Synopses & Reviews
Synopsis
Yukio Mishima's The Sailor Who Fell From Grace With the Sea explores the vicious nature of youth that is sometimes mistaken for innocence.
Thirteen-year-old Noboru is a member of a gang of highly philosophical teenage boys who reject the tenets of the adult world -- to them, adult life is illusory, hypocritical, and sentimental. When Noboru's widowed mother is romanced by Ryuji, a sailor, Noboru is thrilled. He idolizes this rugged man of the sea as a hero. But his admiration soon turns to hatred, as Ryuji forsakes life onboard the ship for marriage, rejecting everything Noboru holds sacred. Upset and appalled, he and his friends respond to this apparent betrayal with a terrible ferocity.
Synopsis
A novel from "one of the outstanding writers of the world" (The New York Times) that explores the vicious nature of youth that is sometimes mistaken for innocence. - "A major work of art." --Time
Thirteen-year-old Noboru is a member of a gang of highly philosophical teenage boys who reject the tenets of the adult world -- to them, adult life is illusory, hypocritical, and sentimental. When Noboru's widowed mother is romanced by Ryuji, a sailor, Noboru is thrilled. He idolizes this rugged man of the sea as a hero. But his admiration soon turns to hatred, as Ryuji forsakes life onboard the ship for marriage, rejecting everything Noboru holds sacred. Upset and appalled, he and his friends respond to this apparent betrayal with a terrible ferocity.
About the Author
Yukio Mishima was born in Tokyo in 1925. He graduated from Tokyo Imperial University, School of Jurisprudence, in 1947. His first published book, The Forest in Full Bloom, appeared in 1944. He established himself as a major author with Confessions of a Mask (1949) and from then until his death he continued to publish novels, short stories, and plays each year. In 1970, at the age of 45, Mishima committed seppuku (ritual suicide) — a spectacular death that attracted worldwide attention. To this day, he is widely considered to be one of the great masters of modern Japanese literature.