Lafcadio Hearn's 'The Faceless Ghost"

and other Macabre Tales from Japan by Sean Michael Wilson and Michiru Morikawa

Made of six classic, supernatural stories, this novel illustrates some well-known and historical horror stories from Japan. The original stories were brought together by Lafcadio Hearn over one hundred years ago, and they spanned over a dozen books. These six stories, Diplomacy, The Snow Woman, Of a Mirror and a Bell, Hoichi the Earless, The Faceless Ghost, and The Gratitude of the Samebito are illustrated by Sean Michael Wilson and Michiru Morikawa, both well-known manga artists who use their traditional Japanese art skills to bring these stories to life. Each story demonstrates different types of fear, for example, in The Faceless Ghost, we are left on a cliff hanger with our character in danger, while Diplomacy explores the fear of being under a constant threat.

There is so much detail in every aspect of the book, which makes up for the lack of color, but the lack of color also is not truly missed. The mix of stories along with the art style emphasize not only a snapshot of some beautiful Japanese culture, but a mixture of contemporary and traditional Japanese art. Lafacadio Hearn’s The Faceless Ghost was one novel that immediately interested me, differed the most when compared to the other novels, and truly emphasized what I find interesting about graphic novels. Themes of acceptance, responsibility, friendship, kindness, and duty all flow through the six stories, and some key words I thought of when reading were surprising, humorous, sensitive, touching, thoughtful, and provocative. The stories are completely accessible to a wide range of ages and I believe it’s place in the classroom could be to generate an interest of literature, and the cultural and historical importance of these works to Japanese culture. As a fan of anime and manga art styles, I would definitely recommend anyone who already enjoys those platforms, or someone who is unfamiliar with those platforms, to read such an engaging novel.