Reviews tagging 'Alcohol'

Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami

48 reviews

indiarose8's review

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

3.75

I loved the way it was written and the careful way it offered observations about womanhood but I wish there had been more of a storyline. I wanted to know more about the main character's sister and her life. There was a page where the author discusses seeing a transperson in the bathhouse. I was mildly uncomfortable because it felt slightly transphobic. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Suicide and Alcohol

sydneybedell's review

emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Infertility, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Sexual assault, Alcohol, Child abuse, and Domestic abuse

Minor: Suicide, Transphobia, and Cancer

nabila99's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

a beautifully written, insightful, melancholy exploration of patriarchy, womanhood, motherhood, loneliness, and career stagnation. much of this book was just long conversations that the main characters have with other people and themselves, and they feel so real. their problems are ours, our mothers' and sisters', our friends' and acquaintances'. even though there is no "plot" to speak of, i flew through the chapters and was excited to be in natsuko's head again every time i put it down.

virtually the only issue i have with this book, and the reason i took off half a star, is that although i really enjoyed the second half and all of natsuko's musings about asexuality, single motherhood and her future, i did feel the absence of makiko and midoriko. it would have been nice to see their development also, where they were in their journeys. 

nevertheless, kawakami's writing and characterisation are stunning, and i can't wait to read more of her work

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Medical content, Pregnancy, Misogyny, Sexism, Death of parent, Acephobia/Arophobia, Sexual content, Cancer, Death, and Body shaming

Moderate: Pedophilia, Rape, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, and Child abuse

Minor: Adult/minor relationship and Infertility

somelibrarychick's review against another edition

emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Cancer, Pedophilia, Rape, and Sexual assault

Minor: Alcohol, Death, Grief, Infertility, Medical content, and Suicidal thoughts

fifofi's review

challenging dark emotional reflective slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Domestic abuse, and Rape

coles14_'s review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Death of parent, Cancer, Emotional abuse, Grief, Infertility, and Pregnancy

chiaralt's review

emotional hopeful reflective slow-paced

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Domestic abuse, Alcohol, Rape, Pregnancy, and Terminal illness

vigil's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

I think this is a book i'll have to buy a physical copy of to return to later, because there is so much being said about how society views women, parenthood, class, and most of it is left up the interpretation of the reader, that i think it can easily fly over the head. that fact especially was one i appreciated about this book. kawakami gives several different points of view (particularly in book two, my favorite, though book one is the most tightly plotted) that contrast each other, taking natsuko and the reader on a rollercoaster together. it is deeply immersive and atmospheric, so that when natsu feels like she's meandering, the reader feels it from the book too, which can be a positive or a detraction for someone. the pacing is very slow, and different between the first and second halves of the book (the breasts portion, was originally a seperate novella) and the change can feel rather abrupt. there is no big climax in this book, it is far too introspective and philosophical for that, instead letting protagonists come to quiet decisions framed very plainly. 

this would normally be a five star book, but during book one (the breasts portion), there is a long scene of our protagonist being transphobic towards another woman in the spa. i'm not sure whether or not this had a connection to the overall themes of the book, or was simply just added in, because it's not fully explained by the narrative during or after the event, it just happens and it moves on. i believe i read something about this having translation issues, which could be the cause of this or other things. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcohol, Death, Sexism, Infertility, Vomit, Cancer, Death of parent, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Terminal illness, and Transphobia

uhm_kai's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious sad tense slow-paced

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

4.5

beautifully written and weirdly relatable

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death, Pregnancy, Child abuse, Suicide, Medical content, Adult/minor relationship, and Alcohol

jordancarter2112's review

emotional medium-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Alcohol