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readertate's review
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
tense
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, War, and Animal death
screaminginside's review
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
pickashelf's review
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: War, Child death, and Animal death
Moderate: Suicide
thomasgoddard's review
4.0
Akiyuki Nosaka was born in 1930 in Japan and was a member of the yakeato generation, 'the generation of the ashes', who survived the devastating firebombing of their country during the Second World War. Nosaka lost both his parents and sister in the bombing and its aftermath, but went on to become an award-winning novelist, short-story writer, essayist, lyricist, singer and politician. His novel Grave of the Fireflies was turned into a hugely successful Studio Ghibli film. Nosaka died in 2015.
I just want to lead with that because I didn't read it until the end and it was probably worth my time contextualising the stories a bit before jumping in.
Lots of people say that a book really hit them hard. But no word of a lie, this caught me emotionally. It's like the sad part of an animal-focused Disney movie... Bambi's mum getting shot, the fox in the Fox and the Hound getting left in the forest, the death of Mufasa, the brothers and sisters of Nemo getting gobbled up... but set on slow motion and having almost every tiny ember of hope extinguished.
Do not read this if you're easily nudged towards depression. Or if you have a pet.
Every story just masterfully balances the events in the larger scheme with these really poignant short personal vignettes. Stories where people meet animals that unlock, almost magically, the most human elements of the character and at the same time the reader. It really did make me stop and marvel more than once.
dunigan's review
4.0
A collection of 12 short stories that all take place on the day that the Japanese surrendered to the Allies during WWII (August 15th, 1945). Each story has a fairy tale-vibe to it, with lots of anthropomorphized animals and children too young to fully understand the extent of the war going on around them. While the stories are quite whimsical (e.g., a whale falling in love with a submarine, children coming across a tree that tastes like cake), they are also very very sad. The innocence of the characters paired with the atrocities of war makes for a very poignant read.
whogivesabook's review
4.0
Akiyuki Nosaka was born in 1930 in Japan and was a member of the yakeato generation, 'the generation of the ashes', who survived the devastating firebombing of their country during the Second World War. Nosaka lost both his parents and sister in the bombing and its aftermath, but went on to become an award-winning novelist, short-story writer, essayist, lyricist, singer and politician. His novel Grave of the Fireflies was turned into a hugely successful Studio Ghibli film. Nosaka died in 2015.
I just want to lead with that because I didn't read it until the end and it was probably worth my time contextualising the stories a bit before jumping in.
Lots of people say that a book really hit them hard. But no word of a lie, this caught me emotionally. It's like the sad part of an animal-focused Disney movie... Bambi's mum getting shot, the fox in the Fox and the Hound getting left in the forest, the death of Mufasa, the brothers and sisters of Nemo getting gobbled up... but set on slow motion and having almost every tiny ember of hope extinguished.
Do not read this if you're easily nudged towards depression. Or if you have a pet.
Every story just masterfully balances the events in the larger scheme with these really poignant short personal vignettes. Stories where people meet animals that unlock, almost magically, the most human elements of the character and at the same time the reader. It really did make me stop and marvel more than once.
voyria's review
4.0
it's hard to review this without talking about how painful it was to read it. it is nightmarish as well as one of the softest ways i've ever seen war depicted. it's hard to believe someone who lost so much in the catastrophe of humanity that is war (any war) managed to compose such beautiful pieces while staying in the message at all times. what i received from this book was especially a sense that we don't talk nearly enough about war as we should as a society. at the same time, we also don't talk about peace nearly enough as we should. i think western propaganda managed to make us dry towards war, to imagine it as something epic and resourceful when it is in reality the worst of any human invention, one we never ever needed and one we can't seem to drop for any reason whatsoever. i don't think we talk about this enough. this book treats the subject of war with unparalleled sensibility and honesty, and it often takes us off the battlefield and into the homes and hearts of the powerless, something most war media/fiction is afraid to do. i felt lucky to be alive at each page of this book.