Night Train to the Stars
beloved, enigmatic Japanese folk tales
Japanese fairy tales - enchanting, enigmatic stories of animals, human beings and the great natural world.
Dark and innocent, sublime and whimsical, Miyazawa's stories have the ageless feel of the best fairy tales. There are animal allegories such as 'The Ungrateful Rat' where a rude rodent insults all the objects he meets - until he meets the Rat Trap/ There are morality tales such as 'The Restaurant of Many Orders', where two hunters become the hunted. There are also transcendent stories of childhood and mortality like Miyazawa's best-known 'Night Train to the Stars', where a magical steam train carries children through the night and up to the heavens.
These stories reveal the unique brilliance of one of Japan's most beloved early…
Available for Pre-Order
$21.99
April 29, 2025
Kenji Miyazawa (1896-1933) was born and raised in Iwate, a rural part of Northern Japan, largely cut off from the modern world. As a boy he was fascinated by glimpses of the modern industrial world - train lines and telegraph poles running into the distance - and he hoarded scientific information. His stories often contain fantastical descriptions of landscape alongside technological details. He was also deeply connected to the folk tales of Japan and interested in both Buddhism and Christianity.
After graduation from agricultural college, he moved to Tokyo to write and work as a proofreader. When his sister became ill, he returned to Iwate to care for her and remained there for the rest of his life. He devoted himself…
