“Rashomon and other Stories” by Ryunosuke Akutagawa

 It took me years to finish this book of short stories, translated from the Japanese. They were very literary for sure, but I did not properly understand many of the Japanese cultural references. This made for heavy, but interesting reading.

“House of Day, House of Night” by Olga Tokarczuk

 It took me awhile to read this book. It’s interesting but not riveting. It is made up of short chapters about the Polish people in a formerly German town. There’s a touch of magic realism, and I do like the way she presents the idea that all things are interconnected. The style reminded me of her more famous book, “Flights.”