Published in 2025 (first published 1972)
168 pages
Uno Chiyo was born in 1897 in Iwakuni, Japan. She began writing in the early 1920s. Initially best known for her scandalous life, she came eventually to be recognized for her mastery of writing. She wrote several notable works, including a memoir that was adapted into a television series, and also became well known as a kimono designer. She died in 1996 aged 98.
Rebecca Copeland is a writer of fiction and literary criticism and a translator of Japanese literature. She earned a PhD in Japanese literature at Columbia University, and she is now a professor at Washington University in St. Louis.
What is this book about?
A piercingly beautiful and candid novel of love, sex and independence in 1920s Japan by a trailblazing Japanese writer.
Growing up in a remote mountain village, Kazue always nurtured a spirit of independence. Ignoring the values of her traditional community, she rejects an early arranged marriage and embarks on a scandalous affair. Exiled from her home, Kazue departs to follow her impulses wherever they might lead. Driven by her enduring hope and resilience, Kazue goes first to Korea and then to Tokyo, taking up with a series of men but always casting out again on her own path. Sparklingly beautiful, The Story of a Single Woman is an autobiographical account of desire and freedom by a trailblazing Japanese writer.
