Sanshiro

Cover Design or Artwork by Coralie Bickford-Smith
Introduction by Haruki Murakami
Translated by Jay Rubin
Notes by Jay Rubin
Hardcover
$30.00 US
5-1/16"W x 7-3/4"H
On sale Aug 04, 2026 | 288 Pages | 9780241739839
Grades 9-12 + AP/IB

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A gorgeous Clothbound Classics edition of Soseki's cherished novel, with an introduction by Haruki Murakami

A Penguin Classic

Soseki's work of gentle humor and doomed innocence depicts twenty-three-year-old Sanshiro, a recent graduate from a provincial college, as he begins university life in the big city of Tokyo. Baffled and excited by the traffic, the academics and — most of all — the women, Sanshiro must find his way amongst the sophisticates who fill his new life. An incisive social and cultural commentary, Sanshiro is also a subtle study of first love, tradition, modernization, and the idealism of youth against the cynicism of middle age. This is a Clothbound Classics edition of Soseki's beloved novel, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. These collectible Penguin editions are bound in high-quality, colorful and tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. Masterfully translated by Jay Rubin, this edition also includes an introduction by Haruki Murakami.

Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world, representing a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
Nick Bradley is the author of THE CAT AND THE CITY (2020) and FOUR SEASONS IN JAPAN (2023). In 2024 he was chosen by The British Council and The National Centre for Writing as one of ten rising stars in UK writing. His work has so far been translated into twenty languages.


He lived in Japan for many years where he worked as a translator, and currently teaches on the Creative Writing master's programme at the University of Cambridge and also taught on the Creative Writing Prose Fiction MA at UEA. View titles by Natsume Soseki

About

A gorgeous Clothbound Classics edition of Soseki's cherished novel, with an introduction by Haruki Murakami

A Penguin Classic

Soseki's work of gentle humor and doomed innocence depicts twenty-three-year-old Sanshiro, a recent graduate from a provincial college, as he begins university life in the big city of Tokyo. Baffled and excited by the traffic, the academics and — most of all — the women, Sanshiro must find his way amongst the sophisticates who fill his new life. An incisive social and cultural commentary, Sanshiro is also a subtle study of first love, tradition, modernization, and the idealism of youth against the cynicism of middle age. This is a Clothbound Classics edition of Soseki's beloved novel, designed by the award-winning Coralie Bickford-Smith. These collectible Penguin editions are bound in high-quality, colorful and tactile cloth with foil stamped into the design. Masterfully translated by Jay Rubin, this edition also includes an introduction by Haruki Murakami.

Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world, representing a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Author

Nick Bradley is the author of THE CAT AND THE CITY (2020) and FOUR SEASONS IN JAPAN (2023). In 2024 he was chosen by The British Council and The National Centre for Writing as one of ten rising stars in UK writing. His work has so far been translated into twenty languages.


He lived in Japan for many years where he worked as a translator, and currently teaches on the Creative Writing master's programme at the University of Cambridge and also taught on the Creative Writing Prose Fiction MA at UEA. View titles by Natsume Soseki

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