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cetonia's review
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
leeroyjenkins's review
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
I really enjoyed this. I gave it a 4/5 though it may rate higher than that at some later date. I must ponder. I was skeptical when I started but the story kept me going. The world building was efficient and readers are brought in without needing to understand the world's entire history. The information flow was natural for me.
Though the story is Japanese, it shines a light on the sort of "health is a virtue" social more we're experiencing in Western culture. In the story, if you smoke or drink or overeat you're worthy of scorn and forced to undergo psychological treatment.
It also reflects the nascent "kindness culture," where one must display favorable views towards all, regardless of one's own personal feelings. It's a society whose citizens are legally and morally compelled to act in a healthy manner for the benefit of the state - no matter the human cost. Japanese culture is much more homogeneous than US culture and those who are different are that much more obvious. The sort of social pressure in the book carries more weight if seen in that light. All aspects of life are controlled to facilitate physical and mental well-being or, at least the outward appearance thereof. Almost the entire planet lives in a gilded cage. And almost everyone wants it that way. They dare not want it any other way. Society chose safety over freedom and found itself deserving of neither. Conflicts internal to one's psyche arise when one's own desires do not align with those of the state. Most simply blame themselves for not living up to the standards. That's when some people take drastic action against themselves.
I liked the somewhat controversial "emotional markup language." Some readers don't. Some like the story if they ignore it. I found it interesting and it mostly avoided long stretches of otherwise cumbersome exposition. It was refreshing to get an info dump essentially marked up and formatted as one - like a Wikipedia article. I found it novel and a clever evolutionary adaptation in storytelling - a modern aside or chorus, as it were. I did not find it distracting or overdone. I got used to it quickly.
The story moves. I knocked it out in a few sessions over a couple days. The prose is approachable and readable. And it takes you places. There's a bit of international intrigue in there. Altogether it was an interesting story with flawed characters attempting to live flawed lives in a state where flawlessness is mandatory. The execution was a bit pulpy but it was well written and I must remember what I read was translated from Japanese. So, on balance I found it rather well done.
Some areas explored in the book are very dark. Sexual exploitation, while not the central focus of the story, is described. This may upset some readers. It is not gratuitous. Its presence does explain certain aspects of the story. The author does not linger in this area. But it is present. I found it distasteful and unnerving but otherwise necessary to the story. And it stood in stark contrast to the sanitized media consumed by the denizens of the story. It was effective.
If I had to nitpick I would say the epilogue was wholly redundant. I felt it diluted the story, which I found rather sad and horrible in a good way. I was tearing up at what was clearly the end. I got it. But then there was more tacked on to explain what I had just read and understood. I felt the book was obvious enough without further explanation and would have preferred an abrupt end. Your mileage may vary. Nevertheless I came away from the book profoundly depressed. It worked. I felt something, which I believe was Itoh's point.
Though the story is Japanese, it shines a light on the sort of "health is a virtue" social more we're experiencing in Western culture. In the story, if you smoke or drink or overeat you're worthy of scorn and forced to undergo psychological treatment.
It also reflects the nascent "kindness culture," where one must display favorable views towards all, regardless of one's own personal feelings. It's a society whose citizens are legally and morally compelled to act in a healthy manner for the benefit of the state - no matter the human cost. Japanese culture is much more homogeneous than US culture and those who are different are that much more obvious. The sort of social pressure in the book carries more weight if seen in that light. All aspects of life are controlled to facilitate physical and mental well-being or, at least the outward appearance thereof. Almost the entire planet lives in a gilded cage. And almost everyone wants it that way. They dare not want it any other way. Society chose safety over freedom and found itself deserving of neither. Conflicts internal to one's psyche arise when one's own desires do not align with those of the state. Most simply blame themselves for not living up to the standards. That's when some people take drastic action against themselves.
I liked the somewhat controversial "emotional markup language." Some readers don't. Some like the story if they ignore it. I found it interesting and it mostly avoided long stretches of otherwise cumbersome exposition. It was refreshing to get an info dump essentially marked up and formatted as one - like a Wikipedia article. I found it novel and a clever evolutionary adaptation in storytelling - a modern aside or chorus, as it were. I did not find it distracting or overdone. I got used to it quickly.
The story moves. I knocked it out in a few sessions over a couple days. The prose is approachable and readable. And it takes you places. There's a bit of international intrigue in there. Altogether it was an interesting story with flawed characters attempting to live flawed lives in a state where flawlessness is mandatory. The execution was a bit pulpy but it was well written and I must remember what I read was translated from Japanese. So, on balance I found it rather well done.
