SF Online Interview with Hagio (Part I-5)

(Continued)

Hagio:

It came home to me as I read it that this was what it meant when everything was lost.

Sakai:

Was it around the time of your debut?

Hagio:

No, I think it was about one year after that.

Mizutama:

Then you pursued Dick like a junkie.

Hagio:

Yes, I did.

Mizutama:

When it comes to Dick, don't you get shocked twice? The first time is when you first read it. And then again after reading several other of his works, when you realize none of them offer any salvation. (laugh)

Hagio:

Yes, yes! One after another, every single book you read! On the other hand, other American SciFi is so positive and, to be blunt, a bit shallow, like, I had been thinking, "How can you be so happy-go-lucky?"—So Dick restored the balance for me.

Mizutama:

Well then, the flow went like this for you: first Asimov, then Bradbury…

Hagio:

I got the first jolt from Asimov, then the second from Bradbury, and then "Childhood's End" by Clark…

Mizutama:

How about Heinlein?

Hagio:

None from Heinlein, though I enjoyed his books.

(Continues to Part II)

SF Online Interview with Hagio (Part I-3)

(Continued)

Hagio:

I was reading those. Then in middle school there was a magazine called "Middle School Course" that came with a supplement of SciFi or mystery stories adapted for younger readers. Among them was "Planet SOS" [adapted from "The Currents of Space"] by Asimov, and I was engrossed in it completely. I got addicted to SciFi then and started to hunt for them.

Mizutama:

"I need…more SciFi!"

Hagio:

Yes, exactly. Until that time I was at a point where I would read it if I could find it, but I didn't care if none was available. But when I entered high school there was a rental bookstore nearby and, was it from Sogen? There was a series of slender books. The series contained both mysteries and SciFi.

Mizutama:

Wasn't it from Hayakawa Shobo?

Sakai:

Yes, from Hayakawa.

Hagio:

Hayakawa, I see.

Mizutama:

They were slightly elongated and on the spine of each book was a red "SF" logo against a silver background.

Hagio:

Yes, that's it! So I rented one every day for 10 or 15 yen per volume. And I also hunted for "SF Magazine" in the used bookstores.

Mizutama:

Ah, I see you started to look for more potent stuff. (laugh). At that point you might have been able to trace back all the way to the first issue of SF Magazine?

Hagio:

I did find and read three thin issues that appeared to have come out shortly after the launch of the magazine, but it was around the time of the final installment of "Endless Flow" [probably this?] when I started tracking issues consciously, so perhaps they were from a bit later?

Mizutama:

So what was the lineup of the books you rented on a daily basis?

Hagio:

Mainly SciFi from the 50's, I think. "Inter Ice Age 4" by Kobo Abe, and something by the title of "Time Machine" or something, was it by Paul…?

Sakai:

"Time Patrol" perhaps? That's by Poul Anderson.

Hagio:

And also "Lest Darkness Fall" and so forth. I think the mix was about 90% translation, 10% original Japanese.

(Continues)