Mondai Nai

By King Hurley

Mondai Nai creates a vibrant and authentic portrait of the remarkable intricacies of modern Japan. This beautiful novel elegantly captures the struggles and triumphs of the Japanese, vividly exploring... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0977418855
• ISBN13: 9780977418855
• Release Date: March 2007
• Publisher: Paandaa Inc
• Length: 300 Pages
• Weight: 1.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 1.0" x 6.3"

Customer Reviews

No Problem!

Had King Hurley, who has an advanced degree from the American Graduate School of International Management, written a book about the differences between Japanese and American corporate cultures I would have passed it by on my way to other sections of the bookstore. A loss for both of us for it is this dynamic which is most intriguing in his suspense/coming-of-age novel about a young American entangled in sex, the Japanese mafia and murder while studying in Fujinomiya, Japan. If the latter elements are less credible, they do provide some genuinely surprising twists, for example, the hero, Kai Waters, wakes from a coma after being wounded saving the life of an oriental crime lord and discovers he has been made a tattooed, honorary member of the crime clan. This is the work of someone who obviously has lived in Japan and studied business, but the salacious additions remind me of early Ian Fleming whose glorified travelogues were spiced up with sex sirens and improbable escapades to keep adolescents like me buying his paperbacks. When a Japanese businessman/student in this tale heart-wrenchingly relates that an "F" in a Donald Trump-Apprentice-like class project will lead to the destruction of his career and marriage, we realize how two dimensional the pulp-fictional facets of Mondai Nai are by comparison. All the women are young and beautiful; they throw themselves at the hero; he seems able to solve everyone's problems... Mondai nai means "no problem." Even the new James Bond has become more complex than this. Yet I found myself caught up in what was going to happen next and I came away from the book with a new understanding of Japanese education, culture and business. Japanese work ethic is a throwback to a longstanding patriarchal loyalty between the samurai and the feudal lord who was both his employer and his master. A planted forest represents orderliness the country was striving to restore after the folly of World War II, "each tree shaped so perfectly. They even seem to move in the breeze as one..." And there are some nice touches: the plot proves enjoyably intricate and the gimmick of starting each chapter with a classic Haiku beautifully foreshadows the action to follow. If only Hurley had imitated the subtlety of these poems in his own writing.

A Real Trip

Mondai Nai is like any good trip. It's sometimes intense and sometimes awe-inspiring. This book takes you deep into the heart of a foreign land, its psyche and its personality. With a rich array of characters, it's up close and personal. Mondai Nai is part armchair travel and part journey of self-discovery. Kai Waters attracts a wide assortment of intriguing characters. Some offer enlightenment and insight, others are pure trouble (or worse). Some are both. Readers will vividly experience Kai's exploration of a foreign land, culture, traditions and its values. Readers will also find themselves disappearing further into the trip as the pages turn. The book challenges us all to wonder about the true meaning of culture and its impact on the human experience.

A Beautiful Novel About Japan, I Loved Mondai Nai!

Mondai Nai is beautifully written. The novel is full of tremendous insights into the Japanese culture but the story that is wrapped around these wonderful details is absolutely entertaining! This book has intriguing characters that you come to care about, a thrilling story line about the Yakuza that shows the dangerous side and the "sensitive" side of the Japanese mafia, exciting and mesmerizing love stories that are as complex as most relationships in real life really are, and delicate details about the deepest thoughts of the Japanese. I did not want to put the book down and was hoping it would never end. Mondai Nai will capture your imagination, teach you about the intricacies of Japan and well let you explore the land of the rising sun through a brilliant plot. Magnificent!

A Beautiful Novel and a Magnificent View of Modern Japan...FIVE STARS!

Mondai Nai by King Hurley is a magnificent novel that elegantly captures the modern Japanese culture. The characters are vibrant, sensitive, and funny and they take the reader on a wonderful ride filled with passion, pleasure and pain. The book vividly explores sensitive subjects not usually discussed in Japan, like the Yakuza which is the Japanese "mafia", the deep fears faced by Japanese business executives, the power of "face" in Japan and the sensual side of Japanese women that truly captures the imagination. The love stories that emerge as foreign students and Japanese businessmen study and live together in a remote village in rural Japan called Fujinomiya, are fascinating and capture the complexities of relationships. Mondai Nai made me laugh, cry and cheer for the characters. It is a book that will challenge the reader to explore their own lives while learning about the unique and beautiful aspects of the Japanese culture. Mondai Nai was a pure joy!

Mondai Nai is a heartfelt, entertaining and poignant tale that is beautifully shaped combining excit

It is not very often where we are fortunate to have the opportunity to read a North American author pen a fascinating novel set in the modern-day land of the rising sun. No doubt, this is no easy feat, particularly when the author endeavors to vividly capture the intricacies of the culture and traditions of the Japanese. King Hurley's second novel, Mondai Nai is very much up to the task, as we follow the adventures of an American exchange student, Kai Waters, who spends the last semester of his Master's program at the Japan Institute of International Studies. The school is situated in a tiny town at the foot of Mount Fuji called Fujinomiya. It is here where Waters over a period of six months would be studying and exchanging ideas with a select mix of foreign students that would be thrown together with fifty Japanese businessmen. For these Japanese businessmen, unlike the foreign students, failure was not an option. If they did not succeed in their studies it would mean disgrace in the eyes of their family, friends and their employees. We are reminded that foreign students may not consider failure to be the end of the world, however, the Japanese live their lives based on a code of honor, duty and obligation. Failure would be a disaster! Our narrative unfolds when Waters, who seems to have the amazing ability to get himself into all kinds of trouble, meets the beautiful Liliko on his flight to Tokyo. Liliko is a Harvard graduate and is returning to Japan to live with her parents. As the couple exchange tidbits of conversation, Waters mentions to Liliko that he has chosen to study in Japan as it as "all the makings of a cultural bonanza." After being airborne and some further small talk between the couple, Liliko asks Waters if he ever heard of the "mile-high club?" It takes only a second for the meaning of the question to sink in and before you know it Waters and Liliko are enjoying a sexual encounter in the plane's rest room! Liliko agrees to show Waters around Tokyo where he will be staying a few days prior to his departure to Fujinomiya. However, Waters is unaware that Liliko is the daughter of Oyabun Yomagushi, a Japanese Mafioso (referred to as Yakuza in Japan), nor can he possibly imagine that his chance meeting with Liliko, as well as her father, will have profound implications on his life and his understanding of Japanese culture during his six month sojourn in Japan. Mondai Nai is a heartfelt, entertaining and poignant tale that is beautifully shaped, combining excitement, tragedy, romance and even a little comedy that will appeal both to the heart and mind. Hurley's keen writing skills and his comfort with his subject create a fascinating world populated with a variety of some interesting characters depicting a distinct culture. The dialogue is believable and the tale skillfully plotted. Kai Waters is a well-drawn character with a realistic voice which is also the voice of the novel. And, if you are wondering what "Mondai Nai" m