Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'

La Policía de la Memoria by Yōko Ogawa

90 reviews

ahsokascult's review against another edition

emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization and Police brutality

Moderate: Infidelity, Death of parent, and Death

anemosise's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

totally understand why some wouldn't enjoy this book, it's a bit slow and doesn't answer all the questions it raises, but i really liked a lot of concepts at play in this :) we don't ever fully understand the memory police, which I think makes sense to me. i get that it could be a let down, but truly, the people under rule will never truly understand the government or a totalitarian regime. this book is about an apathy and the effects on the people who dont fully understand what is happening in their world. being forced to be complacent with the loss of things we once thought to treasure, and accepting as the world grows darker and blander. how do we continue going when we lose our sense of comprehension?? anyways. i liked this!!!

a short essay i liked about the book:
https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/mqr/2021/07/yoko-ogawas-the-memory-police-and-the-dangers-of-forgetting/

first book I've read properly in a few months cause I've been busyyyyy.. excited to read more this summer!

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Death of parent and Death

issymaae's review against another edition

dark mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Police brutality, and Death

Moderate: Death of parent, Sexual assault, and Grief

Minor: Infidelity, Rape, and Animal death

kirkspockreads's review against another edition

dark emotional mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement

Moderate: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Death of parent, Infidelity, and Death

Minor: Fire/Fire injury

headliner's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.0

Kehilangan menjadi satu hal yang paling aku takuti. Jika aku menjadi salah satu karakter dalam buku ini atau paling tidak berada di universe-nya, aku rasa gak akan sanggup. Barang, orang, suara, dan diri - perlahan menghilang dan entah apa yang akan terjadi.

Bagiku bacaan ini terasa suram, kelam, dan gelisah. Aku juga dibuat penasaran dengan asal muasal Polisi Kenangan. Tindakan bengis mereka juga membuatku muak. Satu hal yang aku sadari saat membaca ini adalah bagaimana "distopia" menjadi genre yang aku hindari.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Police brutality, and Confinement

Minor: Death of parent

steph_phanie's review against another edition

dark mysterious sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief

Moderate: Death of parent

amsswim's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

I really liked this one, almost 5 stars from me. The world is very interesting, and it leaves me wanting more to understand how it all works. That is not the point though; the author leans into the human reaction to the circumstances and it is devastating. Would recommend to dystopian fans and emotional people looking to get into their feelings.

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Sexual violence, Body horror, Confinement, Dementia, Abandonment, Terminal illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, Death of parent, Death, Grief, and Sexual assault

Everything is very vague

avie_1's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? N/A
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

2.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Toxic relationship, Sexual violence, Abandonment, Physical abuse, Grief, Police brutality, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Emotional abuse, Death, Gaslighting, and Deportation

Minor: Death of parent

pixie_dust's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional mysterious sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Of all the books I have on my shelf, this one has to be one of the most depressing that I own. Yet, at the same time, it is the one that I would wholeheartedly recommend to anyone, especially those looking for something dystopian and speculative. You follow the protagonist, her editor R, and her close old man friend through an island where everything slowly disappears from memory. And you will definitely feel nothing but heartache for these characters. This book is not for those looking for action or rebellion, especially against the titular Memory Police. Instead, this is a view into the life of people living in a world where things are out of their control. Prepare yourself for a depresso for this one!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Death, Police brutality, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Animal death

Minor: Rape

juicytoot's review against another edition

dark emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.5

this book was Very slow and took me a while to finish it bc i felt obligated to. i didn’t feel attached to any of the characters specifically.

when i got to the last eighth of the book, it turned heart wrenching, with an ending i dreaded as i turned each page. nothing about the world made sense but it didn’t matter, because in the end everything disappeared

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Confinement, Police brutality, Death, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Death of parent

Minor: Rape and Adult/minor relationship

i do not recommend reading this one if you are struggling mentally, it isn’t an uplifting book