bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

articlePageQuery

filter

article

articleBaseAdvertisingInfoArticle

articleListArticle

articleSeoArticle

helpersCheckIsPostiesArticle

hooksArticleAcknowledgementGateOverlayArticle

hooksTrackPageViewArticle

hooksContentInterestArticle

articleLinkingDataContent

hooksAmpRedirectArticle

articleSchemaContent

liveArticle

advertZone

sentiment

contentLock

topics

types

sections

moreOnThisArticles

urlAlias

commentCount

authorLocations

authors

corrections

sponsorType

displaySlideShow

multimediaEmbed

printHeadline

seriesContainer

socialHeadline

headline

flag

firstTopic

glossary

flattenTypeIds

publishedDate

additionalInfoBoxes

quizIds

images

image

relatedLinks

relatedNewsletters

__typename

createdDate

sponsor

paywallTypes

pdfFiles

seriesReverseOrder

series

disableOffPlatformContent

published

updatedDate

summary

subHeadline

body

keywords

readingTime

customTimezone

liveContents

Kyodo

Butter, a cult Japanese bestseller by Asako Yuzuki inspired by the real-life case of a serial killer convicted of poisoning three of her male lovers, is being hailed overseas for its exploration of misogyny, fatphobia and sexism in modern Japan.
The English translation of Yuzuki’s book, based on the “Konkatsu Killer” Kanae Kijima, has created a buzz in Britain, with sales reaching some 280,000 copies and major bookstore chain Waterstones naming it “Book of the Year” for 2024.
Yuzuki, 43, says she has been pleasantly surprised by the reception of her book overseas as a feminist novel, as opposed to the focus in Japan on how she had depicted Kijima’s serial killings.
The protagonist of Butter is Rika Machida, a Tokyo-based journalist in her thirties who investigates the case of a female food enthusiast-turned-serial killer.












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by 4th Estate Books (@4thestatebooks)



Manako Kajii, also known as Kajimana, has been convicted of the murders of three lonely businessmen she is said to have seduced with her home-cooked meals.
Like Kijima did in real life, Kajimana becomes the target of sexist abuse and body shaming by the media, which focuses on her plain looks.

Although the case arouses public fascination, Kajimana refuses to talk to the press – but grants Rika’s interview request when the reporter writes a letter asking for her beef stew recipe, the last meal eaten by one of her victims.
After making repeated visits to the detention centre that she is staying in, Rika finds herself increasingly intrigued by the femme fatale’s gourmet tastes and takes on a growing appetite for rich buttery foods, leading to weight gain and her own experience of body shaming.
Published in Japanese in 2017, Butter earned Yuzuki a nomination for the Naoki Prize, which is given to the best work of popular literature in any format by a new, rising or established author in Japan.
I was surprised and pleased that it was seen as a socially conscious novel about feminism and the media
Asako Yuzuki
But Yuzuki came away empty-handed, with most discussions by the selection committee focused on the setting of the incidents and the truth behind what had happened. She has been nominated six times for the Naoki award but has never won it.
The jacket of the novel’s Japanese edition emphasised the macabre nature of “female desire” and many readers took it as a crime novel based on the high-profile case of Kijima, who was given her nickname after the Japanese word konkatsu – roughly translated, meaning searching for a marriage partner.
Kijima, now 50, came into contact with her victims through marriage websites. Suspected by police of swindling the men out of their money before they died, she is currently incarcerated at the Tokyo Detention Centre on death row.

Compared to the mixed response in Japan, Butter has received rave reviews in Britain. Waterstones called it “a vivid, unsettling exploration of misogyny, obsession, romance and the transgressive pleasures of food in Japan”.
Yuzuki was delighted, saying: “I was surprised and pleased that it was seen as a socially conscious novel about feminism and the media.”
In the book, many of the characters make derogatory comments about the appearance of Kajimana, who, like Kijima, is neither young nor pretty. During their conversations, Rika’s concern becomes no longer the modus operandi of Kajimana’s crime, but the state of society where “everyone seems to detest women”.
The book’s success speaks to the fact that the issues it focuses on, particularly those around body image and gender norms, resonate with British readers
Polly Barton, translator
University of Cambridge associate professor Victoria Young, who teaches contemporary Japanese literature, paid particular attention to the book’s many vividly described gastronomic scenes.
“These portrayals of culinary richness and excess border on the grotesque, but they also offer a means of resisting the pressures upon women to watch their weight,” Young said.
Yuzuki’s book offers “a feminist critique” of the role women are expected to play as wives, mothers and carers and the social pressure placed on them to do so, she added.












