Reviews

Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami

obscuredbyclouds's review against another edition

3.0

This book really made me want to Japan, which is odd, because it doesn't really portray particular good sides of the country. But the descriptions of the places and people really made them come to life. It's a visceral book of two parts, not really so much a novel as two short stories with the same main character in different time settings. I thought the original first part, the "breasts" part, was much stronger and I was sad we didn't get to see more of the main character's sister and her daughter in the second part. But I still enjoyed the "eggs" part, too. I couldn't relate to the main character much (I agree more with the one antinatalistic side character), but her journey came across as realistic.

The writing style is pretty straight forward and easy to read. This is the second novel by Mieko Kawakami that I've read, and I liked but didn't love both of them but I found this one a lot more thought-provoking than "Heaven".

bryanreyes_'s review

emotional informative reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

rizbee's review against another edition

emotional reflective medium-paced

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

4.0

this really picked up in the second half, in my opinion. i enjoyed the introduction of new characters and the introspection that came with it. i think there was a lot of good discussion and exploration of relevant topics surrounding femininity in general. overall, really enjoyed even with the slow start!

hey_itsbee's review against another edition

challenging emotional slow-paced

3.75

cassschreiber's review against another edition

slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

3.0

gadilibe's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

garnetz's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

a_copp's review against another edition

dark emotional hopeful medium-paced

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

4.5

bayneful's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

This was an incredible book. Highly emotional and complex. The frequency of dream like sequences gave the book an almost unreal quality that I enjoyed a lot.

bunnybunny_mp3's review against another edition

4.0

There were some amazing points/explorations about how societal pressure impacts on women's lives, and this was basically a book about reflections on what people expect of women, women and sexuality and birth rights. I didn't mind that this wasn't plot ridden at all, but there were times where absolutely nothing but daily life dialogue was happening that made me quite bored. However, the moments of reflections and monologues of different women talking about their experiences was truly amazing.
Not my favorite book about this author, but an important book nevertheless!!