The Sea and Poison

In 1950s Japan, Doctor Suguro practises medicine in a backwater still recovering from the war. Quiet and withdrawn, he lives tortured by his conscience and a horrific wartime memory: participating in the vivisection of an American airman, an experiment which led to his agonising death.

This spare, harrowing novel, based on real events, is a profound exploration of the pressures of conflict, the moral numbness of conformity, and the painful legacy of violence.

Part of the Pushkin Press Classics series: timeless storytelling by icons of literature, hand-picked from around the globe.

Translated by Michael Gallagher.

SHUSAKU ENDO (1923-1996) was one of the greatest novelists of postwar Japan. Baptised as a Roman Catholic as a child, his work explores the relationship between East and West from his unique perspective as a Japanese Christian.