Reviews with content warning for Death of parent - The Cat Who Saved Books

Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

The Cat Who Saved Books by Sōsuke Natsukawa

61 reviews

kappafrog's review against another edition

lighthearted mysterious reflective slow-paced

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

2.75

This book was disappointing. It felt like an anime you'd find really deep as a tween, but as an adult it's heavy handed and not as profound as it thinks it is. The characters were flat, and everything they did or felt was over-explained. They felt more like stock characters than real people, and the dialogue was often unnatural.

The arguments about literature were surprisingly conservative, with a disdain for anything that wasn't a Western classic.

The final labyrinth sequence seemed to imply that the final "boss" was the Bible. While it was interesting to see the Bible represented as a Japanese woman, it didn't make a lot of sense.

Gender was handled very awkwardly. We're told Sayo is smart, but this is never actually demonstrated, and she's shown to struggle understanding books, especially those that aren't romances. Even the translator seemed to notice this because she mentions making the cat's gender ambiguous because she didn't think the book needed another male hero.

The best parts were the surreal details of the labyrinth sequences, and

the carriage conversation between Rintaro and Tiger. I really liked the scene where you learn he represents the souls of books that Rintaro has loved.

The way books moved in the labyrinths and the use of space in the transitional sequences were cool. Overall though, this book felt surprisingly shallow and mediocre.

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novella42's review against another edition

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adventurous reflective slow-paced

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

3.0

I think this book was not for me. I nearly stopped reading when

he brought out the damsel in distress trope, especially considering Sayo was the most interesting character

but it was a short enough book I was able to finish it.

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aleilvandrea's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

3.75

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hello_lovely13's review against another edition

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adventurous hopeful reflective medium-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? Yes

4.0

I did not expect this to hit as hard as it did. This is definitely for the book lovers (and I mean LOVERS). Even the simplest of sentences (i.e.: “do you love books?”) had such an impact on me that it made me tear up out of nowhere. I liked the writing style and each of the characters. The first two labyrinths were definitely the strongest writing-wise. The third was good, but I think it was a bit too short so while the first two had very clear messages, the third was harder to pin down as it didn’t feel as fleshed out. Part of the reason why I didn’t enjoy the third labyrinth as much is because

the first two had flashbacks of advice and wisdom from Rintaro’s grandfather, where that was absent in the third

. The story overall of Rintaro working through his grief is well done and subtle enough not to be all consuming, but also prevalent enough that the payoff is satisfying and we are happy and can clearly see Rintaro’s character development. One of the main reasons this isn’t a five star read for me (other than the dip in enjoyment during the third labyrinth because it felt too short) is because the progression isn’t exactly what I wanted it to be. In my ideal world, the story would have unfolded extremely similar to how it did.

I was extremely disappointed that Akiba wasn’t included in the adventures, only mentioned and interacting with Sayo at school during the chapter featuring the third labyrinth. I would have preferred the story to go this way: the first labyrinth with just Rintaro and the cat; the second with Rintaro, the cat, and Sayo; the third with Rintaro, the cat, Sayo, and Akiba; and the final labyrinth with just Rintaro. This is extremely similar to how it actually occurred, and I just think that it missed out a bit by not including Akiba on the adventures (this would have improved the found family aspect even more while still having Rintaro’s character development and confidence increased by having him complete the final labyrinth alone).

Overall, I really loved this; if only there was that one tweak in the story, this could have been a solid 4.5, if not 5 star read.

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yasaman's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing fast-paced

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

5.0

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leannanecdote's review against another edition

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funny hopeful reflective fast-paced

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

3.0

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lindseyhall44's review against another edition

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emotional mysterious medium-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? Yes

4.0

“Im the kind of person who tends to dwell on the past, and I give up way too easily, but somehow I’ve made it this far because books have kept me going.”
———
A truly beautiful, read. It never failed to remind my why I love books so much!

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