A smile. Whenever I pick up Lee Tonouchi’s Oriental Faddah and Son, I can’t help but smile. The book’s cover is nicely designed and at 152 pages, it should be a fast read (compared to the 925 pages in Haruki Murakami’s 1Q84 which I’m also reading) but in reality, it’s not because I often find … Continue reading
Upon hearing of okinawa-sanshin.net’s kunkunshi database my first thought was “cool, there’s finally a website that makes available kunkunshi for all to enjoy.” But, alas, the website is actually a database for existing kunkunshi books. Still, it’s a great way to search for a song to find out which kunkunshi book it’s in to save … Continue reading
Lina (30, of the J-pop group MAX) announced on her blog the upcoming 12/22 release of her solo photobook (shashinshuu) LINA SINGS. Her fellow band mate, Reina, has already released two photobooks the latest R-017 is from 2006. (Above image comes via Lina’s blog.)
Snakeskin Shamisen by Naomi Hirahara The familiarity of situations, foods, phrases, and of course, the Okinawan culture appeal to me, making this a fun, quick read. Read the rest of Donna’s review over here. According to the author’s website, Snakeskin Shamisen (which is the third book in her Mas Arai series) has been nominated for … Continue reading
You can’t live in Okinawa and not hear a ghost story or two. During my stay in Shuri, I was told that Japanese soldiers can be seen marching down the Shuri streets at midnight and about a haunted park up the street from where I lived. Christopher Luna links to a book called The Ghosts … Continue reading
LINA’s already done it and now it looks like Reina (29) released her very own semi-nude photobook, “R-017″ (in Japanese, “0″ can be read as “rei”, “1″ as “i”, and “7″ as “na”. All-together now). Coming soon? Playboy Japan’s “The Girls of MAX“. Now if Nana ever releases one…
