The Cake Tree in the Ruins
Published on 2. August 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
160 pages
978-1-78227-418-6 (ISBN)
Description
'I am still unable to leave the burnt-out ruins' Akiyuki Nosaka, 2014
In 1945, Akiyuki Nosaka watched the Allied firebombing of Kobe kill his adoptive parents, and then witnessed his sister starving to death. The shocking and blisteringly memorable stories of The Cake Tree in the Ruins are based on his own experiences as a child in Japan during the Second World War.
They are stories of a lonely whale searching the oceans for a mate, who sacrifices himself for love; of a mother desperately trying to save her son with her tears; of a huge, magnificent tree which grows amid the ruins of a burnt-out town, its branches made from the sweetest cake imaginable.
Profound, heartbreaking and aglow with a piercing beauty, they express the chaos and terror of conflict, yet also how love can illuminate even the darkest moment.
In 1945, Akiyuki Nosaka watched the Allied firebombing of Kobe kill his adoptive parents, and then witnessed his sister starving to death. The shocking and blisteringly memorable stories of The Cake Tree in the Ruins are based on his own experiences as a child in Japan during the Second World War.
They are stories of a lonely whale searching the oceans for a mate, who sacrifices himself for love; of a mother desperately trying to save her son with her tears; of a huge, magnificent tree which grows amid the ruins of a burnt-out town, its branches made from the sweetest cake imaginable.
Profound, heartbreaking and aglow with a piercing beauty, they express the chaos and terror of conflict, yet also how love can illuminate even the darkest moment.
Reviews / Votes
Remarkable stories... They are dark but so beautiful, so profound; subtle and elegant. It is a book that will last all your life * Irish Times * Heart-wrenching...Tragic and imaginative... These short vignettes stand as chilling reminders of the wartime trauma inflicted upon Japanese youth during and after World War II * Los Angeles Review of Books * Nosaka's hauntingly sad and beautiful stories... remind us of the full tragedy of World War II * Japan Times * One can only be shaken by these cruel and magnificent tales, which are also the most eloquent plea for peace imaginable * L'Express * A haunting and unforgettable collection, worthwhile for readers of many ages * Books on Asia * Moving snapshot of moments in the life of a shattered nation... Unforgettable * Children's Books Ireland * Magical realism with the touch of a master... Nosaka, drawing on his own experiences, in just a few pages bringing to life a world now largely forgotten * The Reading Life (blog) * Nosaka's gift of celebrating darkened life while illuminating death is extraordinary and the 12 stories in this wonderful collection represent ideal testaments to that... an essential purchase * Hits the Fan (blog) * The stories are as deep and multi-layered, as beautiful and unique as the baumkuchen in the story of the cake tree. They are meant to be similarly savoured. Now, how can I not wish for more of them? * Travelling Birdy (blog) * The stories are haunting and heart-wrenching but bring to the fore the true horror of war and the effect of propaganda in perpetuating its cruelties * Never Imitate (blog) * The sum experience of reading these war reports in fairy-tale disguise is devastating... there's an emotional nakedness here, almost a reversion to childhood that is both completely understandable and often wrenching * New York Times * In each of these stories, the connections and relationships that are often taken for granted in day-to-day life are elevated alongside the stakes, shining intensely and brilliantly even as tragedy unfolds * World Literature Today *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
London
United Kingdom
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Unsewn / adhesive bound
Dimensions
Height: 164 mm
Width: 123 mm
Thickness: 15 mm
Weight
151 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-78227-418-6 (9781782274186)
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Persons
Akiyuki Nosaka was born in 1930 in Japan, and was a member of the yakeato generation, 'the generation of the ashes', who survived the devastating firebombing of Japan during the Second World War. Nosaka was an award-winning novelist, short-story writer, essayist, lyricist, singer and politician. His adoptive parents were killed in the Allied firebombing of Kobe, and after he was evacuated with his sister, she died of malnutrition. These experiences inspired the stories in this collection, as well as one of his best-known works, Grave of the Fireflies, which was turned into a hugely successful Studio Ghibli film (called 'a masterpiece' by the Guardian), and which is forthcoming in a new translation from Pushkin Press. Nosaka died in 2015.