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3.64 AVERAGE
3.64 AVERAGE
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
This was one of the more challenging books that I have read because of the way the narrative jumped, between characters and over time. Maybe something got lost in translation but the prose is beautiful in and of itself.
Nonetheless, this is a tragedy through and through, where the main character, Ueno Otoko, is let down in her youth by the people in her life, by society and the legal system, until her protégé vows to get revenge on her behalf.
But, predictably, the revenge brings about more tragedy and the real culprit – a man with considerable influence and the reason why Otoko’s life was turned upside down at a 16-year-old – gets to walk away relatively unscathed.
Though this book was written decades ago, it was somewhat prescient with modern day parallels, especially when I read about the horrifying new allegations against *that* famous author.
One frustrating (entirely my fault) bit about the book is the inter textual references, many of which I didn’t get and had to look up.
Nonetheless, this is a tragedy through and through, where the main character, Ueno Otoko, is let down in her youth by the people in her life, by society and the legal system, until her protégé vows to get revenge on her behalf.
But, predictably, the revenge brings about more tragedy and the real culprit – a man with considerable influence and the reason why Otoko’s life was turned upside down at a 16-year-old – gets to walk away relatively unscathed.
Though this book was written decades ago, it was somewhat prescient with modern day parallels, especially when I read about the horrifying new allegations against *that* famous author.
One frustrating (entirely my fault) bit about the book is the inter textual references, many of which I didn’t get and had to look up.
Content Warnings
Minor: Miscarriage, Rape
While I loved Kawabata's morality tale, it certainly helps not to think about it. Beauty and Sadness may then be emblematic of my holiday weekend. I finally felt good and productive after nasty sinus issues. I ran errands, rode my bike every day, my wife was home and my best friend was in from New York. The suddenly while laughing with two of my favorite people, I recognized how seldom I am able to simply hang out with Joel and my wife, drink beer and talk about Sarkozy and Terrence Stamp. Did i mention the very popular skewering of Freedom and all matter Jonathan Franzen? Kawabata's novel is like that. The moody novelist certainly possesses vision. Why does he molest or seduce a teenager? Well, we really never know. The reader can empathize with the wife through her sufferings and the sensation of having such experiences committed to literature. each royalty check bearing further humiliation. The point lingers that we don't understand the agency within the novel. The victims and targets are carefully explicated without the same effort extended to the protagonists.
dark
emotional
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Estoy muy dividida por este libro porque aunque disfrute mucho de la forma en la que narra Kawabata y el viaje que le da al lector, los apartados que tienen que ver con la relación entre Otoño y Keiko me sacaban inmediatamente del mundo que se estaba construyendo como que esta relación solo se siente como un objeto que Kawabata toma, usa y jamás se toma el detenimiento de genuinamente darle vida, parece falsa y en momentos muy cliché. Como que los exceptos entre Oki y Otoño tenían una vida tan fuerte que en contraste esto si dejaba demasiado que desear Sin embargo, creo que la voz que maneja a lo largo de la historia y el uso de los paisajes japoneses son muy muy acertados y envolventes.
I might be a book re-reader now ope
An odd Kawabata novel in that the scenario the reader is dropped into is substantially less realistic (thanks to Keiko being a complete psycho) and day to day but it still hits the typical themes of tradition vs modernization and his trademark way of layering melancholy and sorrow in a beautiful way.
That being said, Keiko is an odd character. She’s absolutely insane but she also acts in a way that is congruent with what a revenge obsessed teen dealing with generational trauma could. She’s arguably the weakest link in the story but she highlights the generational trauma themes from Oki being a complete bastard that i think she works.
I’ll defer to the scholars who actually study Kawabata but I also didn’t pick up on the male gaze critiques of the portrayal of lesbians that I’ve seen discussed elsewhere. Could be a blind spot of mine or maybe I just missed something.
Still one of my favorite books - the emotional tone and weight of Oki’s actions cascading from his victim to her mentee to his son is incredibly well done and unique for the era and place the story is told. May need to reread some other Kawabata now.
