Otogizoshi: The Fairy Tale Book of Dazai Osamu | 
I read that Dazai is one of the most depressing and bleak writers there's been, however this book is acknowledged as uncharacteristically light for him and I found it amusing and witty, the translator having done a brilliant job.
The frame story is a semi-fictionalised Dazai stuck in a bomb shelter towards the end of WWII, distracting his 5 year old daughter from an air raid by reading a picture book he finds too abbreviated, so he creates his ⬇️
"Once upon a time, long, long ago,
there lived an old man
With a great big wen on his cheek.
This old man, this Ojī-san, or "Grandfather," lived at the foot of Mount Tsurugi in Awa Province, on the island of Shikoku."
#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl
I donated blood this afternoon, then picked up these books I'd ordered. I'm now under strict nurse's orders to replenish fluids & not do anything strenuous, so sitting with a drink in the garden reading is actual medical advice!
Dazai is an author mentioned in The Cat Who Saved Books, & who seemed interesting when I looked him up. Tagged book is fairy tale retellings, the other a short story collection. But I need to finish Triste's History first!
The four stories develop traditional Japanese tales, probably as a way for Dazai to comment on his contemporary milieu without being bothered by the censors.
His discursions are funny, and his frequent annoyance with the stories' illogicalities and dubious moral lessons had me laughing at several points. My favourite character is the wisecracking tortoise in the ⬇️ 11mo
The image is from the packaging of a brand of cigarettes that Dazai reminisces about not being able to buy anymore in 1945 - the internet can be our friend sometimes 😊 11mo