With a history stretching back nearly 1,500 years, Japanese literature is infused from its beginnings with written traditions from around the globe, while ever evolving in its own particular expressive modes and vision. This Very Short Introduction traverses this vast and varied canon, ranging from the world's first novel, The Tale of Genji, to pre-modern and modern narrative fiction (including such writers as Natsume Sôseki, Yukio Mishima and Murakami Haruki); from the foundational works of women's literature to the rich genres of poetry, performance art, and erotica; and from the literary treatise to the precursors of contemporary Japan's most successful cultural export: manga.

Alan Tansman is Professor of Japanese at the University of California, Berkeley and former Director of Berkeley's Townsend Center for the Humanities. He is the author of The Aesthetics of Japanese Fascism and The Writings of Kôda Aya, editor of The Culture of Japanese Fascism, and coeditor of Studies in Modern Japanese Literature.