'One never tires of reading and re-reading his best works. Akutagawa was a born short-story writer' Haruki Murakami The stories in this fantastical, unconventional collection are subtly wrought depictions of the darkness of our desires. From an isolated bamboo grove, to a lantern festival in Tokyo, to the Emperor's court, they offer glimpses into moments of madness, murder, and obsession. Vividly translated by Bryan Karetnyk, they unfold in elegant, sometimes laconic, always gripping prose. Akutagawa's stories are characterised by their stylish originality; they are stories to be read again and again.