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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Beautiful and emotional story about the journey of growing old, the quiet heartbreak of losing memories, and the impact of dementia.
Content Warnings
Minor: Self harm
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
"Maybe we need to lose something if we want to grow up."
This story was so heartwarming, despite the sad topic. It was also very different from Genki Kawamura's other book I've read "What if Cats Disappeared from the World?"
I really liked this story.
This story was so heartwarming, despite the sad topic. It was also very different from Genki Kawamura's other book I've read "What if Cats Disappeared from the World?"
I really liked this story.
emotional
sad
slow-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:
No
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A story driven by memories, reminiscence, and the degenerative nature of Dementia. A compelling narrative that draws on the beauty of temporal brightness through life and how light fades in time as we revert to our natural state of experiencing the world at birth.
The nuances in this novel; fireworks and flowers, metaphorically speaking, how people are alike to these objects, is breathtakingly profound. Humanism is accepting that we start with minimal memories, and our state of being is reliant on wandering, and that is how we revert too. The realism involved through Izumi's experiences of his mother's decline is honest, truthful, and desperate. Izumi clings to the hope that his mother is okay - everything is fine. But reality hits harder and faster when the word 'Dementia' is uttered.
A captivating read that deals with familial loss and estranged relationships.
The nuances in this novel; fireworks and flowers, metaphorically speaking, how people are alike to these objects, is breathtakingly profound. Humanism is accepting that we start with minimal memories, and our state of being is reliant on wandering, and that is how we revert too. The realism involved through Izumi's experiences of his mother's decline is honest, truthful, and desperate. Izumi clings to the hope that his mother is okay - everything is fine. But reality hits harder and faster when the word 'Dementia' is uttered.
A captivating read that deals with familial loss and estranged relationships.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I couldn't remember why I requested this book on Netgalley and I started it expecting something cute and syrupy, like a few Japanese novels I read recently and found a bit similar and disappointing. This was actually a lot darker than I expected - we follow a man in his thirties, Izumi, and his mother Yuriko, nearly seventy and in the early stages of Alzheimer's.
Izumi is trying to juggle everything - his busy job at a talent agency, his mother who becomes progressively more erratic and more forgetful, and his wife Kaori and him are expecting a baby - neither of them is particularly enthusiastic about it. He also remembers his mother disappearing for a while year when he was fourteen, running off with a married man, but this ended up taking less space in the novel than what the book summary will have you believe.
It was a really lovely book, compassionate and emotional, and even if we don't get to know Yuriko that well, we really feel Izumi's emotions throughout, his embarrassment when his mother "causes a scene", his anxiety, his fear when she keeps getting worse, his worries about looking after her while working... It had a lot more depth than I had assumed it would have and I found it an interesting and enjoyable read.
Free ARC sent by Netgalley.
Izumi is trying to juggle everything - his busy job at a talent agency, his mother who becomes progressively more erratic and more forgetful, and his wife Kaori and him are expecting a baby - neither of them is particularly enthusiastic about it. He also remembers his mother disappearing for a while year when he was fourteen, running off with a married man, but this ended up taking less space in the novel than what the book summary will have you believe.
It was a really lovely book, compassionate and emotional, and even if we don't get to know Yuriko that well, we really feel Izumi's emotions throughout, his embarrassment when his mother "causes a scene", his anxiety, his fear when she keeps getting worse, his worries about looking after her while working... It had a lot more depth than I had assumed it would have and I found it an interesting and enjoyable read.
Free ARC sent by Netgalley.