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3.34 AVERAGE
3.34 AVERAGE
mysterious
sad
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
emotional
mysterious
reflective
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:
No
The perfect one-sitting read for an evening of insomnia!
Yayoi doesn't remember her childhood, but with the help of her enigmatic aunt and her own sixth sense, she recovers her history and pieces together the elements of a more wholesome life.
Yayoi doesn't remember her childhood, but with the help of her enigmatic aunt and her own sixth sense, she recovers her history and pieces together the elements of a more wholesome life.
mysterious
reflective
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:
Yes
dark
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Weak writing.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I read this almost entirely in one go, completely captivated by the writing and entirely transported to a rainy summers evening in late eighties Japan. The whole novel has this sort of hazy, dreamlike quality to it- an alluring softness that I can't quite describe, but utterly fell for.
There were certainly elements that made me a little uneasy- namely the relationship between the Aunt and her student, and to a slightly lesser extent the main character and the boy she grew up knowing to be her brother (but only because of the revelation that they both sort of knew this to be untrue). But I did find the rest of the novel to be interesting enough, and so beautifully written that my experience with it was still, for the most part, an enjoyable one.
The exploration of identity, of family and of grief I found to be quite poignant and timeless. It definitely felt like a summer novel, suffused with a heady magical realism. It has definitely made me want to seek out more translated works by this author.
There were certainly elements that made me a little uneasy-
The exploration of identity, of family and of grief I found to be quite poignant and timeless. It definitely felt like a summer novel, suffused with a heady magical realism. It has definitely made me want to seek out more translated works by this author.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Death of parent
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Grief
Minor: Toxic relationship, Car accident, Abortion, Abandonment
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Beautifully written, compellingly readable. Loved it
emotional
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Yayoi is a normal 19-year-old in a normal, loving Japanese family. So why does she feel like something’s wrong, something she’s not remembering that’s just out of reach? When she moves in with her eccentric aunt Yukino, she discovers what she had been forgetting.
Ah, okay. So I knew a lot of people thought the (spoilers ahead) taboo relationship theme (“brother”/”sister”, teacher/student) was a major curveball, but I sort of saw it coming and that’s not the reason for the “meh” rating. I thought there was some really beautiful language in this book, especially as Yayoi grasps at a past that’s on the tip of her tongue. Yoshimoto (and her translator Yoneda) captured the dreamlike quality of the story very well. Where it fell short for me was, frankly, the shortness. The big reveal happens so quickly and is accepted so easily by Yayoi that it feels like we didn’t get enough payoff for the suspense, and the rest of the novel kind of fell flat for me. 2.5 out of 5 car crashes.
dark
emotional
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes