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Of all the travelogues we present in this issue, this is the oldest account, a walk on the Tokaido over 200 years ago during the Tokugawa Period.
Book Description:
Shank’s Mare, originally published in Japanese as “Hizakurige” follows two amiable scoundrels, Yajirobei and Kitahachi, on a madcap journey of adventure and misadventure along the great Tokaido road leading from Tokyo to Kyoto, during their pilgrimage to Ise Shrine. The lusty tale of their disreputable doings is Japan’s most celebrated comic novel. Issued serially in 1802, Hizakurige was a tremendous success both with readers of its own time and with later generations. The book’s earthy humor typifies the brash and devil-may-care attitude of the residents of Tokyo, both then and now.
Books on Asia’s take:
We have the cloth-bound hardcover first edition of this book published by Charles E. Tuttle in 1960 (printed in Japan!). For book collectors, this edition is worth trying to procure because it has print plates of Hiroshige’s Fifty-three Stages of the Tokaido pasted into the book at the appropriate places! While the book is now out of print, the US Kindle version is only US$7.99, just 49 cents more than our first edition sold for over 50 years ago.
