“And here I was, thinking it would be like Sailor suit and machine gun. The beginning was crazy. So gory. They don't hold back at all.”
The only Japanese title among his dozen of 2022 was Principal, by Kyo Nagaura, an author Kojima had been circling for years without buying (he had been close to getting Revolver Lily and Underdogs). He picked it up expecting a historical novel in the vein of Yoichi Funado and instead found postwar criminality: the yakuza boss’s daughter, a schoolteacher, inherits the syndicate. Kojima thought it would be like Sailor Suit and Machine Gun; the opening struck him as crazily gory that doesn’t hold back, before it shifts into melodrama. He appreciated that subtle balance, especially in the conclusion; he liked that figures who are historical or famous appear with slightly altered names, and he recommended the book even to readers who are not familiar with postwar Japan.
“This is the only Japanese novel that made it in. Principal by Kyo Nagaura. I actually hadn't read anything by Mr. Nagaura before. […] I picked up this book thinking it would be a historical genre, similar to Yoichi Funado's works. […] There are many names in here of famous historical figures or celebrities, but they're slightly different.”