New York: Vintage Books, (1991). One of the most important Japanese novels of the 20th century, this is reminiscent of Kafka's works. An amateur entomologist wanders into a remote seaside village in pursuit of a rare beetle, and is offered lodging for the night at the bottom of a vast sand pit. But when he attempts to leave the next morning, he discovers that he is a prisoner and his only companion is a young widow, a pariah in the poor community, who the villagers have condemned to a life of shoveling back the ever-encroaching dunes that threaten to bury the town. Translated from the Japanese by E. Dale Saunders. Illustrated with drawings by Machi Abe. 241 pp. ISBN: 0-679733787.