Reviews tagging 'Grief'

No Longer Human by Osamu Dazai

59 reviews

fluoirine's review against another edition

dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

classic. wouldve loved it more if it was fiction 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, Medical content, Drug abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Rape, Toxic friendship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Self harm, Addiction, Sexual assault, Alcoholism, and Drug use

mions's review against another edition

dark emotional inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Having struggled with a sense of disconnection from humanity since childhood, the relatable parts of No Longer Human, ironically enough, helped me feel a lot more human. All the content not included in that statement served as a reminder of why that should be held onto, and how lucky I am to get to feel that way. Though the subject matters are heavy, this book left me with a sense of gratitude. Even with all its raw depictions of the harshness of reality, to me, this is a beautifully written novel.

I did not find the book as soul-crushing as it is often described. The overall tone is typically surprisingly neutral, and at times humorous. It’s much more than a monotone angst-dump, but the story and characters are nothing if not tragic.

Yozo as a main character divides people for a reason, and I can’t exactly blame the people who do not like him. By the end of the book, he is undoubtedly not a great person, but even if his actions aren’t great, they do come across as understandable with all the context provided. To those who have struggled with similar issues with mental health, at times his thoughts can be shockingly relatable. At the beginning of the book, there were parts where Dazai touches on some deeply relatable themes, despite being deeply relatable.

I can only hope that the actual plot points aren’t too reminiscent of many readers’ personal experiences, but it is no wonder that the themes present in No Longer Human resonated with many so strongly that the book became Japan’s 2nd best-selling novel.

While not happy, I find a lot of beauty in aspects of the worldview depicted. There is a sense of quiet appreciation for the significance in what is normally deemed as mundane. It doesn’t turn Yozo’s life into a happy one; it made me appreciate the meaning in some of the less exciting aspects of life as well.

Even if thinking of No Longer Human has at times filled me with dread, I’m grateful for its existence, and happy that I read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, and Suicide attempt

Moderate: Alcoholism, Suicide, Drug abuse, Drug use, Rape, Death, Grief, and Sexual assault

Minor: Misogyny, Violence, and Sexism

nineinchnails's review against another edition

dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

the writing is hard for me to gauge considering it’s a translation (of an older novel), and it felt quite choppy at parts. the prose is beautiful, though, despite the subject matter and i tremendously enjoyed reading this.

yozo is really gross but i felt for him, more so initially than later on in the novel. dazai captured the feeling of loneliness that comes with feeling alienated from society really well and it was depressingly relatable. knowing this is so well loved gave me a sense of comfort, like i’m not alone in feeling that way. i would find the misogyny a little less difficult to deal with if this book didn’t come off so much like an autobiography - it feels like he genuinely believed the things he was saying and it left a bad taste in my mouth overall. i wouldn’t recommend reading if you’re in a bad place mentally because there’s a heavy focus on his depression and pessimism.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Mental illness, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Misogyny, and Sexism

Moderate: Drug use, Infidelity, Drug abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, and Suicide

Minor: Confinement, Death of parent, Grief, Adult/minor relationship, and Abandonment

Depression, Overdose, Prostitution/sex work and Morphine abuse

thewalkingnerd's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Toxic relationship, Suicide, Alcohol, Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, Grief, Toxic friendship, Chronic illness, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, and Suicide attempt

Minor: Sexual violence, Rape, and Sexual assault

kat5502's review against another edition

dark reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Misogyny, Death, Suicide, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Self harm, Eating disorder, Drug use, Grief, Sexual assault, Rape, Suicide attempt, Sexual violence, and Suicidal thoughts

sp0okysandwich's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence and Murder

Moderate: Drug abuse, Sexual assault, and Alcohol

Minor: Grief, Mental illness, Drug use, Alcoholism, Forced institutionalization, Sexual content, Addiction, Death, Gore, Rape, and Toxic relationship

gabriella_'s review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

This book is heartbreaking when you read it as a

suicide note.

It’s very deeply troubled and misogynistic. It simply reads like a cry for help. His depiction of

childhood trauma

is so visceral I had to put the book down at a couple points. There’s real heart here but it’s being squeezed. More than anything, I just felt an overwhelming sadness reading it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Chronic illness, Body horror, Rape, Sexual assault, Cursing, Classism, Alcoholism, Suicide, Self harm, Gaslighting, Bullying, Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Drug use, Grief, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Injury/Injury detail, Infidelity, Drug abuse, Death, Misogyny, Medical content, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Abandonment, Pedophilia, and Sexism

blububbs's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional informative reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Death, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Addiction, and Alcohol

Moderate: Suicide, Suicide attempt, Toxic friendship, Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Drug use, and Grief

Minor: War, Rape, and Blood

anni_o's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

Protagonist / Writer of the Notebooks is rather sexist. I guess it is a product of its time, but it sure did not age well. The prose is beautiful in parts, and a mix of vague and too detailed in others. The insight into his depressive episodes was very meaningful/insightful, and it was a rather quick read. I related to the protagonist in part, especially with the view of the world, but in other parts it was frustrating to see him spiral further and further. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Drug use, Mental illness, Suicide, Sexism, Addiction, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Alcoholism, Drug abuse, Alcohol, and Adult/minor relationship

Moderate: Self harm, Rape, Vomit, Misogyny, Forced institutionalization, Death, Sexual violence, Toxic friendship, Stalking, Blood, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Ableism, Medical content, Physical abuse, and Grief

radiosys's review against another edition

challenging dark reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

It might be a tough read for people who have/had suicidal thoughts and/or behaviors, so remember to take breaks if you need it everyone<3

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Alcoholism, Injury/Injury detail, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Death, Drug use, Self harm, Addiction, Panic attacks/disorders, Child abuse, Drug abuse, and Mental illness

Moderate: Body shaming, Medical content, Chronic illness, and Blood

Minor: Grief, Infidelity, and Adult/minor relationship