outlying islands

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“When people living in cities want to escape, they always go to the islands to take a breather.”
Choosing to leave the island means escaping from the lonely island of human hearts.
Three years, three islands, writer Kuso's three solo immersive journeys to remote areas of Japan.
——【Brief Introduction】——
“When people living in cities want to escape, they always go to the islands to take a breather.”
Remote islands are islands far from the mainland, isolated from the rest of the world. Japan boasts more than 400 inhabited remote islands, not just Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Hokkaido. One in every 200 Japanese people lives on an remote island.
Writer Kuso spent three years solo exploring Japan's most remote islands, delving into the nation's lesser-known fringes. Goto, Sado, Oki... these remote islands evoke a romantic sense of isolation: abundant nature, close-knit neighborhoods, a well-preserved classical beauty, a leisurely pace, and a sense of self-sufficiency.
Through Kuso's perspective and writing, the outlying islands hold diverse values ​​and possibilities, yet they also face harsh realities: there are no supermarkets, convenience stores, hospitals, or any recreational facilities, and the declining birthrate and aging population are unprecedentedly severe. Transportation is inconvenient, resources are scarce, gender discrimination reigns, and traditional culture and art are no longer sustainable. The indigenous people, who farm and fish, are struggling to make ends meet and are forced to flee.
But unexpectedly, she saw many new things: a young Asian-American who customized tours for the Japanese, an elderly Canadian who had lived on the island for over 40 years, learning from a master, a French gold medal winemaker couple who grew grapes from scratch, a father born in the 1980s who graduated from a prestigious Tokyo university and turned down a high-paying job, and ordinary performers who led the revival of intangible cultural heritage. In the past three years, which were full of a sense of dislocation and incredibleness, they have lived a life that we dare not live.
Remote islands are not just a microcosm of Japan, but also of the world. Common contradictions in modern East Asian society are at stake here. Are isolation and poverty truly unsolvable? Follow Kuso, breaking through the boundaries of urban life, and discover how ordinary people draw new possibilities from isolated islands, and in turn, return this strength to the land.
Countless young people from all over the world voluntarily gave up their cities and headed for the outlying islands.
Perhaps this is the future for many of us.
——【Editor's Recommendation】——
Countless young people fled and landed, finding a future outside the city.
This is a masterpiece by writer Kuso, a true record of life on the island.
★Understand Japan on the outlying islands! Explore the forgotten and overlooked remote areas of Goto, Sado, and Oki—uncharted territories rarely explored in the simplified Chinese world—and satisfy your curiosity and imagination about the ocean and its enclaves.
Follow Kuso to the edge of modern society. Live and eat with islanders, and learn more about Japanese culture in places rarely visited.
Restarting life on an outlying island! Imagine a life of shared understanding and borderlessness. A post-80s dad who graduated from a prestigious university and turned down a high-paying job offer, a French gold medal winemaker who planted grapes from scratch, and the last inheritor of an intangible cultural heritage skill, all alone on their farmland... In three years of anxiety and a sense of dislocation, they've lived a "slow" life that we wouldn't dare live.
On remote islands, witness a fresh vision of utopia! Experience the journey of building from scratch, hands-on, and truly striving for progress. When faced with poverty, change is the key to success. The introduction of the Remote Islands Revitalization Act, international foundation assistance, and the growing success of small and micro-enterprises... This in-depth documentary examines the "island economy" and comprehensively interprets the successful regional revitalization case of neighboring Japan.
"Go out, or come in? Leaving the city and returning home to farm is not a choice for today's young people. This is the future they have found." - Yang Changling, the chief director of "Let's Farm, Youngsters" - [Author's Words] -
This is my ninth year on the road, and I’ve finally written the kind of book I really wanted to write.
The remote islands I visited were a highly concentrated container of all the social problems facing Japan, such as its declining birthrate and aging population. Later, I wanted to understand how people lived in such remote places. After all, one in every 200 Japanese people lives on an remote island.
I saw a new world: on these tiny islands, places most Japanese never visit, live young people of all shapes and sizes. They hail from Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, and even from the United States, Germany, and Canada. Here, those seeking a lifestyle outside the mainstream gather, those seeking to traverse untrodden paths. Some, having seen the vast world, ultimately choose the islands as their home. Skeptical of modern urban civilization and current social structures, they are experimenting with rebuilding their lives. Their daily lives tell me: Here, they can find the life they desire. Here, they can build their own lives.
People go to the island precisely to avoid lying down. To avoid wasting their time in the city, to avoid becoming a cog in a machine, to define their own lives rather than being defined by them.
Choosing an isolated island in the geographical sense is actually to escape from the isolation of human hearts.
——Kusuo

2024-03-01

广西师范大学出版社

Beijing Beibet

352

9787559867759