{"product_id":"the-traitor-paperback-7","title":"The Traitor - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eKōbō Abe\u003c\/b\u003e (Author), \u003cb\u003eMark Gibeau\u003c\/b\u003e (Translator)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn postwar Japan, a writer meets a small-town innkeeper who is obsessed with a tale from the nineteenth century. He relates the saga of Enomoto Takeaki, an admiral in the final years of the Tokugawa shogunate who regained authority under the Meiji government. A former member of imperial Japan's military police, the innkeeper dwells on the question of loyalty even as he struggles with his responsibility for the arrest and murder of his brother-in-law during the war. Later, he sends the writer a mysterious manuscript purporting to be the account of a peddler turned samurai whom Enomoto betrayed. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003ePart historical fiction, part detective story, \u003ci\u003eThe Traitor\u003c\/i\u003e is a remarkable novel about navigating changing political landscapes by one of the most significant modern Japanese writers. In his only historical novel, Abe Kōbō turns to a pivotal moment in Japan's past to explore profound questions about the nature of loyalty and the choices that people must make when they encounter forces beyond their control or understanding. Published in 1964, when a new generation had begun asking their parents about the war, Abe's tale of betrayal sparked controversy across the political spectrum. The great writer's most important previously untranslated novel, \u003ci\u003eThe Traitor \u003c\/i\u003edisplays Abe's literary mastery from a new angle.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eAbe Kōbō (1924-1993) was one of Japan's greatest postwar writers, acclaimed for his imaginative fiction and plays of the absurd. Among his best-known novels are \u003ci\u003eThe Woman in the Dunes\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eThe Face of Another\u003c\/i\u003e, and \u003ci\u003eThe Box Man\u003c\/i\u003e. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eMark Gibeau is the award-winning translator of Dazai Osamu's novel \u003ci\u003eA Shameful Life\u003c\/i\u003e (2018). He has also published translations of works by Kawabata Yasunari, Tanizaki Jun'ichirō, Miyamoto Yuriko, and many others.\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 384\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 1.2 x 8.4 x 5.5 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e March 31, 2026\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":44583556087943,"sku":"9780231212953","price":39.6,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0601\/2623\/2711\/files\/djfcKzCye19780231212953.webp?v=1778460618","url":"https:\/\/booksby.splitshops.com\/products\/the-traitor-paperback-7","provider":"Books by splitShops","version":"1.0","type":"link"}