Where The Wild Ladies Are

Witty, inventive, and profound, Where the Wild Ladies Are is a contemporary feminist retelling of traditional ghost stories by one of Japan's most exciting writers.

In a company run by the mysterious Mr Tei, strange things are afoot – incense sticks lead to a surprise encounter; a young man reflects on his mother's death; a foxlike woman finally finds her true calling. As female ghosts appear in unexpected guises, their gently humorous encounters with unsuspecting humans lead to deeper questions about emancipation and recent changes in Japanese women's lives.

Matsuda Aoko is the author of four collections of short stories and four essay collections. Her debut, Stackable, was nominated for Mishima Yukio Prize in 2013. English translations of her work have appeared in Granta and Monkey Business, and her novella The Girl Who Is Getting Married (tr Angus Turvill) was published by Strangers Press in 2016. Her short story The Woman Dies (tr Polly Barton) was nominated for Shirley Jackson Award in 2019. Matsuda has also translated Karen Russell and Amelia Gray into Japanese. She is based in Tokyo.