I would like to talk about a
writer from the past, from Japan – a writer who is making inroads with the
critics and now into the mainstream thanks to the efforts of Penguin
Classics. They say that one should never judge a book by the cover, however
the recent reissues of Seichō Matsumoto’s work comes with extraordinary cover
art, imagery that matches the narrative[s] within.
I recall a speech delivered by
legendary publisher Christopher
MacLehose back in 2008 at a book launch hosted at the Foreign Press
Association’s London Offices.
“….MacLehose delivered a very passionate speech about the
current, challenging state of publishing, especially the difficulty of bringing
international works into English………the job of the publisher is to bring books
to the public that they didn’t want; books that they didn’t anticipate; and
books that would nonetheless make an impression and challenge their way of
thinking….”
“…..He concluded by noting the importance of booksellers,
and said he wishes that the larger chains would regain some of the enthusiasm
for books they had in the past, as that enthusiasm can be infectious, leading
readers to try authors and works with which they aren’t familiar….”
Read More from that press launch
HERE
So if you are looking to
refresh your palate [crime and mystery], then I would urge you to explore the
work of Seichō Matsumoto, both in print [with excellent translations] as well
as dynamically read in audiobooks.
In Japan, Matsumoto is as
celebrated as Agatha Christie.
I read [and then listened to
via Audible] Penguin Classics re-issues of Seichō Matsumoto Tokyo Express and Inspector Imanishi Investigates and am impatiently awaiting release
of the next two reissues which I have on pre-order.
Suspicion [first
published in 1962 and re-issued in a new translation on 29th May
2025] is a tense psychological mystery that hinges less on the mechanics of the
crime than on the insidious nature of doubt. Onizuka Kumako is a fierce woman:
tall, beautiful, and not afraid to speak her mind. In Tokyo bars, she seduces
customers and commits petty crime, using her connections to the local yakuza to
get by. When she meets Shirakawa Fukutaro, a rich widower desperate for
companionship and unaware of her shady past, the two hit it off and are soon
married. But their newlywed bliss is suddenly cut short: one rainy July
evening, their car veers off course, plunges into the harbour, and Fukutaro is
pulled beneath the waves. Suspected of murder and labelled a femme fatale,
Kumako is hounded by the press but stays firm, repeatedly proclaiming her own
innocence. As pressure from dogged journalists mounts, the tide of public
opinion is rising against her. But when a scrupulous defence lawyer takes on
her case, doubt begins to creep in. The book touches on many themes that still
resonate today, notably media sensationalism and trial by public opinion,
social prejudice and gender roles, and economic hardship and survival.
So, what are these re-issued
Japanese Crime Mysteries about?
Tokyo Express [available
in paperback]
Seicho Matsumoto
[translated into English by Jesse Kirkwood]
In a rocky cove in the bay of Hakata, the bodies of a young
and beautiful couple are discovered. Stood in the coast's wind and cold, the
police see nothing to investigate: the flush of the couple's cheeks speaks
clearly of cyanide, of a lovers' suicide. But in the eyes of two men, Torigai
Jutaro, a senior detective, and Kiichi Mihara, a young gun from Tokyo,
something is not quite right. Together, they begin to pick at the knot of a
unique and calculated crime.
Inspector Imanishi Investigates [available in paperback]
Seicho Matsumoto [translated
into English by Beth Cary]
Tokyo, 1960. As the first rays of morning light hit the
rails at Kamata Station, a man’s body is found on the tracks. With only two
leads – a distinctive accent and a single word, ‘kameda’ – senior inspector
Imanishi Eitaro is called in to solve the puzzle.
Setting aside his beloved bonsai and haikus, he must cross
Japan in search of answers, from Osaka to Akita, accompanied by junior
detective Yoshimura. At each new town, they encounter traces of the avant-garde
Nouveau Group – young Tokyo artists who are bringing new ideas from the West.
What to make of this modern collective? And how to stop another mysterious
death occurring? Inspector Imanishi investigates.
