Nine short stories by the Japanese literary genius provide insights into the struggles and problems of his contemporary countrymen.

Acclaimed Japanese novelist Yukio Mishima (1925-1970) was also a prolific playwright, penning more than sixty plays, nearly all of which were produced in his lifetime. Hiroaki Sato is the first to translate these plays into English. For this collection he has selected five major plays and three essays Mishima wrote about drama. The title play is a satire that follows the breakdown of friendship between Adolf Hitler and two Nazi officials who were ultimately assassinated under orders from Hitler.

'Was it death he was now waiting for? Or a wild ecstasy of the senses?' For the young army officer of Yukio Mishima's seminal story, 'Patriotism, ' death and ecstasy become elementally intertwined. With his unique rigor and passion, Mishima hones in on the body as the great tragic stage for all we call social, ritual, political.

"Reveals another side of Mishima's skill with words: his delicacy and subtlety." -The New York Times "A startlingly original collection of stories by a world class Japanese writer." -Boston Globe

The story of a man coming to terms with his homosexuality in traditional Japanese society has become a modern classic.