--- product_id: 2034632 title: "Naomi (Vintage International)" price: "$52.12" currency: USD in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.ec/products/2034632-naomi-vintage-international store_origin: EC region: Ecuador --- # Naomi (Vintage International) **Price:** $52.12 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Naomi (Vintage International) - **How much does it cost?** $52.12 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.ec](https://www.desertcart.ec/products/2034632-naomi-vintage-international) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description A hilarious story of one man’s obsession and a brilliant reckoning of a nation’s cultural confusion—from a master Japanese novelist. When twenty-eight-year-old Joji first lays eyes upon the teenage waitress Naomi, he is instantly smitten by her exotic, almost Western appearance. Determined to transform her into the perfect wife and to whisk her away from the seamy underbelly of post-World War I Tokyo, Joji adopts and ultimately marries Naomi, paying for English and music lessons that promise to mold her into his ideal companion. But as she grows older, Joji discovers that Naomi is far from the naïve girl of his fantasies. And, in Tanizaki’s masterpiece of lurid obsession, passion quickly descends into comically helpless masochism. Review: The primer to Tanizaki's works, a must-read. - When I first picked up "Naomi", known as "Chijin no Ai" in Japanese, it was in a Japanese literature class at my University. My first exposure to Tanizaki came in reading a short story called "The Tattooer" ("Shisei", which can be found in another collection of his short stories called "Seven Japanese Tales" in English), so I knew he was a good writer with some perverse ideas. Little did I know what I was in for with "Naomi". We were to read it in a week, which is quite the task with a full schedule. I finished it in three days and reread it a week later. I was amazed at its intricacies. The story is set in early 1920s Japan, a period when the import of Western fashion, style and culture was at its height and every Japanese person found him or herself enamored with imported American and European literature, dance, clothing and people. Naomi is a young Japanese waitress with a Western look that a man named Joji finds himself obsessing over at first sight. Even her name, he remarks, resembles Western names. He adopts her and begins to mold her into his perfect woman. The story follows his continual perfecting of her behavior, and her treatment of him. The question soon arises, however, as to who is truly the dominant force in their fragile relationship. In what I've now come to find is Tanizaki standard, all is never as it seems, and the relationships established throughout the story are rarely as simple as they first appear. "Naomi" serves as a primer to Tanizaki's entire body of work, being one of his earliest full-length novels and coming before his shift from an obsession with the West to a love of his own traditional Japanese culture. Since reading it, I've had the opportunity to read much of the rest of his work, and I'm thankful I started with "Naomi". Tanizaki is cited as shifting his views of the West soon after the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and "Naomi", published in 1924, is his work at that tipping point. Although on the surface it seems to praise a Western infatuation, it throws into question what damage it's doing to the Japanese mind and culture. A powerful work of perverse fiction, and a great introduction to the twisted, cerebral world of Jun'ichiro Tanizaki, I highly recommend "Naomi" to readers tired of the typical stories that are so prevalent in our modern literature and as an introduction to the world of one of the greatest 20th century Japanese authors. Review: Came for the reference to a manga, stayed for the writing! - I admit, that manga series was what made me but this. But this book! Darkly intriguing, strangely humorous, and painfully realistic. It is sort of like Lolita I guess... But you have to remember things were different in Japan then. It still manages to be a little creepy, now and then, but never fails to be a good read. The end... Hm. It felt real but I just kind of shook my head because seriously? But people do weirder things in real life I suppose. I would recommend this, easily, especially if you're a fan of Bungo Stray Dogs, the anime or manga. Still a good classic read if you're not though! ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #298,493 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #2,556 in Contemporary Literature & Fiction #7,187 in Classic Literature & Fiction #14,020 in Literary Fiction (Books) | | Customer Reviews | 4.4 out of 5 stars 303 Reviews | ## Images ![Naomi (Vintage International) - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/91kJ3Yms9ML.