PURITY
Japanese short stories
Translated from French by Lisa Hannaford-Wong
Originally published under the title "La Pureté" by éditions du Septentrion/Hamac in Quebec City, Canada.
"In all of his sixty-six years, Ajima-sensei had never experienced such weather in Kyushu. Residents of the Kagoshima prefecture had been caught unaware, much like a tea master who, when startled, drops his favourite cup. Just as classes were letting out, a menacing wind had begun to gust, tearing open the dark skies and pelting the school children’s faces with rain as they fled home. Some had taken shelter at the homes of friends, many others, among strangers."
•••••
An old gentleman finds love in a shop window. A shark’s tooth rekindles a childhood memory. A man is driven to the point of obsession by a mysterious black seed... The ten stories inside PURITY spring from a poetry of the everyday, of strangeness, transparency and sudden epiphanies. From the unsaid there comes a strength, a serene confidence.
Vincent Thibault, a talented and prolific writer from Quebec, Canada, follows his own unique path. With this translation by Lisa Hannaford-Wong, English readers can now enjoy his short stories. Purity is certain to delight readers of Haruki Murakami and Yoko Ogawa.