Gossamer Years

“Just like The Pillow Book of Sei Shonagon, this is a diary from Heian Era of Japan, although unlike Sei Shonagon and Murasaki, this diary takes place prior to when they got to shine, and I can’t help but get the feeling that it influenced Murasaki Shikibu a lot. …the supplemental information added by the translator is very helpful. PS, love the cover.” –Svetlana’s Reads and Views

Edward G. Seidensticker (1921-2007) was Professor Emeritus of Japanese at Columbia University, a noted translator and the author of several books in English and Japanese. He was a recipient of the third-class Order of the Rising Sun from the Japanese government, one of its highest honors, for his part in introducing Japanese novels to the West. His works include The Makioka Sisters, Snow Country, The Tale of Genji and Thousand Cranes.

Dennis Washburn is Professor of Comparative Literature, Asian Societies Cultures and Languages, & Film Studies at Dartmouth College. He is the author of Converting Cultures: Ideology, Religion, and Transformations of Modernity, Translating Mount Fuji: Modern Japanese Fiction and the Ethics of Identity, The Affect of Difference: Representations of Race in East Asian Empire and translator of The Tale of Genji, Temple of the Wild Geese and Bamboo Dolls of Echizen.