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tildahlia's review against another edition
3.0
I love strange stories and these stories were most definitely strange. Very distinctive Japanese writing style (sparse, unadorned and wry) and some of the concepts were interesting. It felt a bit like Japanese Black Mirror in stories in the way it challenged orthodoxies and invited disgust/discomfort. Can't say it was a pleasant read (some of the stories were a bit of a slog) but it was interesting.
greyreads's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
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
5.0
mechanicalbride's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
3.5
rolling_in_dough's review against another edition
dark
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Vomit
livyalusk's review against another edition
5.0
First of all, this book is holy scripture and should also be a required text in every school subject.
While it is a collection of wacky stories on the surface, this book can help anyone become open minded and empathetic. This is true even if they shun views put forward in this book, as the meanings behind them are strong and important.
These stories give different perspectives on literally everything, allowing readers to consider many meta elements of the world that they probably hadn't considered before. Whether or not they spoke of morality, they all had to do with what it meant to be humane and wholesome. As someone who doesn't think that there are objective moral properties or many concrete things about life in general, this book seriously appealed to me.
It presented many different views of life in many different societies, some more normal than others, and immersed me in such a warped way of thinking that I could understand even when I didn't agree.
In stories in which society was the main focus, the idea they shared was that normality and moral properties only depend on society, and that we've made so much progress that we debate things that could very well work from both sides of the argument depending on what we'd started with. It even included the quite common idea that everything is weird, but the only accepted type of madness is called normal. To match with this, the stories that didn't include a different society had a main character feeling like a complete outsider, and viewing the world and humans in such a convoluted but interesting way.
In most stories, objects were given human/animal qualities while humans were seen from a much more detached point of view. This doesn't necessarily mean seeing humans as objects or feral animals, but many more ideas that aren't as common in stories.
One of my favourite stories gave an interesting take on personalities. It discussed how abstract it is through someone who seemed to have developed a kind of dissociative identity, but then gave an idea of why it is so abstract and who we may really be. It also managed to, like the other stories, criticise society.
These stories are comforting to anyone who feels like an outsider because they show you that you can always be comfortable and there are many ways that things can work out.
My favourite stories were Puzzle, Eating the City and Hatchling. To the surprise of anyone who knows me, none of these were the one involving cannibalism.
The pacing and lengths of the stories were so perfect for my attention span, so I recommend this to anyone in a reading slump.
While it is a collection of wacky stories on the surface, this book can help anyone become open minded and empathetic. This is true even if they shun views put forward in this book, as the meanings behind them are strong and important.
These stories give different perspectives on literally everything, allowing readers to consider many meta elements of the world that they probably hadn't considered before. Whether or not they spoke of morality, they all had to do with what it meant to be humane and wholesome. As someone who doesn't think that there are objective moral properties or many concrete things about life in general, this book seriously appealed to me.
It presented many different views of life in many different societies, some more normal than others, and immersed me in such a warped way of thinking that I could understand even when I didn't agree.
In stories in which society was the main focus, the idea they shared was that normality and moral properties only depend on society, and that we've made so much progress that we debate things that could very well work from both sides of the argument depending on what we'd started with. It even included the quite common idea that everything is weird, but the only accepted type of madness is called normal. To match with this, the stories that didn't include a different society had a main character feeling like a complete outsider, and viewing the world and humans in such a convoluted but interesting way.
In most stories, objects were given human/animal qualities while humans were seen from a much more detached point of view. This doesn't necessarily mean seeing humans as objects or feral animals, but many more ideas that aren't as common in stories.
One of my favourite stories gave an interesting take on personalities. It discussed how abstract it is through someone who seemed to have developed a kind of dissociative identity, but then gave an idea of why it is so abstract and who we may really be. It also managed to, like the other stories, criticise society.
These stories are comforting to anyone who feels like an outsider because they show you that you can always be comfortable and there are many ways that things can work out.
My favourite stories were Puzzle, Eating the City and Hatchling. To the surprise of anyone who knows me, none of these were the one involving cannibalism.
The pacing and lengths of the stories were so perfect for my attention span, so I recommend this to anyone in a reading slump.
vanniereads's review against another edition
funny
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Collection of short stories - the highlights for me:
- "A Magnificent Spread"
- "Two's Family"
- "Body Magic"
- "Puzzle"
- "Hatchling"
The themes that run through these stories are: defying societal expectations, living life how it feels good to you despite how it may appear to others, and the anxiety of being perceived by others. These messages all resonated with me and I thought the stories were very charming. However, the pacing of the other stories were too slow and hard to get through at times and I also couldn't really grasp the messages behind them.
elusorius's review against another edition
3.0
Phenominal writing. I will surely read more of Sayaka Murata's books because her writing style is beautiful.
However, out of the 12 stories in this bundle; I only really connected with three of them. Now, the ones I connected with were great. They made me question the essence of normality and plunged me into an existential crisis. But in a good way, you know? Murata's writing is bizarre, and shocking. When you connect with a story, it will blow your mind.
But when you don't connect with a story, it's quite bland. The writing is stunning but the content is forgettable. Like a beautifully decorated empty box.
3/5
However, out of the 12 stories in this bundle; I only really connected with three of them. Now, the ones I connected with were great. They made me question the essence of normality and plunged me into an existential crisis. But in a good way, you know? Murata's writing is bizarre, and shocking. When you connect with a story, it will blow your mind.
But when you don't connect with a story, it's quite bland. The writing is stunning but the content is forgettable. Like a beautifully decorated empty box.
3/5
bookeared's review against another edition
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.25
fairiesdust's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0