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ The primer to Tanizaki's works, a must-read. *by M***Z on January 21, 2004* When I first picked up "Naomi", known as "Chijin no Ai" in Japanese, it was in a Japanese literature class at my University. My first exposure to Tanizaki came in reading a short story called "The Tattooer" ("Shisei", which can be found in another collection of his short stories called "Seven Japanese Tales" in English), so I knew he was a good writer with some perverse ideas. Little did I know what I was in for with "Naomi". We were to read it in a week, which is quite the task with a full schedule. I finished it in three days and reread it a week later. I was amazed at its intricacies. The story is set in early 1920s Japan, a period when the import of Western fashion, style and culture was at its height and every Japanese person found him or herself enamored with imported American and European literature, dance, clothing and people. Naomi is a young Japanese waitress with a Western look that a man named Joji finds himself obsessing over at first sight. Even her name, he remarks, resembles Western names. He adopts her and begins to mold her into his perfect woman. The story follows his continual perfecting of her behavior, and her treatment of him. The question soon arises, however, as to who is truly the dominant force in their fragile relationship. In what I've now come to find is Tanizaki standard, all is never as it seems, and the relationships established throughout the story are rarely as simple as they first appear. "Naomi" serves as a primer to Tanizaki's entire body of work, being one of his earliest full-length novels and coming before his shift from an obsession with the West to a love of his own traditional Japanese culture. Since reading it, I've had the opportunity to read much of the rest of his work, and I'm thankful I started with "Naomi". Tanizaki is cited as shifting his views of the West soon after the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923 and "Naomi", published in 1924, is his work at that tipping point. Although on the surface it seems to praise a Western infatuation, it throws into question what damage it's doing to the Japanese mind and culture. A powerful work of perverse fiction, and a great introduction to the twisted, cerebral world of Jun'ichiro Tanizaki, I highly recommend "Naomi" to readers tired of the typical stories that are so prevalent in our modern literature and as an introduction to the world of one of the greatest 20th century Japanese authors. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Came for the reference to a manga, stayed for the writing! *by O***E on September 27, 2018* I admit, that manga series was what made me but this. But this book! Darkly intriguing, strangely humorous, and painfully realistic. It is sort of like Lolita I guess... But you have to remember things were different in Japan then. It still manages to be a little creepy, now and then, but never fails to be a good read. The end... Hm. It felt real but I just kind of shook my head because seriously? But people do weirder things in real life I suppose. I would recommend this, easily, especially if you're a fan of Bungo Stray Dogs, the anime or manga. Still a good classic read if you're not though! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Terrific ~ 4.5/5 stars *by M***S on January 23, 2013* Naomi, translated from the Japanese was an entertaining read. I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this one, but by the time I was finished I had a big smile on my face. The story takes place in 1920's Tokyo, where Naomi, a 15 year-old from a poor background works as a waitress at the Diamond Cafe. She is an attractive girl with "Eurasian" features. When Joji, a 28-year old Engineer, first sets eyes on her, he thinks she is beautiful, and before long he becomes obsessed with her. He thinks she has the perfect blend of eastern and Western features and a beautiful if not somewhat unusual name. Joji in contrast is nothing to look at, he's short, has "bad teeth" and is socially inept. Initially Joji sees himself as a father figure for Naomi, but deep down thinks he can transform her into the perfect Western woman. She comes to live with him and initially does some household chores for him. He tries to teach her English and even pays for her to take music lessons. She isn't very good at either, but he still has hopes of molding her into the perfect woman, and then making her his perfect, beautiful wife. They do marry, but it isn't long before Joji's plan backfire. Naomi soon begins to take total control over him. She becomes manipulative, spends more money than he makes, and quite plainly does what she wants to do and sees who she wants to see including other men. She makes a fool out of Joji. Joji the protagonist of this story is really a pathetic man who has lost all respect. Even when he tells Naomi to move out, he finds he misses her and, she knows what cords to pull to keep him interested in her, and finds reason after reason to return to the house when he is there. Having lost all self-respect, Joji feels like he has to put up with Naomi calling the shots. I really liked this story and it packs a punch for a short book -- about 250 pages or so, and it made me chuckle at times as well. I found Naomi to be almost a cautionary tale about what can happen when you try to make someone into the type of person you want them to be. I think we all know that it rarely works and the person, in most cases, just resents the other person for having tried. It's a great read - Try it! --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.ec/products/2034632-naomi-vintage-international](https://www.desertcart.ec/products/2034632-naomi-vintage-international) --- *Product available on Desertcart Ecuador* *Store origin: EC* *Last updated: 2026-07-04*