Lady Joker, Volume 1

Name: Lady Joker, Volume 1
Brand: Penguin Random House NZ
SKU: 9781616957018
Price: 45.0 NZD
Availability: InStock

By Kaoru Takamura and Allison Markin Powell and Marie Iida

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3.61

( 1,692 ratings, 273 reviews)

Summary

Lady Joker, Volume 1 by Kaoru Takamura is a gripping crime and thriller novel set in Japan. It follows a diverse group of individuals united by a deeply personal grudge against a powerful corporation, leading them to execute an intricately planned kidnapping. Their actions ripple through the nation, affecting lives across various social strata, as the story explores themes of justice and morality.
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Format: Hardback

$45⁰⁰

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Lady Joker, Volume 1

$45⁰⁰

Elsewhere:

~~$50⁰⁰~~

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

If you are intrigued by intricate crime narratives and enjoy diving into richly detailed stories that explore societal complexities, this compelling thriller offers a fascinating blend of corporate intrigue and a multi-layered examination of justice. Set against a backdrop of post-war Japan, readers are drawn into a gripping tale of vengeance that deftly weaves together multiple viewpoints, providing a deep and immersive reading experience.

Lady Joker, Volume 1

Description

One of Japan's great modern masters, Kaoru Takamura, makes her English-language debut with this two-volume publication of her magnum opus.

Tokyo, 1995. Five men meet at the racetrack every Sunday to bet on horses. They have little in common except a deep disaffection with their lives, but together they represent the social struggles and griefs of post-War Japan. A poorly socialised genius stuck working as a welder; a demoted detective with a chip on his shoulder; a Zainichi Korean banker sick of being ostracised for his race; a struggling single dad of a teenage girl with Down syndrome. The fifth man bringing them all together is an elderly drugstore owner grieving his grandson, who has died suspiciously after the revelation of a family connection with the segregated buraku community, historically subjected to severe discrimination.

Intent on revenge against a society that values corporate behemoths more than human life, the five conspirators decide to carry out a heist: kidnap the CEO of Japan's largest beer conglomerate and extract blood money from the company's corrupt financiers.

Inspired by the unsolved true-crime kidnapping case perpetrated by "the Monster with 21 Faces," Lady Joker has become a cultural touchstone since its 1997 publication, acknowledged as the magnum opus by one of Japan's literary masters. It has been twice adapted for film and TV and is often taught in high school and college classrooms.

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

Lady Joker, Volume 1, praised for its intricate plot and incisive social commentary, is a captivating crime thriller that delves into capitalism's darker facets and Japanese society's complexities. Critics highlight its sprawling narrative, reminiscent of epic novels, offering profound insights into post-war Japan through a multilayered storyline centred around a dramatic kidnapping and extortion case. The novel is celebrated for its vivid detail, character depth, and the unique way it intertwines crime with social critique, making it a standout in contemporary crime fiction.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781616957018

Publisher: Soho Press Inc

Format: Hardback

Date Published: 13 April 2021

Country: United States

Imprint: Soho Press Inc

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Width: 149.0mm

Height: 217.0mm

Weight: 0g

Pages: 576

Collections

Allison Markin Powell Crime & Thriller Fiction General Fiction Kaoru Takamura Marie Iida Penguin Books

About the Author

Kaoru Takamura was born in Osaka in 1953 and is the author of thirteen novels. Her debut, Grab the Money and Run, won the 1990 Japan Mystery and Suspense Grand Prize, and since then her work has been recognized with many of Japan's most prestigious awards for literary fiction as well as for crime fiction- the Naoki Prize, the Noma Literary Award, the Yomiuri Prize, the Shinran Prize, the Jiro Osaragi Prize, the Mystery Writers of Japan Award, and the Japan Adventure Fiction Association Prize. Lady Joker, her first novel to be translated into English, received the Mainichi Arts Award and has been adapted into both a film and a television series. Allison Markin Powellis a literary translator, editor, and publishing consultant. She has been awarded grants from English PEN and the NEA, and the 2020 PEN America Translation Prize forThe Ten Loves of Nishinoby Hiromi Kawakami. Her other translations include works by Osamu Dazai, Kanako Nishi, and Fuminori Nakamura. She was the guest editor for the first Japan issue ofWords Without Borders, and she maintains the databaseJapanese Literature in English. Marie Iidahas served as an interpreter for theNew York Timesbestselling author Marie Kondo's Emmy-nominated Netflix documentary series,Tidying Up with Marie Kondo.Her nonfiction translations have appeared inNang,MoMA Post,Eurekaand over half a dozen monographs on contemporary Japanese artists and architects, including Yayoi Kusama, Toyo Ito, and Kenya Hara for Rizzoli New York. Marie currently writes a monthly column forGentosha Plusabout communicating in English as a native Japanese speaker.