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badluckbaby's review against another edition
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.
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.
ncontreras83's review against another edition
3.0
Initially,I had thought I would enjoy this book out of all the others that I've read. But I don't. I think I enjoy it the least. While I like the concepts of time and healing and spirituality, there is something that is missing from these short stories that I've enjoyed so much in her other pieces of fiction. Though, I can't quite pin point what it is that is missing or different here.
Initially I thought I would enjoy it the most out of the other works I've read because there is a level of maturity in these short stories that are missing in Kitchen and Hardboiled and Hard Luck. Though, that maturity could just really be attributed to the fact that it's a different translator. As oppose to Yoshimoto's voice changing with time.
Because I don't feel like her voice has been lost within these short stories but I feel like this maturity, that when I began reading I loved became something that didn't work. There is almost an absurd playfulness in Kitchen and Hardboiled and Hard Luck or a young woman's voice that I think I missed here.
It isn't to say that these short stories aren't good because they are. My favorite being Helix. It is magical. And perhaps that's it. Her stories always have these sense of magic or lack of reality. I don't want to use the word unreal because that doesn't fit exactly, but more like on a realm of the impossible being possible.
And while the short stories in Lizard do hold some aspect of impossible possibilities it doesn't take over the stories as much as in the other works I've read.
I think the most successful pieces here are: Helix, Dreaming of Kimchee, Newlywed and then Lizard. But even then I think the first three I've mentioned are the most memorable. If you like her work, then you should read this book. It's short and quick. But if you are curious about her work, I'd start with Kitchen and work your way from there.
Initially I thought I would enjoy it the most out of the other works I've read because there is a level of maturity in these short stories that are missing in Kitchen and Hardboiled and Hard Luck. Though, that maturity could just really be attributed to the fact that it's a different translator. As oppose to Yoshimoto's voice changing with time.
Because I don't feel like her voice has been lost within these short stories but I feel like this maturity, that when I began reading I loved became something that didn't work. There is almost an absurd playfulness in Kitchen and Hardboiled and Hard Luck or a young woman's voice that I think I missed here.
It isn't to say that these short stories aren't good because they are. My favorite being Helix. It is magical. And perhaps that's it. Her stories always have these sense of magic or lack of reality. I don't want to use the word unreal because that doesn't fit exactly, but more like on a realm of the impossible being possible.
And while the short stories in Lizard do hold some aspect of impossible possibilities it doesn't take over the stories as much as in the other works I've read.
I think the most successful pieces here are: Helix, Dreaming of Kimchee, Newlywed and then Lizard. But even then I think the first three I've mentioned are the most memorable. If you like her work, then you should read this book. It's short and quick. But if you are curious about her work, I'd start with Kitchen and work your way from there.
lesyeux_'s review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
tyrina's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
emdebell's review against another edition
4.0
My teen son is in love with Japanese culture, so I read these short stories in order to decide if any would be worth reading and discussing with him. I was pleasantly surprised. They are high interest and easy to read, but at the same time they dig deep into themes of hurt, memory, love and loss, with growing as a person and figuring out who you are and why. It isn't just all surface action, the characters make you think and feel.
yere's review against another edition
5.0
En el epílogo del libro Banana dice que era joven cuando escribió estos relatos y que eso la hizo querer darle conclusión a cada uno de ellos, con lo cual estoy de acuerdo porque, mientras otros de sus libros quedan colgando entre lo que te dice el final y lo que tú te imaginas que será el final, en este todos los finales parecen muy bien cerrados. Y no me refiero a que las historias tienen un rumbo definitivo, no; me refiero a que cada personaje tiene un final, y es muy interesante entender que ese final tiene mucho que ver con el cambio psicológico que cada uno atraviesa durante el tiempo que narran su historia. Podría decir que las historias se van haciendo más complicadas a medida que avanzan y que (sin dudas) la última fue la que más me cautivó por la complejidad, sensibilidad y respeto con el que fueron tratados sus temas. Está demás decir que AMO profundamente a los personajes de Banana, y que su manera de escribir transmite una especie de calma espiritual que no encuentro casi nunca con algún otro autor o autora.
emxriii's review against another edition
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
cried
easy fast read, nothing crazy
easy fast read, nothing crazy