Fires on the Plain

novel by Ōoka Shōhei

Also known as: “Nobi”

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June 26, 2026

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Fires on the Plain (Nobi) is a 1951 novel by Japanese author Ōoka Shōhei. The novel depicts the harrowing experiences of Tamura, a Japanese soldier suffering from tuberculosis, as he wanders through the Philippine jungles in the final days of World War II. Facing starvation, madness, and the disintegration of his own humanity, Tamura's journey is a profound exploration of survival and the psychological toll of war. The novel is celebrated for its unflinching portrayal of the horrors of conflict and is considered Ōoka's masterpiece, influencing many other war literature writers.12

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Ōoka Shōhei
Fires on the Plain
…best-known novel is Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain), which tells the story of Tamura, a sick Japanese soldier wandering in the Philippine jungles in the aftermath of the war who eventually goes mad and is saved by his Christian faith. In an essay published in Tin House in 2016,…
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…best-known novel is Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain), which tells the story of Tamura, a sick Japanese soldier wandering in the Philippine jungles in the aftermath of the war who eventually goes mad and is saved by his Christian faith. In an essay published in Tin House in 2016,…
Read More

Japanese literature
The postwar novel
…most powerful was Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain) by Ōoka Shōhei, which described defeated Japanese soldiers in the Philippine jungles. The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 also inspired much poetry and prose, though it was often too close to the events to achieve artistic integrity.…
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…most powerful was Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain) by Ōoka Shōhei, which described defeated Japanese soldiers in the Philippine jungles. The atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945 also inspired much poetry and prose, though it was often too close to the events to achieve artistic integrity.…
Read More

War Stories
13 Modern Writers Who Served in War: Ōoka Shōhei
…best-known novel is Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain), which tells the story of Tamura, a sick Japanese soldier wandering in the Philippine jungles in the aftermath of the war who eventually loses his sanity and is saved by his Christian faith. The novel won the Yomiuri Prize and ranks…
Read More
…best-known novel is Nobi (1951; Fires on the Plain), which tells the story of Tamura, a sick Japanese soldier wandering in the Philippine jungles in the aftermath of the war who eventually loses his sanity and is saved by his Christian faith. The novel won the Yomiuri Prize and ranks…
Read More