Did you win the MAR-APR Book Zoom giveaway?

Win a book zoom for you and your friends, hosted by author Jonelle Patrick For the next few months, I’ll be giving away a fully hosted The Last Tea Bowl Thief Book Zoom to one lucky Japanagram subscriber every month! If you enjoyed The Last Tea Bowl Thief and have a few friends who mightContinueContinue reading “Did you win the MAR-APR Book Zoom giveaway?”

Yakitori Chicken Mini-Burgers

This is a little less than half a recipe. I usually freeze half of them, then throw together a batch of sauce on another night for an easy five-minute dinner Serves 8 (if one serving size is 5 mini-burgers) Chicken Mini-Burgers 12 oz (340g) ground chicken 12 oz (340g) silken tofu (the soft, custard-y kind,ContinueContinue reading Yakitori Chicken Mini-Burgers

APRIL 2020

Click on photo to read the feature This month’s Book Review: Newcomer Ghosts of the Tsunami is a page-turningly readable piece of narrative non-fiction, written by the Asia Editor of The Times of London. Using fascinating personal accounts – like why Buddhist priests had to brush up on their exorcism skills – he delivers poignant insightsContinueContinue reading “APRIL 2020”

Creamy Sesame Noodles

You’ll never guess how healthy these sesame noodles are, because they’re decadently creamy…without the cream. Creamy Sesame Noodles Ingredients: 3.5 oz. (100 g) dried Japanese soba (buckwheat) noodles or regular pasta 2 T. (about two) sliced green onions Toasted sesame seeds, for garnish Diced cooked chicken (optional, but it makes a satisfying lunch if youContinueContinue reading Creamy Sesame Noodles

The OTHER famous spring season

Embracing allergy season, one Japanese nose bra at a time Ahhh, spring is here, and in Japan, that means it’s time for The Annual Season! Cherry blossoms? No, ALLERGIES. And it’s not actually the cherry blossoms that are the big culprits, it’s those dang cedar trees that produce all the fragrant wood used in traditionalContinueContinue reading “The OTHER famous spring season”

Let’s see thousands of fish flags fluttering over a river

This month’s destination: Tatebayashi, in Gunma Prefecture Here’s something you won’t see anywhere else in the world: over four thousand colorful fish flags swimming over a river, just an easy day trip from Tokyo! The Tatebayashi koi nobori festival goes on for a nice long time – from late March to early May – soContinueContinue reading “Let’s see thousands of fish flags fluttering over a river”

Newcomer

by Keigo Higashino Setting & details: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Authenticity of Japanese characters & dialogue: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐Translation quality: ⭐⭐⭐⭐Entertainment value: ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐My recommendation: Extremely engaging and satisfying In this Edgar-nominated mystery, Nihonbashi detective Koichiro Kaga pursues the killer of a recently-divorced middle-aged woman, solving all the little mysteries that crop up along the way as he eliminates suspects, one byContinueContinue reading “Newcomer”

In Japan, be careful what you wish for

Because you might not get what you had in mind These characters read “ganbaru,” which is usually translated as “good luck.” What they literally mean? “Try hard.” Which explains Japanese culture better than almost anything I know. You think you’re saying one thing, but what someone hears in Japanese can be quite different. For example,ContinueContinue reading “In Japan, be careful what you wish for”