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3.69 AVERAGE
3.69 AVERAGE
The Woman in the Dunes is a marvelously constructed novel about man and our existence. It is a simple story with the basic element of sand yet Abe draws the reader in to the lives and predicaments of characters that seem so familiar to our own. Junpei is an amateur entomologist who loses his way in search of a new species of beetle. He comes across a village but one that is sunk into pits within dunes of sand. As night falls, he asks his way only to be placed within a pit in the home of a widow. The woman lives alone and digs sand to be sent to a factory for concrete. After a few days, it appears that Junpei is hostage to the hot conditions, permeating grains of sand, and company of the woman. There is no way out but by the ladder over which the village elders have control. He is doomed to work against a mountain of sand made of the smallest of grains, so literally moving an infinite number of tiny pieces. It calls into question the meaning of existence from the smallest grain to the largest dune. An excellent read!
The sand gets in everywhere.
I got this book because I chanced upon the absolutely splendid movie version. I'm not sure which I'd recommend going through first because seeing the movie spoiled some of the suspense but still helped me envision the absolutely bizarre setting.
A man, out bug collecting, is taken captive by a village collective and a woman living in an inescapable sand-pit. A village itself besieged by traditionalist thinking that overpowers their own compassion. Don't be mistaken, he does try to escape. But like life, our passions and desires are outwitted by harsh reality.
We learn the man's name about halfway through the novel see it exactly once more after that. I don't think it's mentioned at all in the movie. He is the only character that gets a name.
It might be noted that the Japanese name of the novel, 砂の女, Suna no Onna (literally Sand-Woman or Woman of [the] Sand), is cognate with 雪の女, Yuki no Onna, the legendary Snow-Woman of Japanese myth that entraps unwitting men. And a bit clearer in the movie, the bug-collecting hobby reflects certain insects who use similar traps to get their dinners.
Finally, this is, like [b:1984|5470|1984|George Orwell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348990566s/5470.jpg|153313], a book with a monumentally striking final line:
I got this book because I chanced upon the absolutely splendid movie version. I'm not sure which I'd recommend going through first because seeing the movie spoiled some of the suspense but still helped me envision the absolutely bizarre setting.
A man, out bug collecting, is taken captive by a village collective and a woman living in an inescapable sand-pit. A village itself besieged by traditionalist thinking that overpowers their own compassion. Don't be mistaken, he does try to escape. But like life, our passions and desires are outwitted by harsh reality.
We learn the man's name about halfway through the novel see it exactly once more after that. I don't think it's mentioned at all in the movie. He is the only character that gets a name.
It might be noted that the Japanese name of the novel, 砂の女, Suna no Onna (literally Sand-Woman or Woman of [the] Sand), is cognate with 雪の女, Yuki no Onna, the legendary Snow-Woman of Japanese myth that entraps unwitting men. And a bit clearer in the movie, the bug-collecting hobby reflects certain insects who use similar traps to get their dinners.
Finally, this is, like [b:1984|5470|1984|George Orwell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1348990566s/5470.jpg|153313], a book with a monumentally striking final line:
Spoiler
He might as well put off his escape until sometime after that.
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
terrifying and disheartening. this book feels like a japanese version of george orwell's 1984.
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
slow-paced
dark
reflective
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
N/A
Diverse cast of characters:
N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Brilliant creation of atmosphere. I fully understand the claim for Kobo Abe being the 'Japanese Kafka'. The infectious sand seeps through the pages, constantly making me ask: am I covered in sand, insects, or suspicion? Or all of them?
"Because winds and water currents flow over the land, the formation of sand is unavoidable. As long as the winds blew, the rivers flowed, and the seas stirred, sand would be born grain by grain from the earth, and like a living being it would creep everywhere. The sands never rested. Gently but surely they invaded and destroyed the surface of the earth."
"Because winds and water currents flow over the land, the formation of sand is unavoidable. As long as the winds blew, the rivers flowed, and the seas stirred, sand would be born grain by grain from the earth, and like a living being it would creep everywhere. The sands never rested. Gently but surely they invaded and destroyed the surface of the earth."
challenging
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes