Japanese Science

Vampires: murderous creatures in the shape of humans, they stalk the night feeding on the blood of innocents. Seemingly immortal, they can be destroyed only by the use of a stake through the heart, severing of their heads, or exposure to sunlight. By the year AD 12,090, vampires have ruled the Earth for almost 300 years, and it is only these weaknesses that have kept these foul monsters from totally overrunning the world. But what happens when those rules no longer apply?

For those looking for the real story behind the fictionalized movie account of the 47 Ronin story, this is the definitive, fascinating account of this unforgettable tale of a band of samurai who defied the Emperor to avenge the disgrace and death of their master, and faced certain death as a result. It led to one of the bloodiest episodes in Japanese history, and in the process, created a new set of heroes in Japan.

Undeterred by his untimely death on Earth, 15-year-old Mochizuki Touya continues to meander around in another world! After a series of misadventures, the young man has assembled a motley crew of adventurers, including the timid mage Linze, the feisty brawler Elze, the ever-hungry samurai Yae, and even the young archer Yumina, heir to the Belfast throne. Together with his party (and a divine white tiger), Touya sets his sights on the horizon, heading for the demi-human kingdom of Mismede! But all is not what it seems.

国家、貨幣、企業……虚構が他人との協力を可能にし、文明をもたらした！

Monsters, spirits, fantastic beings, and supernatural creatures haunt the folklore and popular culture of Japan. Broadly labeled yōkai, they appear in many forms, from tengu mountain goblins and kappa water sprites, to shape-shifting kitsune foxes and long-tongued ceiling-lickers. Popular today in anime, manga, film, and video games, many yōkai originated in local legends, folktales, and regional ghost stories. The Book of Yōkai invites listeners to examine how people create, transmit, and collect folklore, and how they make sense of the mysteries in the world around them.

At turns nonchalantly hip and charmingly deranged, Suzuki's singular slant on speculative fiction would be echoed in countless later works, from Margaret Atwood and Harumi Murakami, to Black Mirror and Ex Machina. In these darkly playful and punky stories, the fantastical elements are always earthed by the universal pettiness of strife between the sexes, and the gritty reality of life on the lower rungs, whatever planet that ladder might be on.

Amazon Editors' Pick: Best Literature and Fiction books of October From the renowned Booker Prize winner and nationally bestselling author of Snow comes a richly atmospheric new mystery about a woman’s sudden disappearance in a small coastal town in Ireland, where nothing is as it seems. "John...

*NATIONAL BESTSELLER* In the fifth book in the sensational, cozy Before the Coffee Gets Cold series translated from Japanese, the mysterious café where customers arrive hoping to travel back in time welcomes four new guests: The father who could not allow his daughter to get married A woman who...

Start speaking Japanese in minutes, and grasp the language, culture, and customs in just minutes more with Lower Beginner Japanese, a completely new way to learn Japanese with ease! Lower Beginner Japanese will have you speaking with proper pronunciation from the very first lesson and arm you with cultural insight and other information to utterly shock and amaze your Japanese friends.

Will and his new allies at last set out for the Rust Mountains to face the dragon Valacirca. After a nostalgic reunion and an unexpected encounter, the curtain of battle must rise in the lost underground kingdom. What fate awaits the Faraway Paladin? The god of undeath is clear: "I will say it once more. If you challenge him, you will die."

From his deathbed, Hero-King Inglis, the divine knight and master of all he surveys, gazes down on the empire he built with his mighty hand. Having devoted his life to statecraft and his subjects' well-being, his one unfulfilled wish is to live again, for himself this time: a warrior's life he'd devoted himself to before his rise to power. His patron goddess, Alistia, hears his plea and smiles upon him, flinging his soul into the far future.

The Japanese roleplaying game (JRPG) genre is one that is known for bold, unforgettable characters; rich stories; and some of the most iconic and beloved games in the industry. Inspired by early Western RPGs and introducing technology and artistic styles that pushed the boundaries of what video games could be, this genre is responsible for creating some of the most complex, bold, and beloved games in history. In Fight, Magic, Items, Aidan Moher guides listeners through the history of JRPGs.

After returning from the battle at the Rust Mountains, what awaited Will was not a fairytale ending or another terrifying threat, but the commonplace events of his everyday life. His friendship and a fierce battle with his dependable ally, the swordsman Reystov. An adventure in a snow-filled forest with the troubadour Bee. A battle with an ancient indomitable giant. And prayers and conversation with the god of the flame.

Japan is a single nation, but its origins are so old, and often, so fragmented, that unified mythology and folklore can be difficult to point to. Still, there are some key texts, tales, and characters we can focus on which will give us a pretty good sense of Japanese mythology. In this audiobook, you'll discover stories of mystery, horror, and romance while simultaneously learning about the Japanese culture.

In a city of the dead, long since ruined and far from human civilization, lives a single human child. His name is Will, and he's being raised by three undead: the hearty skeletal warrior, Blood; the graceful mummified priestess, Mary; and the crotchety spectral sorcerer, Gus. The three pour love into the boy, and teach him all they know. But one day, Will starts to wonder: "Who am I?"

Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu wrote The Tale of Genji in the 11th century to entertain the other women in the court. It follows the romantic exploits of the title character, an emperor’s son, as he navigates life within aristocratic society and eventually outside of it. Praised for its psychological insight into the characters’ motivations, the book greatly influenced Japanese culture and is widely considered the world’s first novel. In 1882, Suematsu Kencho translated a condensed version of the text into English, allowing this classic tale to reach a wider audience.

Enter a land of gods, samurai, and spirits—where ancient stories still echo today. Japanese Legends isn’t just another dry history book—it reveals how sacred myths still shape Japan’s festivals, rituals, and national identity. Whether you're drawn to samurai history, yokai tales, or the traditions of shrines and emperors, this book offers a fresh, accessible way to explore the myths and legends that built Japan.

Emma Hooper thought coming home to small-town life and the family farm would give her a chance to rest and recover from a traumatic accident. But that was before she started seeing ghosts. It was before Grandma Hooper started singing on the roof, and it was way, way before anybody spotted a ghost in a 19th-century cavalry uniform coming out of an outhouse. Can Emma learn to handle her newfound ability to see spirits, while figuring out a confusing relationship with the handsome local doctor? All while solving the ghastly murder of Preacher Jacob?

Putting the fey tragedy behind him, Erich arrives at the Rhinian capital and begins his term of service under Lady Agrippina at the Imperial College of Magic. There, he draws the attention of a troubling wardrobe connoisseur but has no choice but to press on and earn his sister's tuition. After befriending a student at the College, the two set off on one of Agrippina's simple errands—until the Goddess of Dice turns their quick chore into a full-blown dungeon crawl!

China and Japan have cultural and political connections that stretch back 1,500 years. But today, their relationship is strained. China's military buildup deeply worries Japan, while Japan's brutal occupation of China in World War II remains an open wound. In recent years, less than 10 percent of each population had positive feelings toward the other, and both countries insist that the other side must deal openly with its history before relations can improve. Ezra Vogel's China and Japan examines key turning points in Sino-Japanese history.