A Room Where The Star-Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard

A Novel in Three Parts

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, Asian, Far Eastern, Literary
Cover of the book A Room Where The Star-Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard by Hideo Levy, Columbia University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Hideo Levy ISBN: 9780231527972
Publisher: Columbia University Press Publication: July 19, 2011
Imprint: Columbia University Press Language: English
Author: Hideo Levy
ISBN: 9780231527972
Publisher: Columbia University Press
Publication: July 19, 2011
Imprint: Columbia University Press
Language: English

Set against the political and social upheavals of the 1960s, A Room Where the Star-Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard tells the story of Ben Isaac, a blond-haired, blue-eyed American youth living with his father at the American consulate in Yokohama. Chafing against his father's strict authority and the trappings of an America culture that has grown increasingly remote, Ben flees home to live with Ando, his Japanese friend. Refusing to speak English with Ben, Ando shows the young American the way to Shinjuku, the epicenter of Japan's countercultural movement and the closest Ben has ever felt to home.

From the vantage point of a privileged and alienated "outsider" (gaijin), Levy's narrative, which echoes events in his own life, beautifully captures a heady, eventful moment in Japanese history. It also richly renders the universal struggle to grasp the full contours of one's identity. Wandering the streets of Shinjuku, Ben can barely decipher the signs around him or make sense of the sounds reaching his ears. Eventually, the symbols and sensations take root, and he becomes one with Japanese language and culture. Through his explorations, Ben breaks free from English and the constraints of being a gaijin. Levy's coming-of-age novel is an eloquent elegy to a lost time.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Set against the political and social upheavals of the 1960s, A Room Where the Star-Spangled Banner Cannot Be Heard tells the story of Ben Isaac, a blond-haired, blue-eyed American youth living with his father at the American consulate in Yokohama. Chafing against his father's strict authority and the trappings of an America culture that has grown increasingly remote, Ben flees home to live with Ando, his Japanese friend. Refusing to speak English with Ben, Ando shows the young American the way to Shinjuku, the epicenter of Japan's countercultural movement and the closest Ben has ever felt to home.

From the vantage point of a privileged and alienated "outsider" (gaijin), Levy's narrative, which echoes events in his own life, beautifully captures a heady, eventful moment in Japanese history. It also richly renders the universal struggle to grasp the full contours of one's identity. Wandering the streets of Shinjuku, Ben can barely decipher the signs around him or make sense of the sounds reaching his ears. Eventually, the symbols and sensations take root, and he becomes one with Japanese language and culture. Through his explorations, Ben breaks free from English and the constraints of being a gaijin. Levy's coming-of-age novel is an eloquent elegy to a lost time.

More books from Columbia University Press

Cover of the book The Columbia Anthology of Modern Japanese Literature by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Our Forest, Your Ecosystem, Their Timber by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Soul and Form by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book The Gathering of Intentions by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Genes, Brains, and Human Potential by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Shizi by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Palestinians in Syria by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book For Nirvana by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book The End of the West and Other Cautionary Tales by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Quotations for All Occasions by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Russian Foreign Policy in the Twenty-First Century and the Shadow of the Past by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book The Columbia Anthology of Japanese Essays by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book The Garden and the Fire by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book The Sense and Non-Sense of Revolt by Hideo Levy
Cover of the book Sovereignty by Hideo Levy
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy