“Fascinating . . . starkly lyrical . . . It’s a knockout.”
—Publishers Weekly (Starred review)
“As often as Kobayashi roots her work in historical and scientific research, she also does so in rich and evocative metaphors . . . A remarkable collection.”
—Kirkus Reviews
“Like a brilliant and rare gem, Erika Kobayashi’s Sunrise: Radiant Stories stuns with layered intelligence and powerful prose. Each story offers a type of familial intimacy charged with profound historical clarity. How thankful I am to Brian Bergstrom for this indelible translation from one of Japan’s brightest stars. This book feels like it’s made of magic; that it’s made of light.”
—Kali Fajardo-Anstine, bestselling author of Woman of Light
“Reading Erika Kobayashi‘s stories is almost like getting to know modern Japan through a poetry-science lab experiment. Kobayashi mixes her fascination with the aftermaths and consequences of WWII and the social issues of contemporary Japan with a kind of child-like curiosity that make her story both complex and accessible. Nearly every story gives the impression of a mysterious chemical reaction that is happening before the reader’s eyes. A mesmerizing collection.”
—Prabda Yoon, author of The Sad Part Was
“Kobayashi’s uncanny stories probe for the contacts between our most intimate lived experience and the awesome yet subtle cosmic forces that permeate it, from atomic radiation to the ruthless arrow of time. Bergstrom’s rich, graceful translation offers us the chance to peer over Kobayashi’s shoulder as she works these experiments, holding our breath for the next fraught and wonderful discovery.”
—Theodore McCombs, author of Uranians
“Combining a sense of daring with a sense of wonder, Erika Kobayashi’s Sunrise: Radiant Stories presents boldly speculative visions side by side with intense and finely wrought everyday moments. Throughout this striking collection, Kobayashi creates surprising space for her reader to eavesdrop on intergenerational conversations between the past, the present, and imagined futures that seem to glow just over the horizon.”
—Lee Conell, author of The Party Upstairs
“Erika Kobayashi’s stories are told with so little artifice that one might think them fairy tales, did they not float like islands adrift on a dark sea of history.”
—John Whittier Treat, author of First Consonants
“I loved Erika Kobayashi’s Trinity Trinity Trinity, so I am lining up for her collection of strange and reflective connected stories about nuclear power and its effect on Japanese people and society, especially its women.”
—Karla J. Strand, Ms. Magazine
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