"I wasn't planning on coming back until I became a full-fledged storyteller." He ran away from home at fifteen and became a disciple at twenty. His passion for rakugo was genuine, but he couldn't quit the three vices he'd learned in his teens: drinking, gambling, and buying. He angered his master, messed up his work, and his debts piled up... This was the wandering of the later master, Kotei Shinsyo, in his youth. A powerful, long novel depicting the unparalleled genius rakugo performer with vivacity. Google Books This is a copy of Masaharu Yuki's "Shinsyo Ichidai" (Shinsyo's Life), published by Asahi Shimbun Publishing in November 1977, first edition, with obi (paper band). The cover design is by Yutaka Murakami, who also designed the covers of many novels by Ryotaro Shiba and others. There is a slight stain on the lower edge of the second volume, but there are no stains, writing, or library stamps in the text. Please consider purchasing this book, understanding that it is a 47-year-old used book."