Reviews with content warning for Eating disorder - Heaven

Reviews tagging 'Eating disorder'

Heaven by Mieko Kawakami

191 reviews

jovanas_cloud's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-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

It was underwhelming and anticlimactic.

I feel Kojima is the biggest contributor to the things I didn't like in the book. Her philosophy of Heaven, her philosophy on why they're being bullied, her reasons for being dirty, etc. To explain further, I don't understand what she wanted to say with renaming the painting because the actual name felt underwhelming. Her philosophy that they're being bullied because they're allowing it, is true to some extent because they never tried to fight back (which was easier for her to fix). The reason for being dirty, would be a great topic if she got some kind of help.

I understand she misses her dad but not performing basic hygiene like showering, washing clothes or just not being dirty in general because she's trying to be closer to her dad who is dirt poor and away working hard, IS A HUGE PROBLEM. It is such a serious problem that she even starts starving herself by the end of the book. I just refuse to believe that her mom didn't intervene in all like she must've smelled her at one point.

Another nonsensical thing I would like to bring up is the nihilistic conversation between the MC and Momose. First of all, not only is so dumb but the big words and theories these 14 year olds are using just seems very unlikely to happen. Like yeah it makes sense that a bully doesn't see why it's wrong to bully others but to have such big philosophy and so many points??

The culmination - I was just waiting for something big and dramatic to happen, it was always so close until it happened and the consequences were anticlimactic.

All that happened at the Whale park with Ninomiya bullying them to strip and have sex, and after that Kojima never interacts with the MC again because he wants to get surgery for his eye?? Again she is clinging to the past and to what's comforting to her even if it makes her and other's miserable. She's disappointed because he's doing something to have an easier and more comfortable life when she could do the same more easily and cheaply too.

The last chapter was really underwhelming. I was hoping to get some more results with what happened at school, with Kojima, Ninomiya, and Momose, but got nothing of that sort. Just MC moving forward with his new sight.

I love bullying and trauma bonding works Kawakami somehow managed to get nothing done. The friendship felt rather shallow most of the time, except the gym scene

where they were wiping MC's blood after he got kicked so hard in the head multiple times because he was a ball.

If only Kawakami went deeper and harder, this would've been much better.

Content Warnings

moongelli's review against another edition

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dark medium-paced

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

3.25

"middle schoolers at their worst"

near-dnf but completed since it was a short read, i saw it to the end.

Content Warnings

snl07002's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

1989ruth's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

3.75

Content Warnings

pipe_dream's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

Content Warnings

leanne_who_reads's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

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

4.0

Trigger warning - This book centers around bullying and mentions suicide and suicidal ideation. One particular chapter in this book is quite hard to get through and you'll have to consider if you feeling mentally able to digest this book or choose to read something else.

The characters in this book are well developed and the writing style is easy to digest. I felt triggered by Momose when the protagonist confronts him outside the hospital because he has zero empathy for the protagonist and Kojima in that scene, even so, it added to the story and made it more nuanced. At the same time, I can see how Momose could think that way.

You learn to feel so much empathy towards the protagonist as the story progresses and I quite enjoyed the ending because the protagonist got to experience some joy and beauty in the world after everything he had gone through.

Content Warnings