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nikolettefries's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a bit insane in the sense of who would treat children like that, let alone write about it so cruelly. It was difficult to finish even though it was so short. You have two 14yr old kids enduring things no one should. The conversation with Momose made me so sick I even had to stop myself to gather myself.
I feel I’m being a bit dramatic about this, but it was just cruelty dispersed all over the pages. However, I will take the rest of my review to leave some quotes I really liked and resonated with me.
“I almost never feel like everything’s okay, but just because most of my life feels wrong doesn’t mean that’s how I want it to be.”
“I can’t express how safe it felt never being seen.”
“I knew the peace could never last, but it was immensely comforting to know that, if I never left my room, no one in the world could lay a finger on me.”
“I knew that it was cruel to be so optimistic, but, in my solitude, I couldn’t resist the urge and spent entire days basking in idiotic fantasies, sometimes verging on prayer.”
“Pretending to feel better wasn’t going to solve anything. Not if I was just pretending.”
“We’ll understand some things while we’re alive and some after we die. But it doesn’t really matter when it happens. What matters is that all the pain and all the sadness have meaning.”
“I know there’s so much pain in this, but we have to keep going.”
“I guess I was crying because we had nowhere else to go, no choice but to go on living in this world.”
And last but not least, this BEAUTIFUL quote right at the end: “Everything was beautiful. Not that there was anyone to share it with, anyone to tell. Just the beauty.”
I feel I’m being a bit dramatic about this, but it was just cruelty dispersed all over the pages. However, I will take the rest of my review to leave some quotes I really liked and resonated with me.
“I almost never feel like everything’s okay, but just because most of my life feels wrong doesn’t mean that’s how I want it to be.”
“I can’t express how safe it felt never being seen.”
“I knew the peace could never last, but it was immensely comforting to know that, if I never left my room, no one in the world could lay a finger on me.”
“I knew that it was cruel to be so optimistic, but, in my solitude, I couldn’t resist the urge and spent entire days basking in idiotic fantasies, sometimes verging on prayer.”
“Pretending to feel better wasn’t going to solve anything. Not if I was just pretending.”
“We’ll understand some things while we’re alive and some after we die. But it doesn’t really matter when it happens. What matters is that all the pain and all the sadness have meaning.”
“I know there’s so much pain in this, but we have to keep going.”
“I guess I was crying because we had nowhere else to go, no choice but to go on living in this world.”
And last but not least, this BEAUTIFUL quote right at the end: “Everything was beautiful. Not that there was anyone to share it with, anyone to tell. Just the beauty.”
yoongitloml's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best books I've read this book. Its so painful and heart-wrenching but at the same time it beautiful and the end does justice to all that pain we as readers have to go through in the entire book.
freya66's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
byourday's review against another edition
3.0
Bullying Alert! This book took the classic storyline to a whole new level of emotional rollercoaster. So, this is my first dive into Mieko Kawakami's world, and now I totally get why people call it crazy!
Meet our main guy, Eyes—a young teen who gets bullied for his lazy eye (yep, his classmates literally call him Eyes). At first, I was furious because he couldn't stand up for himself or teach those bullies a lesson. But then, things get interesting when he starts exchanging letters with Komoji, another classmate who’s also bullied but by different people.
Their letter exchange is the heart of the story, and eventually, they meet outside of school. Komoji invites Eyes to ‘Heaven,’ a secret spot only they know. Mieko crafts such intense moments between them, making each character unique and unforgettable. Even though both are bullying victims, they handle it differently, giving us a fresh perspective on how people react to terrible situations.
As they grow closer, the bullying escalates, reaching a heartbreaking and distressing peak. It’s raw, real, and grounded. Through all the chaos, I finally understood why they couldn’t fight back. Not everyone has the courage to stand up and defend themselves; some choose silence, not because they don’t know what to do, but because they feel powerless.
This story hit hard, showing that sometimes, people just can't fight back, and that's a reality we need to understand.
Meet our main guy, Eyes—a young teen who gets bullied for his lazy eye (yep, his classmates literally call him Eyes). At first, I was furious because he couldn't stand up for himself or teach those bullies a lesson. But then, things get interesting when he starts exchanging letters with Komoji, another classmate who’s also bullied but by different people.
Their letter exchange is the heart of the story, and eventually, they meet outside of school. Komoji invites Eyes to ‘Heaven,’ a secret spot only they know. Mieko crafts such intense moments between them, making each character unique and unforgettable. Even though both are bullying victims, they handle it differently, giving us a fresh perspective on how people react to terrible situations.
As they grow closer, the bullying escalates, reaching a heartbreaking and distressing peak. It’s raw, real, and grounded. Through all the chaos, I finally understood why they couldn’t fight back. Not everyone has the courage to stand up and defend themselves; some choose silence, not because they don’t know what to do, but because they feel powerless.
This story hit hard, showing that sometimes, people just can't fight back, and that's a reality we need to understand.
trinefuqit's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
2003seigfried's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kkathexsz's review against another edition
emotional
relaxing
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This was actually one of the most powerful books I’ve ever read in my life, I dont remember myself getting that emotional over a book. This story is indeed beautiful and perfect, I think every single person needs to read it before their death. Mieko Kawakami is indeed a genius. Im so glad this book exists.
fefe__b's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
yars_reading_corner's review against another edition
1.0
It felt like an acid trip, like until around more than halfway through the book, I was disgusted and kind of judgmental and then I was just really confused and then I got grossed out again and then I was like ‘well, what was the point of writing that?’ apparently this is what nonfiction authors want to achieve when they say they want to write a literary fiction, it felt like garbage at some point and I just wanted it to end
d1an1ta's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
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? Yes
3.75