Welcome!

Hello and welcome to my official blog site.

My name is Kristine Ohkubo and I am a Los Angeles-based author and editor whose work emphasizes topics related to Japan and Japanese culture. While growing up in Chicago, I developed a deep love and appreciation for Japanese culture, people, and history. My extensive travels in Japan have enabled me to gain insight into this fascinating country, which I share with you through my books.

My first book, a travel guide to Japan, was published in 2016. In 2017, I released a historical study of the Pacific War written from the perspective of the Japanese people, both those who were living in Japan and in the United States, when the war broke out. Two years later, I supplemented my earlier releases with the story of an infamous twentieth century geisha, who was both a victim and an aggressor, struggling amidst a strict patriarchal culture and a rapidly changing social system. In 2019, I followed up my 2017 release, The Sun Will Rise Again, with a book titled Sakhalin. The work examines the far-reaching impact the island changing hands had on its inhabitants and resources, and culminates with the tragic events which took place in August 1945.

My most recent work is quite a departure from my previous releases. Still focusing on Japan’s history and culture, the series introduces readers to rakugo, Japan’s 400-year-old art of storytelling. Through a succession of biographical information, anecdotes, interviews, and rakugo scripts, I explain why this traditional art form has endured for many years.

In 2022, I took a detour from writing to edit the first volume of a three-volume series dedicated to the art of rakugo. The work titled Eiraku’s 100 English Rakugo Scripts (Volume 1) was released on August 17 and features a delightful collection of rakugo’s 35 most-beloved classical stories translated into English in their entirety by Kanariya Eiraku, a Japanese rakugo storyteller whose career spans three decades.

I believe that writing from other cultural perspectives encourages empathy and understanding, and at the same time it broadens our knowledge of the events that have unfolded over the years. I encourage you to visit my blog often and check out my publications featured on my author’s website.

(Official author’s website: https://kristineohkubo.wixsite.com/nonfiction-author)