An odd Kawabata novel in that the scenario the reader is dropped into is substantially less realistic (thanks to Keiko being a complete psycho) and day to day but it still hits the typical themes of tradition vs modernization and his trademark way of layering melancholy and sorrow in a beautiful way.
That being said, Keiko is an odd character. She’s absolutely insane but she also acts in a way that is congruent with what a revenge obsessed teen dealing with generational trauma could. She’s arguably the weakest link in the story but she highlights the generational trauma themes from Oki being a complete bastard that i think she works.
I’ll defer to the scholars who actually study Kawabata but I also didn’t pick up on the male gaze critiques of the portrayal of lesbians that I’ve seen discussed elsewhere. Could be a blind spot of mine or maybe I just missed something.
Still one of my favorite books - the emotional tone and weight of Oki’s actions cascading from his victim to her mentee to his son is incredibly well done and unique for the era and place the story is told. May need to reread some other Kawabata now.
challenging
mysterious
tense
slow-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
sabe aquelas coisas lindas e profundas e significativas sobre o que a literatura e arte em geral fazem com a gente? então, ler esse livro foi todas essas coisas.
que delícia ler algo BEM ESCRITO e BOM.
que delícia ler algo BEM ESCRITO e BOM.
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
certos livros não tem como dar nota. lê aí e deixa ecoar. erótico. o quadro mais bonito que já li. gay vingativa. vento levando as folhas da cerejeira, vuuush
If we rid ourselves of every cultural artifact that blended love and hate together in equal measure, we would be be left with very little that is worth remembering. Love without hate is optimistic and hate without love is depressing but to have both! That is an accurate portrayal of ourselves, and after countless millennia we still crave the tales that delve unflinchingly into that bright and terrible line between the two.
But is it really a line? What causes one to cross it, and for how long? And do we really travel from one realm to another, the euphoric uplift and the bitter agony, via clean and complete transitions? Is it all that simple?
By those rules, this book should have never existed, one detailing the relationship between a young girl and a man twice her age. The repercussions stretch on for more than twenty years, as the man and his family live off the fruit of that story of illicit love, and the girl grows into a woman who wins the love of a girl hellbent on revenge for these past wrongs. And through the man's dangerously blind romanticism, and the woman's traumatized solitude, they still believe in their love for each other.
Blindness and trauma. The poison is bubbling to the surface everywhere the characters look, and yet they carry on as if there is nothing to be worried about. The man sees only his reflection in the women around him, and the girl twists this image into a hook to drag him down. The woman unconsciously builds a shrine to the pain and sorrow of the past, and the son ignores the warning signs at every turn.
And for what. Love? The love in this story is a wound, easily made and nigh impossible to heal, and the pleasure of it writhes in bed with the agony. Is it really worth it?
Look around you. I'd say the world thinks so.
But is it really a line? What causes one to cross it, and for how long? And do we really travel from one realm to another, the euphoric uplift and the bitter agony, via clean and complete transitions? Is it all that simple?
By those rules, this book should have never existed, one detailing the relationship between a young girl and a man twice her age. The repercussions stretch on for more than twenty years, as the man and his family live off the fruit of that story of illicit love, and the girl grows into a woman who wins the love of a girl hellbent on revenge for these past wrongs. And through the man's dangerously blind romanticism, and the woman's traumatized solitude, they still believe in their love for each other.
Blindness and trauma. The poison is bubbling to the surface everywhere the characters look, and yet they carry on as if there is nothing to be worried about. The man sees only his reflection in the women around him, and the girl twists this image into a hook to drag him down. The woman unconsciously builds a shrine to the pain and sorrow of the past, and the son ignores the warning signs at every turn.
And for what. Love? The love in this story is a wound, easily made and nigh impossible to heal, and the pleasure of it writhes in bed with the agony. Is it really worth it?
Look around you. I'd say the world thinks so.
dark
reflective
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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Adult/minor relationship, Child death, Suicide attempt