Schoolgirl

A new selection of six short stories by one of Japan''s most iconic twentieth-century writers

An adolescent girl narrates her day in an existential masterpiece that explores what it means to be a forming person in a fomenting society. A woman writes a farewell note to her husband, an artist who has driven her away with his counterfeit profundity and naked ambition. A plain young woman steals a bathing suit for a handsome friend, only to find herself ostracised by her neighbours for her boy-crazed behaviour - and her refusal to be shamed.

These six stories by Osamu Dazai are among his finest. Written during the Second World War, in the shadow of intense nationalism, they unpick the concept of the patriotic, productive or moral self. Including the novella ''Schoolgirl'', which rocketed Dazai to fame on initial publication in 1939, this collection, newly translated by Polly Barton, is a perfect introduction to Dazai''s work.

Osamu Dazai (Author)
Shuji Tsushima (1909–1948), better known by his pen name Osamu Dazai, was a Japanese writer. Many of his works, including the novel No Longer Human (1948) and the novella Schoolgirl (1939) are considered modern classics in Japan. His life was marred by addiction, depression and impoverishment, but his works soared in popularity, particularly in the post-war years. He died by suicide in 1948.

Polly Barton (Translator)
Polly Barton is a literary translator and writer. Her translations from Japanese to English include the bestselling Butter by Asako Yuzuki, The Woman Dies and Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, and There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura. Her translation of Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa was longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025. Barton has also written the non-fiction books Fifty Sounds and Porn: An Oral History, and a novel, What am I, a Deer?