Where the Wild Ladies Are

A Time Must-Read Book of the Year

TIME, 1 of the 10 Best Books of the Year

A Literary Hub Most Anticipated Book of Fall

Popsugar, 1 of the 21 Most Exciting New Releases Hitting Bookshelves This Month

Paperback Paris, 1 of 29 Works of Translated Literature That'll Whisk You Away

An Electric Literature Favorite Short Story Collection of the Year.

"Delightfully uncanny . . . Matsuda's retellings are feminist with a vengeance . . . Deftly translated." --Jane Hu, The New York Times Book Review.

"The ghost stories in Aoko Matsuda's collection aren't your average spooky tales--they're based on traditional Japanese stories of yokai, ghosts and monsters that figure prominently in Japan's folklore. But Matsuda puts her own clever spin on them, making them feel contemporary, unique and unapologetically feminist. Matsuda writes with a subtle self-assuredness mixed with a sly, unexpected sense of humor, and the results are downright addictive." --Michael Schaub, NPR, One of the Best Books of the Year.

"In her collection of interlinked stories, Aoko Matsuda reimagines traditional Japanese folktales and ghost stories with a feminist twist, positioning women at the center of narratives that are simultaneously life-like and surreal . . . Throughout Where the Wild Ladies Are, Matsuda makes witty and pointed observations about mortality, connection and freedom." --Annabel Gutterman, TIME, 1 of 9 New Books You Should Read This Month.

"These ghosts are not the monstrous, vengeful spirits of the original stories; they are real people with agency and personalities, finally freed from the restraints placed on living women. Funny, beautiful, surreal and relatable, this is a phenomenal book." --Claire Kohda Hazleton, The Guardian.