The new edition of "No-No Boy," published in the United States two years ago, includes a new preface that has never been seen before. The original 1957 edition was just the story, and when it was republished in 1976, a preface and afterword summarizing the story's background were added, and the new edition also includes a preface made specifically for the new edition.
With so many different things added at the beginning and end, rather than all being put together at the end as an explanatory text, it may seem difficult to read as a novel. However, the new preface for the new edition explains the contemporary relevance of the work and also sheds new light on the subject, so it is certainly significant.
The preface was written by Japanese-American female author Ruth Ozeki. Her 2013 novel, "A Tale for the Time Being," was translated into Japanese and published the following year by Hayakawa Publishing as "A Tale for the Time Being (vol. 1 and 2)" (translated by Aya Tanaka).
The story is about a female writer living on an island in Canada who discovers a diary written by a junior high school girl from Tokyo in a lunch box that has washed up on the shores of the island from Japan. She learns that the girl has been bullied and is hinting at suicide. Through the diary, a grand story that transcends time emerges.
Hayakawa Publishing introduces the author as follows:
Ruth Ozeki:
"Born in Connecticut, USA, to an American father and a Japanese mother. After earning a degree in English literature and Asian studies from Smith College, he studied classical Japanese literature at Nara Women's University Graduate School as a Ministry of Education exchange student. Returning to Japan in 1985, he worked on horror films and television programs before beginning to make films. His films have been highly acclaimed and screened at film festivals around the country. In 1998, he released his debut feature, Year of Meat, which attracted attention as a major new talent. In 2003, he released his second novel, All Over Creation. His third novel, All Over Creation, published in 2013, was highly praised by major newspapers and magazines and was a finalist for the Booker Prize. He was ordained as a member of the Soto Zen sect in 2010. He currently lives in British Columbia, Canada, and New York City."
Ozeki was born in 1956, the year before "No No Boy" was published, making him almost father-son in age to John Okada.
The book begins with "Dear John Okada" and spans 12 pages in the form of a letter addressed to Okada. The writing is full of affection, respect, and sympathy as a fellow writer.
Regarding "No-No Boy," a novel that tells the story of a Japanese-American protagonist living in a harsh environment during the period between the wars, the book is praised as "the first honorable Japanese-American novel" and "one of the enduring masterpieces of Asian-American literature."The book also discusses the novel, Okada, and the impact that he, as a fellow Japanese-American, felt upon encountering the novel.
He points out that when the novel was first published it was largely ignored and received harsh criticism, with some calling it poorly written and not literature, and wonders if Okada thought his work was a failure.
He also points out that, given the historical context at the time of publication, Japanese Americans still bore the scars of the war and were desperately trying to assimilate into society, so the work may have seemed radical to them and was not well received.
However, 20 years later, as public interest in racial discrimination has increased, "No-No Boy" was republished and praised. It has achieved the great feat of being read to this day. However, I feel deep sympathy for Okada, who passed away without knowing about this success.
Ruth's grandmother was interned during the war and her mother was under house arrest. However, growing up on the East Coast where there were few Asians, Ruth had no awareness of herself as Japanese and had little interest in Japanese American cultural activities. She was 20 years old when the book was republished, and even then she had not read "No-No Boy." She finally read it in her 40s.
She was shocked. Japanese Americans were quiet, obedient, uncomplaining, and had survived the postwar period with all their might, achieving social success. This myth had taken root, and Ruth herself had believed it too, but "No-No Boy" overturned this stereotypical image of Japanese Americans. She also believes that it made the world aware of the anger and complicated feelings of Japanese Americans.
The preface also goes into detail about Okada's background, including an interesting comment from his brother, the painter Frank Okada. Okada preferred life in his hometown of Seattle, but moved to Detroit for a time before writing the novel. "If I had stayed in Seattle, I wouldn't have been able to write," he said. "I think he left Seattle, the setting of the novel, in order to isolate himself and see things objectively."
Another interesting point from Frank's story is the manuscript of an unfinished work that Okada had written, with the Issei as the main character. In an afterword added at the end of the reprint, Frank Chin writes that Okada's widow Dorothy tried to donate the manuscript and notes he left behind to the Japanese American Studies Project at UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) after his death, but was turned down, so she burned them.
However, according to Frank, UCLA was accepting materials written in Japanese by the first generation of Japanese at the time, so they were not accepted, and Okada's second novel was still in the research stage at the time and had not actually started writing. Either way, Ruth laments that the fact remains that there is nothing left.
Finally, he introduces Okada's words, "Only fiction can accurately record people's hopes, fears, joys, and sorrows," and expresses his agreement.
(Titles omitted)
© 2016 Ryusuke Kawai