Some areas explored in the book are very dark. Sexual exploitation, while not the central focus of the story, is described. This may upset some readers. It is not gratuitous. Its presence does explain certain aspects of the story. The author does not linger in this area. But it is present. I found it distasteful and unnerving but otherwise necessary to the story. And it stood in stark contrast to the sanitized media consumed by the denizens of the story. It was effective.
If I had to nitpick I would say the epilogue was wholly redundant. I felt it diluted the story, which I found rather sad and horrible in a good way. I was tearing up at what was clearly the end. I got it. But then there was more tacked on to explain what I had just read and understood. I felt the book was obvious enough without further explanation and would have preferred an abrupt end. Your mileage may vary. Nevertheless I came away from the book profoundly depressed. It worked. I felt something, which I believe was Itoh's point.
stories's review
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.0
I persisted, though I’m not sure im glad for it. The end of part 1 convinced me to give it another chance.
Some interesting snippets of philosophy, although I think my personal values lie too far from the assumed norm as Tuan seemed to accept a lot of surprising elements without blinking. (Maybe that’s cultural?)
Some interesting elements of scifi dystopia worldbuilding, in places harshly underscored by global responses to Covid-19 in the post-publication world… and then places of bizarre bandaids where I’m honestly not sure if Tuan was intended as an unreliable narrator or what.
Strange, unfounded characterisation shifts and a baffling obsession with “tits and ass” shoehorned at random were my biggest objections. The plot was… not great, but I suppose it kept me guessing.
Suicide warnings are no joke and the plot philosophising may have swayed Tuan, but I’m still left unconvinced, so as a text the philosophy angle didn’t thrill me either. (Maybe that was the point? If so, it wasn’t clear enough for me either.)
Some interesting puzzle pieces but the picture just doesn’t add up for me.
Some interesting snippets of philosophy, although I think my personal values lie too far from the assumed norm as Tuan seemed to accept a lot of surprising elements without blinking. (Maybe that’s cultural?)
Some interesting elements of scifi dystopia worldbuilding, in places harshly underscored by global responses to Covid-19 in the post-publication world… and then places of bizarre bandaids where I’m honestly not sure if Tuan was intended as an unreliable narrator or what.
Strange, unfounded characterisation shifts and a baffling obsession with “tits and ass” shoehorned at random were my biggest objections. The plot was… not great, but I suppose it kept me guessing.
Suicide warnings are no joke and the plot philosophising may have swayed Tuan, but I’m still left unconvinced, so as a text the philosophy angle didn’t thrill me either. (Maybe that was the point? If so, it wasn’t clear enough for me either.)
Some interesting puzzle pieces but the picture just doesn’t add up for me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide attempt, Suicide, and Suicidal thoughts
Moderate: Body shaming, Child death, Ableism, Gun violence, Murder, Toxic friendship, Death, Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Antisemitism
Minor: Sexual violence, War, Rape, Forced institutionalization, Infertility, Pandemic/Epidemic, Eating disorder, Cancer, Medical content, Self harm, Alcohol, Drug use, Fatphobia, and Genocide
First person suicide experiencesianthecat's review
dark
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Suicide
Minor: Rape and Sexual violence
kenziekuma's review
challenging
dark
informative
inspiring
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
remalcha_'s review
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
emkoshka's review
4.0
Concurrent with a desire to read more books by female authors (to redress the normativity and ubiquity of the white male writer) is a desire to read more books by non-Western writers. It's not just about their ability to offer up different perspectives on life; it's also about being taken out of my comfort zone (though travelling extensively achieves that too, albeit more expensively!). Although I don't know much about Japanese society, I feel like this book was an excellent if savage indictment of its social pressures for conformity, social unity and propriety. It also harked back to Nietzsche's concept of the Übermensch, the embodiment of the end of human progress wherein people are self-actualised to the point of perfection. But Joss Whedon in Serenity demonstrated the fatal flaw of such a super society: the elimination of basic and instinctive characteristics of humanity, like aggression and fear, can lead to the loss of any impetus towards survival. Harmony is frightening precisely because it seems prophetic: as we outsource more of our daily living to technology and the state, we start to lose our individuality. From there, it's a slippery slope to the ceding of all consciousness; when we can flip a switch to become truly rational and logical beings, then there's no need for independent thought anymore and we become automatons. But would we still be human?
omnombailey's review
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt
maurits's review
4.0
Although there are things to improve in this book (all writers should NOT follow this writer's example of writing women; women have more body parts than tits and asses), I found the last parts of the book absolutely fascinating and thought-provoking. Definitely recommended for those who like a bit of philosophy.