ARIGATAI ／ THANKFUL
Your gateway to Japanese literature
We translate classic Japanese fiction into English — detective stories, the first wave of Japanese science fiction, fairy tales, women's writing from the 1920s and 30s — and publish bilingual editions for readers who are learning the language.
- 43 titles
- 16 Japanese authors
- Bilingual JP / EN editions
- Free with Kindle Unlimited
新着・注目
Three to start with
Every title is on Amazon in all regions, and most are free for Kindle Unlimited subscribers.
Days & Nights
Fumiko Hayashi — translated by J.D. Wisgo Stories of classic Japanese women's literature Hayashi wrote hunger, lodging houses and small freedoms better than anyone of her generation. Now in paperback 学習 / FOR LEARNERSYaba-Q
J.D. Wisgo — edited by Kaimai Mizuhiro Yabai quizzes for Japanese learners Volume 1 takes on the basic particles — は, が, を, に — one tricky sentence at a time. 童話 / FAIRY TALESClassic Japanese Fairy Tales
Mimei Ogawa — translated by J.D. Wisgo Seven volumes, and counting Ogawa is called the father of the modern Japanese fairy tale. Almost none of it had reached English before this series.二つの棚
Two ways in
Read it in English
Edogawa Rampo's detectives, Juza Unno's rocket-age science fiction, Kyusaku Yumeno's unsettling dreams, Mimei Ogawa's fairy tales — most of it translated here for the first time.
See the translationsRead it in Japanese
The Kantan! series sets the original Japanese beside the English line by line. Grammar Gatten! and Yaba-Q work through the grammar that textbooks skip.
See the learner editions有難いARIGATAI
Why we are called this
Arigatai means thankful, and being thankful for what surrounds you is a deep habit in Japanese culture. The everyday word for thank you, ありがとう, comes from the same root.
We want to make books readers are thankful for — not only because the books exist in English at last, but because of the culture and the history sitting inside them.