Botchan is a modern young man from the Tokyo metropolis sent to the ultra-traditional Matsuyama district as a Maths teacher after his the death of his parents Cynical rebellious & immature Botchan finds himself facing several tests from the pupils
- prone to playing tricks on their new naive teacher; the staff
- vain immoral & in danger of becoming a bad influence on Botchan; & from his own as-yet-unformed nature as he finds his place in the world One of the most popular novels in Japan where it is considered a classic of adolescence as seminal as The Catcher in the Rye Botchan is as funny poignant & memorable as it was when first published over 100 years ago In J Cohn's introduction to his colourful translation he discusses Botchan's success the book's clash between Western intellectualism & traditional Japanese values & the importance of names & nicknames in the novel