 200 pgs. The idea for Reading Du Fu: Nine Views grew out of a two-day conference…
![[REVIEW] “Interrogative Reflections: Nine Views of Reading Du Fu” by Marsha McDonald](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/xiaofei-tian-editor-reading-du-fu-nine-views-1.jpg?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Hiroko Oyamada. Hiroko Oyamada (author), David Boyd (translator), The Factory, New Directions, 2019. 128 pgs. Hiroko Oyamadaβs The Factory weaves…
![[REVIEW] βA Senseless Menagerie: Hiroko Oyamadaβs πβπ πΉπππ‘πππ¦β by Tyran Grillo](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/the-factory.png?w=562)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Yuta Takahashi (author), Cat Anderson (translator), The Chibineko Kitchen, John Murray, 2024. 192 pgs. The Japanese iyashikeiβor healingβgenre has resonated deeply with readers worldwide, offering solace and comfort through…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Dining with the Departed: Yuta Takahashiβs πβπ πΆβπππππππ πΎππ‘πβππ” by Aditi Yadav](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/03/the-chibineko-kitchen-john-murray-1.jpg?w=651)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Absolutely on Music. Haruki Murakami (author), Jay Rubin (translator), Absolutely on Music: Conversations with Seiji Ozawa, Alfred A. Knopf, 2016. 352 pgs. When we look back…
![[REVIEW] “A Symphony of Words and SoundβHaruki Murakami’s π΄ππ πππ’π‘πππ¦ ππ ππ’π ππ: πΆπππ£πππ ππ‘ππππ π€ππ‘β πππππ ππ§ππ€π” by Antonia Yang](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/absolutely-on-music-conversations-with-seiji-ozawa-alfred-a.-knopf-2016.jpg?w=751)
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “Before TSMC and Same-Sex Marriage: Qiu Miaojin’s Notes of a Crocodile” by Glen Loveland Qiu Miaojin (author), Bonnie Huie (translator), Notes of a Crocodile, NYRB Classics, 2017, 256 pgs. To…
![[REVIEW] “Before TSMC and Same-Sex Marriage: Qiu Miaojin’s πππ‘ππ ππ π πΆππππππππ” by Glen Loveland](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/qiu.crocodile.hires2-copy.jpg?w=990)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ A Woman Burnt. Imayam (author), GJV Prasad (translator), A Woman Burnt, Simon and Schuster India, 2023. 336 pgs. We step into a new worldβotherwise inaccessibleβevery…
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θΆ FIRST IMPRESSIONS θΆ REVIEW OF BOOKS & FILMS [REVIEW] “The Fugitive: Bei Daoβs Sidetracks” by Jeff Tompkins Bei Dao (author), Jeffrey Yang (translator), Sidetracks, New Directions, 2024. 176 pgs. The βsidetracksβ of Bei Daoβs title can first be understood…
![[REVIEW] “The Fugitive: Bei Daoβs πππππ‘πππππ ” by Jeff Tompkins](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/02/sidetracks-bei-dao_cha.jpg?w=611)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONS π RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Kang Hwagil (author), Clare Richards (translator), Another Person, Pushkin Press, 2023. 302 pgs. When her boyfriend chokes her for the fifth time since their office romance began, Kim…
![[REVIEW] “Unmasking Toxic Cultures: Kang Hwagil’s π΄πππ‘βππ ππππ ππ” by John Teoh](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/another-person-78-reviews-authors-hwa-gil-kang-author-clare-richards-translator.jpg?w=950)
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ο» RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSο» RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Kim Soom (author), Bruce Fulton and Ju-Chan Fulton (translators), One Left, University of Washington Press, 2020. 224 pgs. During the Second World War, over 200,000 Korean girls…
![[REVIEW] “Bearing Witness to History: Kim Soom’s πππ πΏπππ‘” by John Teoh](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/kim-soom-author-bruce-fulton-and-ju-chan-fulton-translators-one-left-1.jpg?w=971)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Click HERE to read all entries in Cha on Idol, Burning. Rin Usami (author), Asa Yoneda (translator), Idol, Burning, Canongate, 2022. 96 pgs. Rin Usamiβs Idol, Burning (γζ¨γγηγγ, 2020) offers an incisive exploration of…
![[REVIEW] “Belief, Devotion, and Estrangement in Rin Usamiβs πΌπππ, π΅π’πππππ” by James Au Kin-Pong](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/idol-burning-canongate.jpg?w=1024)
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π RETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπ RETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS ClickΒ HERE to readΒ all entries inΒ ChaΒ onΒ Idol, Burning. Rin Usami (author), Asa Yoneda (translator), Idol, Burning, HarperVia, 2022.144 pgs. Japan, for me, has long been a pop music paradise. On my…
![[REVIEW] βWhen a Passion Turns Toxic: Rin Usamiβs πΌπππ, π΅π’πππππβ by Wendy Tokunaga](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/rin-usami-author-asa-yoneda-translator-idol-burning.jpg?w=946)
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πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Izumi KyΕka (author), Charles ShirΕ Inouye (translator and author of introduction and afterword), Japanese Gothic Tales, University of Hawaiβi Press, 1996. 202 pgs. Japan Gothic Tales comprises four short…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS]βThe Haunting World of Random Encounters in Izumi KyΕkaβs π½ππππππ π πΊππ‘βππ πππππ β by Vanessa Winghei Yeung](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/japanese-gothic-tales-1.png?w=1024)
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There is no excerpt because this is a protected post.
![Protected: [REVIEW] βThe Strangeness Within: On Rajyabardhan Dhal Mahapatraβs πβπ πππππβπ π»ππ’π πβ by Kathiravan Annamalai](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/12/copy-of-copy-of-copy-of-untitled-design.png?w=600)
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πRETURN TO FIRST IMPRESSIONSπRETURN TO CHA REVIEW OF BOOKS AND FILMS Yan Lianke (author), Carlos Rojas (translator), Sound and Silence: My Experience with China and Literature, Duke University Press, 2024. 192 pgs. In late April 2024, Literary Hub released an…
![[FIRST IMPRESSIONS] “Yan Lianke: The Reader Comes First” by A. B. Freeman](https://chajournal.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/11/feb5978a-5dfd-11ea-be3e-43af5536d789_image_hires_104029.jpeg?w=1024)
Cha 