Reviews

Lizard by Banana Yoshimoto

sshephard4's review against another edition

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emotional reflective slow-paced

3.5

kate_readings's review against another edition

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4.0

Me gustó la manera en que son diferentes los cuentos pero transmiten emociones similares.
Hice mis propias anotaciones sobre cada cuento y cuando llegué al epílogo, quedé. Porque lo que yo intérprete no esta cerca de lo que la autora buscaba pero eso es parte de la experiencia de lectura.

witchard's review against another edition

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4.0

Las historias de Banana Yoshimoto siempre reconfortan (aun tratando temas que escuecen). Este volumen presenta varios de sus primeros relatos, por lo que que se nota cierta distancia literaria con la Yoshimoto madura. Sin embargo, su talento se intuye y, las narraciones, a excepción de un par que son más flojas, merecen mucho la pena.

Lo que hace la autora no es fácil: contar historias adultas utilizando un tono inocente y un estilo sencillo. Hablar con el corazón en la mano de todo tipo de relaciones humanas, teniendo en cuenta lo difícil que es desprenderse de algunas máscaras emocionales. Y centrándonse en esos momentos en que los miedos afloran y se percibe un cambio, a veces una revelación, que empuja a variar el rumbo, a detenerse, o bien a lanzarse al vacío.

No tengo muy claro que la soledad sea un tema importante en este libro... Más bien, creo, es la acomodación del individuo (de su soledad) en el entorno que le ha tocado vivir (dentro de una sociedad determinada). Y, por supuesto, el poder que ejercen las personas que aparecen en esas vidas de manera fortuita.

BSO para la lectura:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SWYs6mP19bQ

dnglvr's review against another edition

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5.0

Always really enjoy the writing of Banana Yoshimoto. Her stories are simple, but deep, and always somewhat off center.

chiarafer's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring reflective relaxing slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.25

alexnicoledc's review against another edition

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5.0

This is the first book I've read by Banana Yoshimoto and I absolutely fell in love!

I often read collections of short stories when I'm in a reading stump (which is almost always). I enjoy reading about snippets of people's lives- no beginning, middle or end. The characters in her story yearn to put an end to existential pain, lost their direction in life and learn secrets of their past. Society can be unforgiving and Yoshimoto's characters have to deal with finding their place in such a society. The characters are easy to like and quite relatable. All stories were centered around the dynamics of relationships and had a touch of magical realism.

Yoshimoto's writing style is very warm and inviting. I read the entire book while listening to Haruka Nakamura and that really set the tone. Women writing women really makes a difference and despite the simplicity of her language, her sentences unfold subtle and graceful visuals.

"I liked just watching Lizard - the way she threw her coat over her shoulders, the way she bowed her head when she crouched down to tie her shoes, the way her eyes glittered in the mirror when she took a peek at herself. I loved watching Lizard in her different poses. The cells of her body dying and coming into being, the curve of her cheeks, the white half-moons on her fingernails. I felt her brimming with the fluid of life, flowing with the universe. Her every gesture, every move, brought life to me, a man who had been dormant for so long."

Yoshimoto's writing may not resonate with everybody, but it sparked my enthusiasm for reading, and I was glued to her book.

piedrapapeld20's review against another edition

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4.0

No sé si es la mejor aproximación a Banana Yoshimoto, pero como puerta de entrada me ha gustado mucho. Los relatos se sienten frescos, nostálgicos, con un punto del mood japonés más melancólico, no son especialmente largos y el libro dura un suspiro, pero sirve como presentación de qué más puedes esperar de la autora.

Me ha gustado la narrativa y la forma de llevarlos, al ser un compendio de relatos siempre hay altibajos pero el estilo, los personajes y demás se notan todos de la misma mano, y para mi intención este año de leer a más autoras es una novela ideal.

dalinunu's review against another edition

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emotional reflective relaxing medium-paced

4.0

bertread's review against another edition

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reflective

3.5

badluckbaby's review against another edition

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2.0

Yoshimoto has a talent for knowing and dropping in small observations of the everyday in a way that makes them sound as beautiful and delicate as they are. Every story in this collection is the same story, but that doesn't bother me.

Often the narrator gets too expositional or the dialog comes off as overly pointed and abrupt. But maybe this is just accurate to Japanese conversational structure, I can't know.