道草 (新潮文庫) (edition 1951)

Although I could appreciate the complexities of both the protagonist and his wife, this book just plain depressed me. I feel guilty, because I know that I'm not evaluating the book for its literary value. Objectively, i could appreciate the work for its depth, its unapologetic portrayal of the main character. Subjectively, though, seeing the world through his pessimistic, joyless eyes was claustrophobic.
That said, it could have just been a bad translation. I have a feeling that Meiji/Taisho era Japanese literature does not translate easily or well into English no matter how good the translation, anyhow. I'll have to read it in Japanese and reevaluate. ( )