Listen to this episode
I’ve been waiting for this episode for a long time.
Hosting a woman of letters here, devouring stories and scents together, wondering whether it’s crime fiction or something bawdy, navigating between pollen and poem, narrative and recipes, fermentations and fomentations, allegories and allergies, chia and chiasms, bowl and hyperbole.
And perhaps get lost this way in traditions and translations.
The guest: Ryoko Sekiguchi
Author and translator, she embodies the subtle union between literature, art, gastronomy and the five senses. She stands out for her ability to translate into French and Japanese, thus creating bridges between cultures and languages.
Among her works are Nagori (P.O.L. 2018), Sentir (JBE Books 2021), L’Appel des odeurs (P.O.L. 2024). Her unique artistic imprint continues to weave connections between the different facets of contemporary creative practice.
My questions
- What is the link, in your story, between cooking and poetry?
- To talk about your book that has just been published by éditions POL, what place do scents occupy — or do they not occupy enough — in your life and in your books?
- Let’s play with the titles of your books: what is ‘manger fantôme’? What is ‘la cuisine des nuages’? What is ‘lire le vin’?
- I find there are many bridges between Japanese literature and French literature; is it the same for gastronomy?
- Which Japanese flavors are untranslatable into French?
- Can you remind us of the importance of the seasons in Japan, how they are divided, how they relate to one another, and how they unfold?
- There are seasonal products; are there seasonal novels?
- You translated one of my favorite books, In Praise of Shadows; how can we bring shadow into our writing and into cooking?
- You run the ‘Le Banquet’ series at Piquier editions; what would be your ideal banquet?
- I’m going to ask you a question I asked Lauren Malka: is it the same language to invent that will help us, as women, to write better and to eat better?
- Would you like to share a recipe with us? A favorite ingredient? A restaurant? A must-read book?
Resources for further exploration
- The Astringent
- Ghostly Eating
- Fade
- Nagori, the nostalgia for the departing season
- Japanese curry: ten ways to prepare it
- The Cloud: ten ways to prepare it
- The Call of Scents
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A podcast presented by Louise Browaeys with technical support from Matthieu Brillard.
