The American Diary of a Japanese Girl

The American Diary of a Japanese Girl (1901) is a novel by Yone Noguchi. Published in New York alongside illustrations by Genjiro Yeto, the novel was styled as a fascinating tell-all written by a young Japanese tourist. Composed with the assistance of Léonie Gilmour and Blanche Partington, The American Diary of a Japanese Girl was Noguchi's first novel and a major departure from his poetry at the time. An 18-year-old Japanese woman going by the name Miss Morning Glory embarks on a journey from her native country to the United States. Accompanied by her uncle, a wealthy industrialist, Morning Glory arrives in San Francisco via steamship. She soon befriends the American wife of a Japanese diplomat, who introduces her to minstrel shows and vaudeville. Left to her own devices, Morning Glory takes over a local cigar shop in Chinatown and begins to assimilate into American life and culture. When she meets Heine, an older poet from Oakland, Morning Glory is inspired to pursue a career as a writer. As she travels across the expansive American landscape with her uncle, she comments on the people and places she encounters along the way. Through her eyes we see the country in a strange new light, perhaps more truth than fiction. This edition of Yone Noguchi's The American Diary of a Japanese Girl is a classic of Japanese American literature reimagined for modern readers.
Since our inception in 2020, Mint Editions has kept sustainability and innovation at the forefront of our mission. Each and every Mint Edition title gets a fresh, professionally typeset manuscript and a dazzling new cover, all while maintaining the integrity of the original book.


With thousands of titles in our collection, we aim to spotlight diverse public domain works to help them find modern audiences. Mint Editions celebrates a breadth of literary works, curated from both canonical and overlooked classics from writers around the globe.