Monkey Brain Sushi

A collection of short stories, excerpts from novels, and one manga comic from Japan's "Brat Pack" that, with one exception, have not previously appeared in the US. Known as fuikkushon writers because they resemble Westerners in their directness, use of pop-culture and idiom, these young men and women look to the American "city novel" as their model rather than to traditional Japanese writers. Brash, uneven in quality, and fiercely critical of much in contemporary Japan, the fiction here covers a wide range. Haruki Murakami's "TV People," excerpted (in part) in The New Yorker, describes a world in which reality is being subverted by the manipulation of images. In Genichrio Takahashi's "Christopher Columbus Discovers America," a journey to an American base in Yokohama is as much a cultural exploration as a literal journey through the city. K., obsessed with order, in Kyoji Kobayahshi's "Mazelife," invents a Minotaur-like god to worship, and instead finds he has "summoned a demon," with only destiny in the form of annihilation left for him. Meanwhile, in Masahiko Shimada's "Momotaro in a Capsule," two law-abiding loners seek a "rebellious phase' and fail. And, in other notable pieces, a dutiful but unappreciated housewife finds happiness with a lesbian truck-driver; sadomasochism fulfills a hitherto melancholy call-girl; and a corrupt robot briefly finds love on a distant planet. With few exceptions, the writing is impressive more for its originality and fresh vision than for any great talent. But, still, a useful and lively introduction to a new generation of Japanese writers. (Kirkus Reviews)