''The Phoenix Tree and Other Stories'' is a short story collection by
Satoko Kizaki
is a Japanese novelist. She is best known for '' The Phoenix Tree'' (Aogiri), which won the 1985 Akutagawa Prize.
Early life
Kizaki was born on November 6, 1939, in Hsin Cheng, Manchuria. Her birth name is Masako Yokoyama. After Japan's defeat ...
. It was translated into English in 1990 by Carol A. Flath. The book contains four stories: "Barefoot", "The Flame Trees", "Mei Hwa Lu", and "The Phoenix Tree". "The Phoenix Tree" is known for being the story that won Kizaki the 1985
Akutagawa Prize
The is a Japanese literary award presented biannually. Because of its prestige and the considerable attention the winner receives from the media, it is, along with the Naoki Prize, one of Japan's most sought after literary prizes.
History
Th ...
.
Stories
* "Barefoot" Seiko convinces her French lover to commit suicide. When she returns to Japan after his death, she lives with her extended family who abused her as a child.
* "The Flame Trees" Makiko lives in California in the 1960s. She is pregnant, but is terrified of having a child because of her own childhood trauma in
Manchuria
Manchuria is a historical region in northeast Asia encompassing the entirety of present-day northeast China and parts of the modern-day Russian Far East south of the Uda (Khabarovsk Krai), Uda River and the Tukuringra-Dzhagdy Ranges. The exact ...
, where her mother died and her father was taken by Russian soldiers.
* "Mei Hwa Lu" A Japanese businessman returns to his childhood village in Manchuria and thinks about his family relationships. He returns to his daughter and wife with a
deer
A deer (: deer) or true deer is a hoofed ruminant ungulate of the family Cervidae (informally the deer family). Cervidae is divided into subfamilies Cervinae (which includes, among others, muntjac, elk (wapiti), red deer, and fallow deer) ...
heart, and they are disgusted.
* "The Phoenix Tree" Mitsue cannot marry because of the large burn scar on her face she has had since childhood. As she nurses her aunt, who is dying of
breast cancer
Breast cancer is a cancer that develops from breast tissue. Signs of breast cancer may include a Breast lump, lump in the breast, a change in breast shape, dimpling of the skin, Milk-rejection sign, milk rejection, fluid coming from the nipp ...
, she learns that the burn was actually caused by her aunt.
Critical reception
"The Phoenix Tree" () won the Akutagawa Prize when it was published in Japan. The story was put together with Kizaki's other stories, including her debut work "Barefoot", when it was published in English.
Each story is about a person who successfully copes with a difficult situation that is rooted in past traumas. Donald J. Pearce wrote as much in a positive review for ''
Library Journal
''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...
''.
''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' wrote that Kizaki "shattered" the stereotype of the impassive Japanese woman with this work.
However, Amy Vladeck Heinrich wrote in ''
World Literature Today
''World Literature Today'' (''WLT'') is an American magazine of international literature and culture, published at the University of Oklahoma. The magazine's stated goal is to publish international essays, poetry, fiction, interviews, and book ...
'' that while the stories stand well on their own, putting them together in a collection makes the unresolved endings more obvious. This may make readers more interested in the autobiographical elements of the stories, rather than Kizaki's skill as a writer.
Rebecca Copeland wrote in her review for ''Japan Quarterly'' that the stories carry a common theme of alienation, and that the strangeness of the stories underscores the protagonists' feelings of uncertainty. She also points out that the protagonists of "Barefoot", "The Flame Trees", and "The Phoenix Tree" are orphans, which further adds to their sense of displacement. Copeland also says that Kizaki hints at mysteries, but resolves them with simple, unsatisfying answers. She also wrote that Kizaki's writing style is "magical", and that she is especially good at descriptions of nature (potentially because her husband is a
botanist
Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...
).
All of the reviewers said that Flath wrote an elegant, unobtrusive translation.
See also
* ''
The Sunken Temple''
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Phoenix Tree And Other Stories
1990 short story collections
Japanese short story collections