Konnyakuuri（The Little Konnyaku Boy）
【Masterpieces of Modern Japanese Literature⑥】
By Sunao Tokunaga
Narrated by Nana Nagao
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A short story by Sunao Tokunaga
“A memoir of Naoki Tokunaga’s childhood experiences—
The boy grew up in poverty and sometimes had to miss school to sell konnyaku. The bucket filled with water was heavy, and he felt ashamed when his classmates saw him on the street. One day, he was bitten by a dog and toppled over, spilling the bucket’s contents. At that moment, he heard a voice close to his ear: “Hey, Tokunaga-kun.” It was his classmate, Shigeru Hayashi.“
This audiobook is a newly recorded work from the “Timeless Story Reading Series,” which was performed at the Museum of Modern Japanese Literature on November 25, 2023.
Author : Osamu Dazai
Narrator : Nana Nagao
Produced by：Koé no Shoten
Special Thanks：Shigoto, Inc. / ROUDOKU.TALKER.JP
Listening Length：00:28:50
Release Date：2024/3/1
＊For how to listen, pricing, purchase methods, payment options, and more, please check each distribution site.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
1899 – 1958
Born in Kumamoto Prefecture, Naoki Tokunaga moved to Tokyo in 1922. After joining Hakubunkan-insatsusho (the Hakubunkan Press/later Kyōdō Press), he participated in the Kyodo Printing labor dispute and was subsequently dismissed. Drawing from this experience, he published Taiyō no nai Machi (“The Street without Sunlight”) in 1929, establishing himself as a leading writer of the Japanese Proletarian Writers’ League.
In 1933, he criticized the league in Sosaku Hoho Jo no Shin Tenkan (A New Change in the Way You Create Stories) and withdrew, later turning to conversion literature with Fuyugare (Withered in Winter). His works, including Hataraku Ikka (The Working Family), Hachinensei (Eight-year System) , and Hikari o kakaguru Hitobito (Who bring the light),vividly depicted the lives of ordinary people.
After World War II, he co-founded the New Japanese Literary Association and, as a writer affiliated with the Japanese Communist Party, published works such as Tsuma yo Nemure (It’s Time to Sleep, My Dear Wife) and Shizuka naru yamayama (Quiet mountains).