The Book of Yokai, Expanded Second Edition: Mysterious Creatures of Japanese Folklore

Foster, Michael Dylan

ISBN 10: 0520403886 / ISBN 13: 9780520403888

Published by University of California Press, 2024

About this Item

Softcover Paperback with only minor shelf-wear; book is clean, unmarked. In stock. Ships from MN, USA.

Seller Inventory # 023804

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Book of Yokai, Expanded Second Edition: Mysterious Creatures of Japanese Folklore
• Publisher: University of California Press
• Publication Date: 2024
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0520403886
• ISBN 13: 9780520403888
• Binding: Soft cover
• Illustrator: Kijin, Shinonome
• Edition: 2nd Edition
• Condition: Near Fine
• Seller catalogs:
  • Mythology, Folklore, & Fairy Tales

About this title

Synopsis

Significantly expanded and updated—a lively excursion into Japanese folklore and its increasing influence within global popular culture.
 
Monsters, spirits, fantastic beings, and supernatural creatures haunt the folklore and popular culture of Japan. Broadly labeled yōkai, they appear in many forms, from tengu mountain goblins and kappa water sprites, to shape-shifting kitsune foxes and long-tongued ceiling-lickers. Popular today in anime, manga, film, and video games, many yōkai originated in local legends, folktales, and regional ghost stories. The Book of Yōkai invites readers to examine how people create, transmit, and collect folklore, and how they make sense of the mysteries in the world around them.

Revised and expanded, this second edition features fifty new illustrations, including an all-new yōkai gallery of stunning color images tracing the visual history of yōkai across centuries. In clear and accessible language, Michael Dylan Foster unpacks the cultural and historical contexts of yōkai, interpreting their varied meanings and introducing people who have pursued them through the ages.

About the Author

Michael Dylan Foster is Professor in the Department of East Asian Languages and Cultures at the University of California, Davis. He is author of many works on Japanese folklore, including Pandemonium and Parade: Japanese Monsters and the Culture of Yōkai.