The Grass Pillow

A painter walks into the mountains hoping to escape the demands of ordinary human feeling. At a secluded hot-spring inn, landscape, poetry, and the enigmatic Nami draw him into a world that refuses to remain a picture. Sōseki’s lyrical novel follows the uneasy border between contemplating life and taking part in it.

This new English edition contains the complete 13-chapter work, with 164 endnotes, a translator’s note, and source information. AI-assisted translation.