The first two volumes of the eventual 16 that comprised the unfinished novel Kajin no kigu (1885–97; tr. Strange Encounters with Beautiful Women, 1948) were published soon after author Shiba Shiro returned from studying abroad in the United States. Written under the pen name Tokai Sanshi, Shiba used the semiautobiographical political narrative as a pulpit from which to preach his idealistic vision of Japan as a strong, compassionate democracy. Kajin no kigu follows the protagonist as he sees and befriends two beautiful American girls in Philadelphia and, through them, meets others from China, Spain, and Ireland. His peregrinations allow the author to explain the curiosities of foreign lands as well as offer possible models for Japan to follow.
Historical dictionary of modern Japanese literature and theater. J. Scott Miller. 2009.