Snakes and Earrings: Difference between revisions

Kanehara returned to Japan and attended middle school, but became [[anorexic]] and engaged in [[self-harm]].<ref name=neustatter2005>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2005/may/30/japan.fiction|title=With a rebel yell|work=[[The Guardian]]|first=Angela|last=Neustatter|date=May 29, 2005|access-date=February 1, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190207234701/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2005/may/30/japan.fiction|archive-date=February 7, 2019|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> Against the wishes of her mother Chieko, Kanehara dropped out of her first year of high school, left home, and began to write stories, including ''Snakes and Earrings'', that drew on her own experiences with cutting, suicidal thoughts, body modification, and living with different boyfriends.<ref name=diva2018 />{{rp|179–180}} She has described ''Snakes and Earrings'' as the story she "had to write".<ref name=neustatter2005 /> Her father continued to support her writing, arranged for her to participate in a fiction workshop for sophomores[[sophomore]]s at his university, and edited the ''Snakes and Earrings'' manuscript before it was submitted for the [[Akutagawa Prize]].<ref name=diva2018 />{{rp|180–181}}

Kanehara appeared at the Akutagawa Prize announcement ceremony wearing "an off-the-shoulder, cut jersey shirt with exposed bra straps, a flared mini skirt, stiletto heels, mid-thigh nylons, multiple earrings and grey-tinted contact lenses".<ref name=dinitto2011 />{{rp|453}} Press accounts of the event contrasted Kanehara's youthful, [[Japanese street fashion|street-style]] image with the image of the "demure and old-fashioned" Wataya.<ref name=masangkay2004>{{cite news|url=http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=newsmaker&id=158|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040805224729/http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=newsmaker&id=158|title=Young prize-winners taking Japanese literary scene by storm|work=Japan Today|first=May|last=Masangkay|date=March 8, 2004|archive-date=August 5, 2004|url-status=dead}}</ref> Interviews and photos of the winning authors appeared not only in national newspapers, but also in Japanese editions of ''[[GQ]]'' and ''[[Cosmopolitan (magazine)|Cosmopolitan]]'' as well as the adult-oriented magazine ''[[Weekly Playboy]]''.<ref name=dinitto2011 /> Kanehara's interviews often discussed troubles in her personal life, such as thoughts of suicide and self-harm, reinforcing the public perception of Kanehara as an authentic narrator of Japanese youth culture.<ref name=diva2018 />{{rp|169–170}}

Shortly after the Japanese book was published, [[Dutton (imprint)|Dutton]] acquired the English translation rights.<ref name=pwenglish>{{cite magazine|url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/print/20041101/32867-japanese-bestseller-for-dutton.html|title=Japanese Bestseller for Dutton|magazine=[[Publishers Weekly]]|first=John F.|last=Baker|volume=251|issue=44|date=November 1, 2004|page=12|access-date=December 17, 2023}}</ref> In 2005 an English version of ''Snakes and Earrings'', translated by David Karashima, was published by [[Dutton (imprint)|Dutton]] in the United States and [[Vintage Books]] in the United Kingdom.<ref name=Englisheditions>US edition: {{cite book|title=Snakes and Earrings|last=Kanehara|first=Hitomi|translator-last=Karashima|translator-first=David|year=2005|publisher=[[Dutton (imprint)|Dutton]]|isbn=9780525948896|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/snakesearrings00kane}} UK edition: {{cite book|title=Snakes and Earrings|last=Kanehara|first=Hitomi|translator-last=Karashima|translator-first=David|year=2005|publisher=[[Vintage Books]]|isbn=9780099483670}}</ref> It received generally positive reviews. ''[[Kirkus Reviews]]'' called the book "fascinating and unnerving",<ref name=kirkus2005>{{cite web|url=https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/hitomi-kanehara/snakes-and-earrings/|title=Snakes and Earrings|work=[[Kirkus Reviews]]|date=March 15, 2005|access-date=January 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130053257/https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/hitomi-kanehara/snakes-and-earrings/|archive-date=January 30, 2019|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref> ''[[Marie Claire]]'' called it "riveting",<ref name=mc2005>{{cite magazine|title=10 Best To Do|magazine=[[Marie Claire]]|year=2005|volume=12|issue=8|page=65}}</ref> and ''[[The Village Voice]]'' called it "a gnarly blast of Tokyo nihilism".<ref name=vv2005>{{cite news|url=https://www.villagevoice.com/foreign-agents/|title=Foreign Agents|work=[[The Village Voice]]|date=May 31, 2005|access-date=December 17, 2023}}</ref> Writing for ''[[The Guardian]]'', [[Maya Jaggi]] praised the book as "a debut novel about alienation that is shocking but not sensational" and observed that it "offers more than sociological interest".<ref name=guardian2005>{{cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2005/jul/16/featuresreviews.guardianreview10|title=Going shopping|work=[[The Guardian]]|first=Maya|last=Jaggi|authorlink=Maya Jaggi|date=July 15, 2005|access-date=January 29, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130053617/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2005/jul/16/featuresreviews.guardianreview10|archive-date=January 30, 2019|url-status=live|df=mdy-all}}</ref>