"Filled with light, satirical touches." -- Donald Keene

Reckless but unfailingly honest, Botchan is the youngest son in a middle-class Tokyo family. Following his graduation from college, he takes a job as a math teacher on the island of Shikoku, far from the city. Thrust into this alien small-town environment, Botchan encounters nothing but trouble from his students and fellow teachers. Among his tormentors are the pompous, two-faced vice-principal; his fawning sidekick—the art teacher; the spineless principal; and a pack of brawny, prankster students -- all of whom seem out to get him. Mayhem ensues, but in the end Botchan prevails through honesty and dogged determination.

A modern classic, Botchan rivals Soseki's famous I Am a Cat in popularity in Japan. This is the funniest of Soseki's novels, a penetrating portrait of a young man's quest to survive the suffocating hypocrisy of everyone around him while remaining true to his beliefs.

Recommended for readers ages 14 and up due to explicit language

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Tuttle Publishing
Published: 09/17/2024
ISBN: 9784805317822
Pages: 192
Weight: 0.65lbs
Size: 7.90h x 5.50w x 0.60d