Suspicion [available
for pre-order – Paperback to be published 29 May 2025]
Seicho Matsumoto
[translated into English by Jesse Kirkwood]
Onizuka Kumako is a fierce woman: tall, beautiful, and not
afraid to speak her mind. In Tokyo bars, she seduces customers and commits
petty crime, using her connections to the local yakuza to get by. When she
meets Shirakawa Fukutaro, a rich widower desperate for companionship and
unaware of her shady past, the two hit it off and are soon married. But their
newlywed bliss is suddenly cut short: one rainy July evening, their car veers
off course, plunges into the harbour and Fukutaro is pulled beneath the waves.
Suspected of murder and labelled a femme fatale, Kumako is
hounded by the press, but stays firm, repeatedly proclaiming her own innocence.
As pressure from dogged journalists mounts, the tide of public opinion is
rising against her. But when a scrupulous defence lawyer takes on her case,
doubt begins to creep in .
A Quiet Place
[available for pre-order – Paperback to be published on 7 Aug. 2025]
Seicho Matsumoto [Translated
into English by Louise Heal Kawai]
While on a business trip to Kobe, Tsuneo Asai receives the
news that his wife Eiko has died of a heart attack. Eiko had a heart condition
so the news of her death wasn't totally unexpected. But the circumstances of
her demise left Tsuneo, a softly spoken government bureaucrat, perplexed. How
did it come about that his wife, who was shy and withdrawn, and only left their
house twice a week to go to haiku meetings ended up dead in a small shop in a
shady Tokyo neighbourhood?
When Tsuneo goes to apologize to the boutique owner for the
trouble caused by his wife's death he discovers the villa Tachibana nearby, a
house known to be a meeting place for secret lovers. As he digs deeper into his
wife's recent past, he must eventually conclude that she led a double life.
Matsumoto's works broke new
ground by incorporating elements of human psychology and ordinary life. His
works often reflect a wider social context and post-war nihilism that expanded
the scope and further darkened the atmosphere of the genre. His exposé of
corruption among police officials and criminals was a new addition to the
field. The subject of investigation was not just the crime but also the society
affected.
Although Matsumoto was a
self-educated prolific author, his first book was not printed until he was in
his forties. In the following 40 years, he published more than 450 works.
Matsumoto's work included historical novels and non-fiction, but it was his
mystery and detective fiction that solidified his reputation as a writer
internationally.
Credited with popularizing the
genre among readers in his country, Matsumoto became Japan's best-selling and
highest earning author in the 1960s. His most acclaimed detective novels,
including Ten to sen (1958; Points and Lines, 1970); Suna no utsuwa (1961;
Inspector Imanishi Investigates, 1989) and Kiri no hata (1961; Pro Bono, 2012),
have been translated into a number of languages, including English. He received
the Akutagawa Prize in 1952, the Kikuchi Kan Prize in 1970, and the Mystery
Writers of Japan Award in 1957. He served as president of the Mystery Writers
of Japan from 1963 to 1971.
Matsumoto wrote short fiction
while simultaneously producing multiple novels, at one point as many as five
concurrently, in the form of magazine serials. Many of his crime stories
debuted in periodicals, among them "Harikomi" (The Chase), in which a
woman reunites with her fugitive lover while police close in on them.
For his literary
accomplishments, Matsumoto received the Mystery Writers of Japan Prize, Kikuchi
Kan Prize, and the Yoshikawa Eiji Prize for Literature. In 1952 he was awarded
the Akutagawa Prize for "The Legend of the Kokura-Diary”.
In 1977, Matsumoto met Ellery
Queen when they visited Japan. In 1987, he was invited by French mystery
writers to talk about his sense of mystery at Grenoble.
More information on the life
of and work of Seichō Matsumoto HERE
More information on these
reissues from Penguin Classics HERE
Shots Magazine would like to thank Fiona
Livesey of Penguin Random House for assistance in alerting our readers about
the work of Seichō Matsumoto.
