Monkey Business International Volume 6

Monkey Business International is the in-translation offspring of the Tokyo-based magazine Monkey Business, which was founded in 2008 by Motoyuki Shibata, one of Japan’s most highly regarded men of letters.

MBI aims to translate and present a wide array of established and emerging authors, showcasing the best of contemporary Japanese literature.

With the generous support of the Nippon Foundation, A Public Space is the publisher and partner of Monkey Business International. MB and APS first conceived of MBI when Shibata curated a portfolio of Japanese literature in the debut issue of APS.

Issue 6 kicks off with Part 10 of “The Forbidden Diary”, the ongoing serialization of a fictional diary by Sachiko Kishimoto. Aoko Matsuda, one of Japan’s most promising young writers, graces the pages of Monkey once more with her short story "Love Isn't Easy When You're the National Anthem". American and British authors such as Kelly Link, Linh Dinh, and Jason Hrivnak join contemporary Japanese authors Hideo Furukawa, Tomoka Shibasaki, and Hiromi Kawakami; as well as new translations from classic Japanese novelists Soseki Natsume and Shin'ichi Hoshi. These and many more of the best contemporary voices of Japanese and American literature make up the lyrical and literary prose of this newest issue of Monkey Business.