View this post on Instagram























A post shared by ASAKO YUZUKI 柚木麻子 (@yuzukiasako)



In recent years, there has been a boom in the popularity of Japanese women writers in Britain. According to the sponsor of Britain’s International Booker Prize, a prestigious award for translated fiction, 14 of the top 30 translated novels sold in Britain in 2022 were Japanese works.
According to the publisher Shinchosha, the book was a bestseller in the United States, too, selling 100,000 copies. It has also been released in South Korea and India and is scheduled to be published in around 20 more countries.
As of March 11, Butter had sold 270,000 copies in Japanese and 470,000 copies overseas.
Polly Barton, who translated Butter into English, noted the “super hot” interest in Japanese novels now in Britain, but said that “above all, the book’s success speaks to the fact that the issues it focuses on, particularly those around body image and gender norms, resonate with British readers”.


From The Great Gatsby to Crazy Rich Asians, stories about privilege and why we love them

Les Miserables author Victor Hugo’s drawings, ‘as poetic as his writing’, shown in London

Butter by Asako Yuzuki, novel about a serial killer, hailed as feminist outside Japan

Poetry is a necessity we can afford today, and public displays make it easier to absorb

Books and literature

 The cover of Asako Yuzuki’s novel.

Exploring misogyny, body shaming and gaining acclaim for its feminist themes, Butter by Asako Yuzuki (pictured) has captivated readers around the world. In Japan it was seen as a crime novel. Photo: courtesy of Asako Yuzuki

An image of Kanae Kijima, who was found guilty of killing three men after dating them to take their money and disguising their deaths as suicides. Photo: AFP

From Hiroshima to Fukushima, Yuko Tsushima’s novel Wildcat Dome is strangely riveting

Yuko Tsushima. The The English translation of her final novel, which explores nuclear and personal nightmares, is out. Photo: New Directions Publishing

The cover of Hofmann-Kuroda’s English translation of Tsushima’s novel. Photo: FSG via AP

Hunger Games prequel novel Sunrise On The Reaping hailed as ‘heart-wrenching’ and lyrical

(From left) Lenny Kravitz, Woody Harrelson and Josh Hutcherson in The Hunger Games: Catching Fire. Harrison plays Haymitch Abernathy in the movies adapted from Suzanne Collins’ novels. Her latest explores Abernathy’s youth. Photo: Lionsgate

Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in a still from The Hunger Games. Photo: Lionsgate

The cover of the new book by Suzanne Collins.

A still from The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, starring Rachel Zegler (right) and Tom Blyth. Photo: Lionsgate

In memoir Anthony Hopkins covers his personal struggles, mortality and how he did as actor

=== PHOTO CAPTURED ONLINE=== Sir Anthony Hopkins’s career as an actor is full of iconic characters, such as Hannibal Lecter. Photo: Twitter/Yumarkys

Anthony Hopkins in a still from The Father. In his coming memoir, We Did OK, Kid, the actor, 87, delves into his childhood, career, and personal struggles. Photo: Lionsgate

The cover of the memoir by Anthony Hopkins. Photo: Summit Books via AP

What killed Bruce Lee? 4 leading theories medical and martial arts experts proposed after his shock death 50 years ago in July, 1973

Bruce Lee on the set of “The Big Boss”. Lee died two years after the movie’s 1971 release, and in the years since, competing theories have been posited as to what exactly killed the martial arts star.  Photo: Yau Leung

Bruce Lee in a still from “Fist of Fury” (1972).

Lee with Taiwanese actress Betty Ting Pei. The two spent time together soon before Lee’s death.

Bruce Lee in a still from “Enter the Dragon” (1973). Photo: TNS

 Lee circa 1970. He had “chronic fluid intake” by virtue of his alcohol- and juice-based diet. Photo: Getty Images

Lifestyle

Arts

Culture

Books

Asako Yuzuki’s Butter, thought of as a crime novel in Japan, is celebrated in UK and elsewhere for exploring misogyny and body shaming


Asako Yuzuki’s Butter, thought of as a crime novel in Japan, is celebrated in UK and elsewhere for exploring misogyny and body shaming.


Women and gender

Japan

Britain