Iain Maloney

Apr 3, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Iain Maloney

Viewers around the world are tuning in weekly to the hit FX series “Shogun” (based on the 1975 novel by James Clavell) to follow the adventures of John Blackthorne, an Englishman who arrives in 17th-century Japan at a moment of high drama. The character of Blackthorne is based on William Adams, and May sees the publication of “In the Service of the Shogun,” a new biography of Adams written by historian Frederik Cryns, who also served as historical adviser on the series.

Mar 1, 2024 | iainmaloney.substack.com | Ted Chiang |Iain Maloney

Flora Qian is a writer I first came across through Eastlit, an online journal of writing from across East Asia. I then asked her to contribute a story to In The Empty Spaces, an anthology I co-edited back in 2014 (more about that later this year). South of the Yangtze is her first novel, published after winning the International Proverse Prize, and it’s a brilliant debut.

Feb 2, 2024 | iainmaloney.substack.com | Iain Maloney

Rock star memoirs can be hit and miss but Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth has always been a thoughtful, interesting person so I was looking forward to reading this very much, and it didn’t disappoint. It goes from his childhood up to the final Sonic Youth album in 2009 but the bulk of the book focuses on his late teens/early 20s in the heart of the punk/No Wave scenes in late 70s/early 80s New York which was exactly what I hoped for.

Jan 12, 2024 | iainmaloney.substack.com | Iain Maloney

One big thing can now be taken off my bucket list: I have a full poetry collection coming out on Isobar Press soon (exact date TBC but with events in March). Isobar Press is a poetry publisher based in Tokyo and run by Paul Rossiter. He publishes Japanese poems in translation and poetry by writers based in or connected to Japan. My shelf is heaving with their books and Paul has very high standards so to be accepted onto the list is a huge honour.

Jan 10, 2024 | japantimes.co.jp | Iain Maloney

Though the publishing industry is still struggling to come out from under the cloud of the pandemic, with supply chain issues and cash flow problems plaguing all but the biggest presses, fans of Japanese literature have little need to worry about a lack of new releases. As I wrote in my 2023 list of upcoming must-read titles, readers have become spoiled for choice in recent years — and 2024 promises to be another bumper year for Japanese literature in translation and books about Japan.