Pathway to Japanese Literature
Discover Japan's stories—across time, across language.
← Back
Ferry LandingAuthor: Toyoshima Yoshio
| Original Title | 渡舟場 |
|---|---|
| Author | 豊島 与志雄 |
| Genre | Modern Short Fiction |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In a forgotten bend of a Tokyo river, a once-bustling ferry landing now lies abandoned, its weathered boat tended by an elderly couple. Nearby stands a decaying house, its faded grandeur sheltering war-scarred refugees—families displaced by bombings, a brooding soldier returned from China, and others clinging to fragile normalcy. Among them, Yaeko navigates a world of quiet sorrow, her tears flowing freely at memories of loss and the weight of unspoken bonds with her brother Motohiko, whose haunted eyes betray battlefield ghosts. As evacuees come and go—some seeking new beginnings in Hokkaido, others entangled in black-market schemes—the house thrums with tension. Motohiko’s erratic behavior and midnight disappearances hint at unraveling sanity, while Yaeko’s fragile heart trembles beneath farewells and half-whispered confessions. When a drunken river crossing ends in sudden vanishing acts and smoldering secrets, the fragile community confronts the echoes of war that drown even peaceful currents. Here, camellia buds symbolize stifled hopes, and the river’s dark embrace holds both escape and oblivion for those too weary to swim against its pull. |
← Return to List← Return to TOP