Japan Sinks

I first spotted this book in the late 1990s. I recently got it because of my interest in the release of the recent film version from 2006 called "Nihon Chinbotsu". Is this book worth it? Yes. It is not only a fantastic work of Japanese science-fiction--which is very rarely translated and brought to the US--but as a disaster novel, it manages to capture the confusion and outright terror brought about by the sinking of Japan. This event, brought about by a major shift of the tectonic plates, causes a series of devastating earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, including the eruption of Mt. Fuji. The book is a fast read, with the last few pages being the equivalent of a punch in the gut as the Japanese struggle to deal with the inevitable outcome. Other issues are brought up, such as, what will the Japanese be without their home country? How will the world react to such an unprecedented disaster? And how does one go about evacuating over 110 million people? Ironically, I finished the book right before a major quake struck Japan recently. To say that I got one hell of a chill down my spine is an understatement. Strangely enough, this 1995 translation has an introduction written by Sakyo Komatsu that spoke about the tragic Kobe earthquake which had occurred earlier that year. In the end, I highly recommend this book.

It's a classic convention of literature - and perhaps life - that people reach their clearest insight only when death is at hand. By creating a model of Japan's death, Komatsu deftly exposes the how the Japanese see themselves, how they believe the world sees them, and who they are. As a foreigner in Japan for nine years who has read copiously on this country, this novel is among the most penetrating I've read. For those who aren't interested in dissecting the Japanese, they'll still be thrilled by this compelling tale of an entire nation's doom.