“Thesubjectof’Kokoro,’whichcanbetranslatedas’theheartofthings’oras’feeling,’isthedelicatematterofthecontrastbetweenthemeaningsthevariouspartiesofarelationshipattachtoit.Inthecourseofthisexploration,Sosekibrilliantlydescribesdifferentlevelsoffriendship,familyrelationships,andthedevicesbywhichmenattempttoescapefromtheirfundamentalloneliness.Thenovelsustainsthroughoutitslengthsomethingapproachingpoetry,anditisrichinunderstandingandinsight.Thetranslation,byEdwinMcClellan,isextremelygood.“--AnthonyWest,TheNewYorker
