by Maritchu Durand

When the summer heat strikes the concrete of the city, we all look for a way to cool off, physically and mentally. Unlike Lynn, who’s strategy to find some freshness is to picture snowy landscapes, I tend to look for a cool and shady spot in the park or near a lake, with a good book to help me through the heat waves. This time, I took on a Japanese book that had been lying in my bookshelf for some time now: Kamusari Nānā Nichijō by Miura Shion [1].

Yūki is a young man from Tokyo who just graduated high school. Having no plans whatsoever of going to college or looking for a fulltime job after school, he gets forced by his mother and teacher to join a government program training young Japanese in the lumber industry. He is transferred to the village of Kamusari in the mountainous countryside, where he will spend a year as an intern for the lumber industry. After a day long journey on local trains, he arrives at a place with no phone reception that is full of insects and locals with a thick accent. After getting basic training, he is sent to the historical center of Kamusari at the foot of the mountains, where he will work for Seiichi-san, the village head who owns most of the woodland in the area.

Throughout the book, I followed Yūki’s journey learning all about the art and tradition of the lumber industry. He is accompanied by his friendly team members: the boasting, loud and impulsive Yoki, a young man with bleached hair living with his wife and grandmother with whom Yūki moves in; the serious and calm team leader Seiichi-san; and the two other members with thick Kamusari dialects Iwao-san and Saburo-san. The word ‘nā nā’ being the most prominent expression of the local dialect, of which Yūki will learn the different meanings throughout his stay. For example, why it might describe a slow and peaceful way of living, it can also mean ‘this is really serious’.

Kamusari Nānā Nichijō is not only about the hard work of Japanese lumberjacks in the cool shadows of the high rising suki over the mountain peaks. It is also a journey alongside a young man who learns about rejection, ostracization and finally acceptance by the locals, about traditions, peculiar festivals and beliefs, about life in a small, close and rather remote community.

While the novel does not make a pass on the unavoidable love story and the exaggerated rough representation of the rural community, the portrayal of the omnipresent nature that almost becomes a character in itself, the likeable characters and the persevering Yūki made me want to be part of this community although it is threatened by the problems we all know: outmigration, an aging population and a low birthrate.

At first, this very romanticized and caricatural portrayal of rural Japan first made me think: yet another representation of furusato. But reading on, I got attached to the characters and caught myself daydreaming about climbing on the high trees and looking over the morning mists of the mountains of Kamusari. I realized how powerful a novel can be and how much potential it carries. No wonder this book was turned into a movie[1] two years later. Although the plot has been slightly modified, the message remains the same: it is a strong promotion of life in the countryside and gives a positive image of a rural community in Japan. For Yūki who was lost in the big city without strong connections or attachments, finding a home and a family in rural Japan made him grow and find some sense in his life, entering adulthood.

I will avoid spoilers and will not say if Yūki will decide to stay or not after one year in Kamusari. On a last note, however, when reading the credits at the end of the movie, I was surprised to see that special thanks were addressed to the MAFF, the Ministry of Forestry and Agriculture. Beyond concrete political measures and schemes to promote urban-rural migration, I can understand why this type of media is considered by the ministry as a great addition to its efforts to attract young people to rural Japan.

References

[1]
Miura, Shion (2012): Kamusari Nānā Nichijō [the ‘nana’ daily life in Kamusari], Tokuma Shoten.

[2]
Yaguchi, Shinobu (director) (2014): Wood Job! [Film], Japan: Toho.