He returns to an onsen town, whose primary attraction is the hot springs called onsens in Japan, to meet with a woman named Komako he met on a previous business trip. “Snow Country” follows a young ballet dilettante, a person who cultivates interest in an art form as a hobby, named Shimamura. It was then published in English in 1956 after popular Japanese literature scholar and translator Edward Seidensticker read it and liked it so much he decided to translate it. It was written by Yasunari Kawabata, 川端康成 (kawabata yasunari), from 1935 to 1948 and published in Japan as installments in a literary journal before being published as a full novel. “Snow Country,” or 雪国 (yukiguni) in its original language, is a classic novel from Japan. It teaches readers about Japanese culture while engaging them in a tragic love story. This article is meant to introduce you to a classic Asian novel that deserves more attention than it gets. What a shame it is because Asian classics have just as much to offer as any other classic literature out there, maybe even more. Very rarely are Asian classics taught in American schools, especially East Asian, unless you take a class specifically for them or feel particularly adventurous in your literary journey. Some of you may have focused on English or French classics with authors such as Shakespeare, Charles Dickens or Victor Hugo. When asked to think about classic literature, what do you think of? If you have had a standard, American education, you probably think of works like “How to Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee, or pieces by Ralph Waldo Emerson or even Emily Dickinson.

Snow country japanese novel