Miyazakiworld

Susan Napier is the Goldthwaite Professor of Rhetoric and Japanese Studies at Tufts University. She is the author of Anime from Akira to “Howl’s Moving Castle”: Experiencing Contemporary Japanese Animation, among other books.

“Packed with interesting details about the filmmaker’s life, interests, and inspirations.”—Mark Jenkins, Washington Post“Susan Napier eloquently defines Miyazaki as an auteur who creates immersive animated realms that vary from film to film but are joined by a consistent (albeit evolving) worldview and tropes. . . . An essential work in anime scholarship.”—Angelica Frey, Hyperallergic“Enjoyable and enlightening book.”—Claire Kohda Hazelton, Times Literary Supplement“The celebrated Japanese animation director Hayao Miyazaki came out of retirement last year, making this compact study of his life and work especially timely.”—John McMurtrie, San Francisco Chronicle (Holiday Gift Guide selection)“A laudably well-informed look at the life and works of Japanese animation luminary Hayao Miyazaki . . . enlightening. . . . The labor of both a consummate scholar and an avid fan.”—Publishers Weekly“A startling biography about a startling artist.”—Jack Zipes, University of Minnesota“A refreshing, intimate, highly original look at Miyazaki Hayao’s oeuvre, including early anime features, mainstream hits and the many-volumed manga, Nausicaa. Miyazaki is placed firmly on the world stage, including both local roots and global impact.”—Rachael Hutchinson, University of Delaware“An insightful, fascinating, and revealing study of Miyazaki and his worlds by one of the world’s foremost experts in Japanese animated films, Miyazakiworld is a true achievement.”—Karen Thornber, Harvard University“Providing expert guidance to the radically inventive mysteries of Hayao Miyazaki’s films, Susan Napier shows exactly how Japan’s master of animation taps into the wonders of the natural world yet also faces down our demons, exploring trauma, crisis, and the willful destruction of our made world. Like his literary and cinematic forebears, Miyazaki creates a form of wonderlore that reveals the power of art to animate, not just his characters and landscapes, but also his audiences.”—Maria Tatar, author of The Annotated Brothers Grimm“In Miyazakiworld, Susan Napier demonstrates her gift for narrative and passion for enchantment in exploring the spacetime between the fantasy worlds of Hayao Miyazaki’s creation and the grittier worlds that created him.”—Jennifer Robertson, author of Robo Sapiens Japanicus