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jess_mango's review
4.0
A group of 15 teenaged reform school boys get abandoned in a village after the residents fear an oncoming plague. This short Japanese novel was originally published in the late 1950s but could easily have been written more recently. The boys attempt to make their own way and establish their own community with what they've been left but they are always under the shadow of war and the plague.
I am glad that I picked this one up. It was a relatively quick and easy read despite the often heavy subject matter. The storytelling was straightforward and the narrative easy to follow.
I am glad that I picked this one up. It was a relatively quick and easy read despite the often heavy subject matter. The storytelling was straightforward and the narrative easy to follow.
b0hemian_graham's review
4.0
Although most people on Goodreads seem to complain about the translation, I honestly didn't find it to be that horrible. I found it to be rather beautiful, in a grotesque way.
This novel is like the love child of The Painted Bird and Lord of the Flies. That's actually a complement, and not an insult, as there's so much vivid, graphic imagery similar to what Kosiński writes about. Obviously people will make the LOTF comparisons, because it's about school boys, but I still think there's a lot of similarity to The Painted Bird, moreso than LOTF, as far as the style and subject matter is concerned.
My only issue with the novel was the reader they chose for the audiobook. I hate audiobooks on principle becaue they take much longer to read than if I were to read a paper/eBook on my own, but the narrator for this one was not at all how I would have pictured the protagonist. I was constantly reminded of the YouTuber pcull44444, the man behind Classy Readings of Terribe Fanfiction. I know it's rather petty, but given the prose (a huge obsession with male genetalia and unrealistic sex with an emotionally traumatised girl), it honestly felt like I was listening to a longer version of pcull44444's fanfiction readings.
This novel is like the love child of The Painted Bird and Lord of the Flies. That's actually a complement, and not an insult, as there's so much vivid, graphic imagery similar to what Kosiński writes about. Obviously people will make the LOTF comparisons, because it's about school boys, but I still think there's a lot of similarity to The Painted Bird, moreso than LOTF, as far as the style and subject matter is concerned.
My only issue with the novel was the reader they chose for the audiobook. I hate audiobooks on principle becaue they take much longer to read than if I were to read a paper/eBook on my own, but the narrator for this one was not at all how I would have pictured the protagonist. I was constantly reminded of the YouTuber pcull44444, the man behind Classy Readings of Terribe Fanfiction. I know it's rather petty, but given the prose (a huge obsession with male genetalia and unrealistic sex with an emotionally traumatised girl), it honestly felt like I was listening to a longer version of pcull44444's fanfiction readings.
alexysvalenzuela's review against another edition
5.0
En algún punto de la novela pensé que las cosas acabarían bien y me equivoqué. La empecé a leer durante la convalecencia que me mantiene en casa y la terminé el mismo día. No pude detenerme. El corazón me latía con la misma intensidad con la que Kenzaburo describe los sucesos durante casi todo el libro, porque todo el libro es una lucha contra la alegría y la normalidad, y parece que incluso contra la vida. Es una novela cruda. El hecho de que los protagonistas sean todos tan jóvenes puede ser lo más chocante, porque enfrentar a la niñez a la violencia es algo que todos los días sucede pero nadie quiere ver de frente. Es un libro buenísimo. Me dio asco y me dio tristeza; me dió miedo y me hizo darme cuenta de que la esperanza puede morirse reventada entre las tripas de algún animal infectó o derretirse junto con la nieve que nadie verá, en la parte más oscura de algún bosque.
ceco_'s review
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.0
masami's review against another edition
dark
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
4.0
no me gusta este tipo d finales
but also..... me cuesta decir que me ha gustado con lo duro que es, pero objetivamente es muy bueno así que le pongo buena valoración
drstrangelove's review against another edition
challenging
dark
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
3.75
adambwriter's review
4.0
Review:
https://roofbeamreader.com/2010/09/19/review-nip-the-buds-shoot-the-kids-by-kenzaburo-oe/
https://roofbeamreader.com/2010/09/19/review-nip-the-buds-shoot-the-kids-by-kenzaburo-oe/
ratinthesun's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
I want to analyse and dissect this book page by page so bad. It's short, but it really packs a punch, and the themes are so striking - abandonment, humanity / being a beast (and tangentially, loyalty and compassion / staying alive), human connection. It's gruesome at times but in a way thats necessary to the story, especially in contrast with the romantic aspects, although I found the relationship between the narrator and his brother most striking. Overall, a really strong novel, and I really need to find the time to dissect it a little bit.