Masks

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Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, Sep 12, 1983 - Fiction - 141 pages
A stunning and understated debut novel of seduction and infidelity about a woman who, devastated by the death of her son, takes an increasing interest in the personal affairs of her widowed daughter-in-law.  

Following the devastating death of her son, Mieko Toganō takes an increasing interest in the personal affairs of her widowed daughter-in-law, Yasuko. She skillfully manipulates the relationships between Yasuko and the two men who are in love with her, encouraging a dalliance that will have terrible consequences. Meanwhile, hidden in the shadows, is Mieko’s mentally-handicapped daughter, who has her own role to play in her mother’s bizarre schemes.

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About the author (1983)

Educated in the classics, Enchi Fumiko began writing plays but turned to fiction. Her novels and short stories often focus on the emotional lives of middle-aged women struggling against the constraints of Japanese society. Enchi's translation into modern Japanese of the Heian Period novel, The Tale of Genji, was widely respected. Allusions to Genji and the device of imbedding classical elements within the modern story enrich her fiction.

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