{"product_id":"the-emissary","title":"The Emissary","description":"\u003cp\u003eJapan, after suffering from a massive irreparable disaster, cuts itself off from the world. Children are so weak they can barely stand or walk: the only people with any get-go are the elderly. Mumei lives with his grandfather Yoshiro, who worries about him constantly. They carry on a day-to-day routine in what could be viewed as a post-Fukushima time, with all the children born ancient--frail and gray-haired, yet incredibly compassionate and wise. Mumei may be enfeebled and feverish, but he is a beacon of hope, full of wit and free of self-pity and pessimism. Yoshiro concentrates on nourishing Mumei, a strangely wonderful boy who offers \"the beauty of the time that is yet to come.\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA delightful, irrepressibly funny book,\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Emissary\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cspan\u003e \u003c\/span\u003eis filled with light. Yoko Tawada, deftly turning inside-out \"the curse,\" defies gravity and creates a playful joyous novel out of a dystopian one, with a legerdemain uniquely her own.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAuthor: Yoko Tawada\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eTranslator: Margaret Mitsutani\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBinding: Paperback\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003ePrefer Audiobook? \u003ca href=\"https:\/\/tidd.ly\/4ffrQ6Y\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"\u003eListen Here\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eWinner of 2018 National Book Award in Translated Literature\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cem\u003eLibrary Journal\u003c\/em\u003e Best Books of 2018\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"An airily beautiful dystopian novella about mortality. Tawada's quirky style and ability to jump from realism to abstraction manages to both chastise humanity for the path we are taking towards destruction and look hopefully toward an unknown future.\" --Enobong Essien \"Booklist\" \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"A Hieronymus Bosch-like painting in novel form. Tawada's charming surrealism imparts an off-kilter quality to her work that would make it feel slight, if it weren't for the density, precision, and uniqueness of her mind. A slim and beguiling novel in Margaret Mitsutani's enchanting and flawless translation.\" --Marie Mutsuki Mockett \"Public Books\"\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"New Directions Publishing Corporation","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51962557628704,"sku":null,"price":15.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1010\/4465\/0272\/files\/emissary.jpg?v=1783600200","url":"https:\/\/side-plot.myshopify.com\/products\/the-emissary","provider":"Side Plot","version":"1.0","type":"link"}