Aside from a splendid, original soundtrack commissioned for the present occasion, featuring compositions of a famous American noise group, Wolf Eyes, and Japanese artist Asuna, in addition to a fabulous sound effects job and the discreet rustling of the world’s rumours, we see, as in the silent movies era, all of its dialogues written on the image. No doubt one reason why she chooses to erase all live sound. To such a dense bouquet of motifs, Lisa Spilliaert, superbly rising up to the challenge of her first feature-length film, adds the arabesque of another « translation »: adapting a literary text to film. Not to mention the sophisticated twist which the relationship between Western and Asian cultures sketches out. We understand that what is at stake here sensibly points, with an added sense of the scandalous, to those dangerous liaisons at the heart of any and all translating endeavour.

In eminently disturbing ways, it tells us about how incest finds its way, reaching the core of all plots, inviting characters to merge into one another in the most appalling ways. In eminently unsettling ways, it tells us about how every Japanese translator must die once she reaches the ninety-eighth short story. Riddles unfold around another eponymous text, a collection of short stories written in English, this time, by Sarao Takase, a mysterious Japanese author who emigrated to the United States. is the title of a Banana Yoshimoto novel published in 1990. is essential reading, a stunningly simple tale of youthful desires and obsessions.To begin with, N. Haunted by Shoji's death, Kazami discovers the truth behind the ninety-eighth story-and comes to believe that 'everything that had happened was shockingly beautiful, enough to make you crazy.' Banana Yoshimoto's language sweeps the reader immediately into the streets of Tokyo, with her uncanny ability to merge the echoes of Japanese traditional literature with a contemporary plot.

But the book may never be published in his native Japan: each translator who takes up the ninety-eighth story chooses death too-including Kazami's boyfriend, Shoji. In N.P., a celebrated Japanese writer has committed suicide, leaving behind a collection of stories written in English, entitled N.P. 'Yoshimoto hits some of the same notes that a previous generation's literary masters (say, Kawabata or Tanizaki) might sound, and yet the effect seems artless, spontaneous and wonderfully fresh.' - Los Angeles Times Book Reviewīanana Yoshimoto's warm, witty, and heartfelt depictions of the lives of young Japanese have earned her international acclaim and best-seller status, as well as a place among the best of contemporary Japanese literature.

N.P. by Banana Yoshimoto