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Description An essential selection of fiction, poetry, and philosophical prose by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa that illuminates the restless brilliance of one of modern literature’s most influential voices. With a foreword by Polly Barton. Hell of Solitude presents a bold and varied selection of writings by Ryūnosuke Akutagawa, one of the central figures of twentieth-century Japanese literature. Bringing together fiction, poetry, and philosophical prose—much of it appearing in English for the first time—this collection showcases the range and intensity of Akutagawa’s imagination. Moving from the whimsical and fantastical to the grave and introspective, the pieces reveal a writer of extraordinary clarity and psychological depth. Interwoven throughout are poems from a prolific body of verse, examples of which are sparse in English, alongside ‘Art and Other Things’, a fragmentary essay in which Akutagawa expounds his aesthetic views while drawing on examples from world literature and art. Translated with sensitivity and precision by Ryan Choi, Hell of Solitude offers a vital reintroduction to a writer whose lucidity, irony, and existential unease continue to resonate across cultures and generations. ‘One never tires of reading and re-reading his best works… The flow of his language is the best feature of Akutagawa’s style. Never stagnant, it moves along like a living thing.’ – Haruki Murakami ‘The quintessential writer of his era.’ – David Peace ‘Extravagance and horror are in his work, but never in the style, which is always crystal-clear.’ – Jorge Luis Borges ‘At long last, a new volume of Akutagawa’s writing has been ushered into English by the consummate translator Ryan Choi. He has rendered the master storyteller’s previously unavailable prose pieces and poetry more readable than ever. The exquisite subtlety and inimitable charm of the tales, sketches, and poems in this volume will captivate new readers and scholars alike.’ – L. S. Popovich, author of The Arden ‘For the past decade, Ryan Choi has quietly been doing the heroic work of bringing Akutagawa’s lesser-known writings into English. What we are given in this collection are impressions and observations, anecdotes, philosophical digressions, stories that read like poems that read like dreams remembered the morning after. The writings are restrained, understated, precise and fractured. The surfaces of these texts crackle with the charge of Akutagawa’s inimitable mind. Choi’s translations are a revelation.’ – Stephen Mortland ‘Choi is Akutagawa’s boldest – and best – translator. Hell of Solitude restores Akutagawa, the most daring architect of modern Japanese literature, to his rightful state: bewildering beauty, a cascade of shifting rhythms and forms, and the penetrating alertness of a truly aesthetic mind. Akutagawa’s soul is here in this book-shaped vessel, waiting to be known.’ – Dreux Richard Ryūnosuke Akutagawa (1892–1927), born in Tokyo, Japan, was the author of more than 350 works of fiction and non-fiction, including Rashōmon, The Spider’s Thread, Hell Screen, Kappa, and In a Grove. Japan’s premier literary award for emerging writers, the Akutagawa Prize, is named after him. Ryan Choi’s books include In Dreams: The Very Short Stories of Ryūnosuke Akutagawa and Three Demons: A Study on Sanki Saitō’s Haiku. He is an editor at AGNI. His writings and translations have appeared in Harper’s Magazine, The New Criterion, Poetry, The Times Literary Supplement, and elsewhere. He lives in Honolulu, Hawaii, where he was born and raised. Polly Barton is a literary translator and writer. Her translations from Japanese to English include Butter by Asako Yuzuki, The Woman Dies and Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda, and There’s No Such Thing as an Easy Job by Kikuko Tsumura. Her English-language translation of Hunchback by Saou Ichikawa was longlisted for the International Booker Prize 2025. Barton has written the books Fifty Sounds and Porn: An Oral History, both published by Fitzcarraldo Editions, and her debut novel What am I, a Deer? comes out in 2026. Download the press release.
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