drafts, ones I’m sure of.I believe literature generalizes through specifics, but that generalizing can, and should, be done sensitively and compassionately.
How did you approach the depiction of the clash between Tokyo’s traditional values and modern realities? I think this is one of the most common cultural themes of Japan. It’s hard to know how to keep the good parts of the past and yet work toward much needed changes. That’s just such a daily experience, whether in the realm of corporate accounting, police procedures, education (my other profession), or in the details of reforming a shopping street or replacing bathroom fixtures. Is old better for its time-tested appeal, or is new an upgrade, more functional or developed? It’s hard to decide what to keep and what to make new. I find that to be a constant conflict in Japan, but also part of the fascinating tension of life here. T he theme of scams targeting the elderly is central to this book. What inspired you to explore this issue, and what research did you undertake to portray it authentically? Were there any specific challenges you faced when writing about the shitamachi area or the scamming plotline in Shitamachi Scam? I ’ve never been scammed myself, but a few of my friends’ parents have been scammed. It’s a recurring news item. Almost every week another tricky crime is exposed. Every single ATM in Japan has a warning sign about sagi scams. So, my inspiration there comes from pure outrage. What a thing to do to some retired person! But writing about shitamachi was easy. I love that part of Tokyo and wander around there as often as I can. It feels like a totally different city from the areas with huge developments and more commercial focus. I like those go- go areas, too, but differently. Shitamachi is very special in how it preserves older cultural forms and traditional energies.
The balance between personal life and professional duty is a recurring theme for Detective Hiroshi. How do you explore this conflict in Shitamachi Scam?
Everyone manages that tightrope walk. Everyone has obligations and desires pulling on them, a sense of duty and a sense of fun in eternal compromise, though some lucky few have found the right balance. Hiroshi has to work at sorting that out like everyone else. In this new novel, that balance became much more difficult. He had to sacrifice home life for work life, and neither he, his colleagues, nor his girlfriend are very happy about it.
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ABOUT Michael: Michael Pronko is a Tokyo-based author who writes in three genres—murder, memoir, and music. He has written about Japanese culture, art, jazz, society, architecture, and politics for Newsweek Japan, The Japan Times, Artscape Japan, as well as other publications. He has appeared on NHK and Nippon Television doing video versions of his essays. He runs his own website, Jazz in Japan (www.jazzinjapan.com). Day-job-wise, he teaches American Literature and Culture (novels, film, art, and music) at Meiji Gakuin University in Tokyo. After discussing Kurt Vonnegut or Jackson Pollock in class he’s in the right frame of mind to wander Tokyo contemplating its intensity.
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