The author Minna Eväsoja, known for her Japan-themed nonfiction, answers HLA’s questions.
You are a rather exceptional Finnish author, since your works deal with Japanese culture. Could you explain a little about the beginnings: how did you end up in Japan and how did you decide to start writing about it?
I grew up with my mom, in a small town in Eastern Finland, in a shadow of a paper factory. I knew very early that I needed to get away: that life and that place was not for me. I left my home without knowing where I would stay second night and I never went back. My family members were simple people in simple occupations, leading a simple life. I wanted to reach higher. I wanted to study in the university and learn about foreign cultures. I started with Indian languages and cultures but at the same time took lessons in Japanese language. My mind was immediately set at the same level with Japanese mind. First time I went to Japan was in the summer 1989. I was going to start my one-year Tea studies at the Urasenke Chadō Senmon Gakko in Kyoto in the fall and left a month earlier to travel and see Japan before the semester started. University studies and later five years of living in Japan built a wall between my mother and I. Eventually, we became like a foreign people to each other.
