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Tabloid Tokyo
101 Tales of Sex, Crime and the Bizarre from Japan's Wild Weeklies
Geoff Botting, Ryann Connell
Michael Hoffman, Mark Schreiber
Illustrations by Hirosuke "Amore" Ueno
Paperback 256 pages
132 x 189mm 300g
ISBN : 978-4-7700-2892-1 / 4-7700-2892-X
Publish : Oct, 2005
Price : $12.95 |
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[ About the Book ]
Stories—surprising, fascinating, illuminating, titillating—from the feisty pages of Japan's weekly magazines
Each week, the authors of this book comb the varied weeklies that cascade from Japan's printing presses, pages brimming with blaring headlines and alluring stories. Their translations and interpretations of many of these tales—lurid, quirky and irreverent—have long been a staple on the pages of the country's English-language newspapers, and a big favorite of captivated readers.
TABLOID TOKYO is a selection of their best columns over the past four years. Inside are stories about sex, criminal shenanigans and scandal. Families—dysfunctional and otherwise—and the economy. Pets, fashion, trends and much, much more. As a picture of contemporary Japanese society, readers will find this collection often informative, sometimes shocking . . . but always entertaining.
Are the stories real? Well, Japanese readers believe so, in varying degrees. They turn to the weeklies to learn, not only the gossip and the frivolous, but also the items glossed over by the sober mainstream media. They look for kernels of truth in even the most outrageous sounding stories. They know that, after all, truth really is stranger than fiction—and often far more fun.
MEET SOME FASCINATING JAPANESE PEOPLE YOU WON'T
FIND IN THE LAST SAMURAI OR MEMOIRS OF A GEISHA: |
- A "diplomat" who bared her breasts to the North Koreans
- Men who fall in love with their latex companions
- Sushi chefs who replace the real thing with dubious fish
- Children who feed off their parents—long into adulthood
- An investigative reporter who predicted his own death
- Men who dress in lingerie under their business suits
- Ninja-stealthy sex molesters who target female commuters
- Compulsive shoppers who cram their small homes with goods
- Parents who dress up their children—like pets or dolls
- A rapist who targeted the suicidal via the web
Reviews
"...It's the sort of book one can keep around and chip away at—none of the truncated translations go on for more than a few pages at a time. With titles like 'Sexy Dolls Seduce Owners', 'Used Boxers Find New Market', 'Big Yen for Dead Doggies' and 'Fetishistic Booty Fills Thief's Home', all is not lost ..."
—Metro News (Canada)
"Tabloid Tokyo is a welcome break from the constant bombardment of Hollywood news. ...Readers with a penchant for Japanese pop culture will want Tabloid Tokyo on their shelves, as will anyone looking to escape the celebrity media grind and dive into something completely different — and even more racy and risqué."
—The Calgary Herald
"Soy-sauce cheesecake, gropers attacking elevator operators, a mom who strangles her seven-year-old because he won't go to school: Compiled from Japanese newspapers by Mark Schreiber, Tabloid Tokyo bares the city's underbelly."
—East Bay Express (CA)
"A wonderful window into part of modern Japanese culture that many Americans don't know about, but are about to enjoy immensely."
—Nichi Bei Times (LA, CA)
"Readers will find this collection often informative, sometimes shocking...but always entertaining."
—Japan Today
"Funny as hell and very entertaining."
—JapanVisitor.com
" [A] zippy collection . . . There's a refreshing lack of pandering, with much of the material presented in a straight-faced fashion that heightens its absurdity."
—Publishers Weekly
"[Tabloid Tokyo] offers an insight into a dimension of life on these islands that is not celebrated by the Japan National Tourist Organization and as such is a cultural treasure."
—Metropolis Magazine (JAPAN)
"Tabloid Tokyo provides a unique and hilarious insight into an aspect of Japanese culture that is usually off-limits to those who can't read the language. It's a refreshing change from more serious books on Japanese sociology, and will provide you with a stack of interesting trivia and anecdotes with which to baffle friends both here and overseas."
—Weekender Magazine (JAPAN)
"Forget the stereotypical image of Japan being the land of geisha, sumo and kimono, and cast aside the myths surrounding a land where the old and new lie side by side, Tabloid Tokyo gives a picture of what this country is really like as the Japanese see it."
—Mainichi Daily News
"Japan's weird side sometimes seems as well known as its official side, putting Tabloid Tokyo at risk of venturing into clichéd territory. It avoids the trap, however, thanks to the authors' ability to spot fresh angles on old tales."
—Daily Yomiuri
"In their latest collection of hilarious and outrageous media offerings, Mark Schreiber and his colleagues chronicle 101 stories from Japan's colorful underside, and by so doing, expose this country yet again for the unpredictable, fascinating place that it is. If there were a literary prize given out for this sort of thing, the Tabloid Tokyo crew would win it hands down."
—Robert Whiting, Author, You Gotta Have Wa, Tokyo Underworld and The Meaning of Ichiro
"Pulp fiction is fun, but pulp non-fiction is more fun. And Japanese weekly tabloid pulp non-fiction—the stuffing that's jammed between the covers of this book—surpasses all."
—Marc Abrahams, Editor, Annals of Improbable Research and founder of the Ig Noble Awards
"If you're keen on a voyeuristic view of perhaps exaggerated but not entirely untrue aspects of Japan's dirty laundry—or simply a good tabloid scoop—this book is for you."
—Asian Reporter
About the Authors
GEOFF BOTTING is a Canadian who has lived in Japan since graduating from the University of Victoria in 1986. He has worked as a journalist for the Mainichi Daily News, the Japan Times, NHK (the national broadcaster) and the Kyodo News Agency. He lives in Tokyo.
Australian RYANN CONNELL works for the Mainichi Newspaper, specializing in stories about unseen Japan. A resident of Tokyo for almost 20 years, he idolizes his daughters, Misha and Natasha, fertility festivals and raw horseflesh-flavored ice cream.
MICHAEL HOFFMAN, originally from Montreal, Canada, is a freelance writer and translator living in Otaru, Hokkaido. He is the author of three books of fiction, the latest being The Coat that Covers Him and Other Stories (Authorhouse, 2004).
A newspaper and magazine columnist, translator and author, MARK SCHREIBER has lived in Asia since 1965 and currently makes his home in Tokyo. He is author of The Dark Side: Infamous Japanese Crimes and Criminals (Kodansha International, 2001).
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