Hōjōki vs Kwaidan: Which Should You Read?
Both live on shelves: Japanese Literature, Japan, Social life and customs, Fiction
Hōjōki
A luminous translation of the classic Buddhist poem.Japan's capital city of Kyoto was devastated by earthquake, storm, and fire in the late 12th century. Retreating from "this unkind world," the poet and Buddhist priest…
vs
Kwaidan
"Kwaidan" translates from the Japanese as weird tales, which perfectly describes these haunting stories. This collection of supernatural tales includes a musician called upon to perform for the dead, man-eating goblins,…
The verdict
- Ratings are close across the board — any is a safe pick by score.
- Hōjōki is the quickest read — about 1 hours vs 4 for Kwaidan.
- Kwaidan has the widest readership — 6439 ratings behind its score.
How to choose
Scores by source
| Hōjōki | Kwaidan | |
|---|---|---|
| Goodreads | — | 3.8 (6439) |
| Hardcover | 3.6 (7) | 3.8 (16) |
| Apple Books | — | 4.0 (9) |
Reception
| Hōjōki | Kwaidan | |
|---|---|---|
| Ratings | 7 | 6439 |
| Editions | 61 | 42 |
| Film adaptations | 1 | 1 |
| Want to read | — | 10708 |
| Reading it now | — | 648 |
| Written reviews | — | 821 |
| Wikipedia attention | 2660 | 9608 |
| Pages | 79 | 240 |