The Book of Yokai, Expanded Second Edition

Mysterious Creatures of Japanese Folklore

Michael Dylan Foster author Shinonome Kijin illustrator

Format:Hardback

Publisher:University of California Press

Published:22nd Oct '24

Should be back in stock very soon

The Book of Yokai, Expanded Second Edition cover

Significantly expanded and updated—a lively excursion into Japanese folklore and its increasing influence within global popular culture.
 
Monsters, spirits, fantastic beings, and supernatural creatures haunt the folklore and popular culture of Japan. Broadly labeled yōkai, they appear in many forms, from tengu mountain goblins and kappa water sprites, to shape-shifting kitsune foxes and long-tongued ceiling-lickers. Popular today in anime, manga, film, and video games, many yōkai originated in local legends, folktales, and regional ghost stories. The Book of Yōkai invites readers to examine how people create, transmit, and collect folklore, and how they make sense of the mysteries in the world around them.

Revised and expanded, this second edition features fifty new illustrations, including an all-new yōkai gallery of stunning color images tracing the visual history of yōkai across centuries. In clear and accessible language, Michael Dylan Foster unpacks the cultural and historical contexts of yōkai, interpreting their varied meanings and introducing people who have pursued them through the ages.

ISBN: 9780520389557

Dimensions: 229mm x 152mm x 28mm

Weight: 998g

480 pages

2nd edition