Nansō Satomi Hakkenden (shinjitai: 南総里見八犬伝; kyūjitai: 南總里見八犬傳), commonly known as Satomi Hakkenden (Japanese: 里見八犬伝) or simply Hakkenden (Japanese: 八犬伝), is a Japanese epic novel (yomihon) by Kyokutei Bakin, originally published over the course of twenty-eight years (1814–42). Set in the Muromachi period, the story follows the adventures and mishaps of eight fictional warriors born across the Kantō region, who gradually discover their shared origin as "spirit-children" of a Satomi princess and unite in Nansō as loyal defenders of her clan. The novel, consisting of 98 chapters printed in a total of 106 booklets, is considered the largest novel in the history of Japanese Literature. Bakin, in his 70s by the time the work was completed, had gone blind before finishing the tale, and dictated the final parts to his daughter-in-law Michi Tokimura. Along with Ueda Akinari's Ugetsu Monogatari, it is considered a masterpiece of gesaku literature, and one of the classics of Japanese historical fiction.The title Hakkenden has been translated as The Eight Dog Chronicles, Tale of Eight Dogs, or Biographies of Eight Dogs. Source: Wikipedia (en)