Shipwrecks (1982)

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by Akira Yoshimura



The poverty-stricken inhabitants of a seaside Japanese village struggle to survive at the subsistence level.

 


During the stormy season, they light the salt cauldrons all night in the hope of luring foundering ships to wreck themselves on the nearby reefs, where the crew will be killed and the ship plundered and disassembled.

 


The story tells three years in the life of Isaku, a boy who must provide for his mother and siblings while his father is away in indentured servitude.

 

"Shipwreck" (Japanese)


By taking us deep into the daily lives of the impoverished villagers, author Akira Yoshimura allows us to understand how these desperate people can adjust their ethical system to justify murder in the interest of the community's well-being.

 

Akira Yoshimura


Karmic justice awaits them, however, and the novel's finale is harrowing and melancholy.


"Shipwrecks" (Spanish)

"Destruction" (Polish)

"Shipwrecks" (Hebrew)

"Shipwrecks" (Portuguese)

"Shipwrecks" (Greek)

"Shipwrecks" (Romanian)

"Shipwreck" (French)

"Shipwreck" (German)


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