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buud_w0rm's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
I wish strange was also an option for “mood”. But otherwise the stories definitely captivates your attention and holds deeper meanings. Now, I want a physical copy bc only remember a few stories (life ceremonies, hatchling & first rate material).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Cannibalism, and Vomit
Moderate: Incest
Minor: Stalking
nicolinebl's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
Incredibly weird sometimes, but also wonderful and reflective.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death and Cannibalism
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Sexual content, and Body horror
Minor: Incest, Pedophilia, and Stalking
aouife's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
dystopian short stories exploring human bodies and societal taboos - beautiful, grotesque and silly
Content Warnings
Graphic: Medical content, Body horror, Sexual content, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Death
Minor: Incest and Vomit
scribblinginthemargins's review against another edition
challenging
dark
funny
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
I love how these stories have such nods towards masking, being baffled by the social norms around you when others accept them without thought of problem. As a neurodiverse reader I felt such connection and empathy towards this collection of stories: Murata sets up worlds organised around totally bizarre or borderline grotesque social norms (life ceremony itself is particularly vivid in it's weirdness!) And I can't help feeling she's nudging us towards understanding what it's like to be totally baffled and disgusted by the "normality" of our society and culture and learning how to mask and "fit in" with what's expected, even when it seems repulsive or needlessly complex.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Cannibalism, Incest, Sexual violence, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment
nzmerchant's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
reflective
tense
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
3.25
Errr…. A bit odd. Fantastically written and had really enthralling analogies. But a lot of bodily fluids and rather grotesque bodily descriptions. Made my skin crawl but in a good way??? I breezed through this and enjoyed how quirky the stories were! Not for the faint hearted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Sexual content, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Incest
eohzy's review against another edition
challenging
funny
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism
Moderate: Vomit and Excrement
Minor: Incest
Not for the squeamish!thedistortionist's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism, Vomit, and Body horror
Moderate: Death, Sexual content, and Incest
Minor: Stalking
lucyduller's review against another edition
challenging
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I love a short-story collection; it’s a great way to get to know an author’s style and get vignettes of many different stories. I also really like Sayaka Murata’s novels, in particular the wildly popular Convenience Store Woman, which I highly recommend you read!
This however, was really disappointing. It’s tricky because for many of these stories, I get what she is doing…I think.
I think she’s trying to subvert norms and tell a story from the perspective of a societal outsider. In some cases, I think that worked quite well. The short stories I actually enjoyed were: Hatchling, A Summer Night’s Kiss, Two’s Family, The Time of the Large Star, A Clean Marriage and Body Magic
The rest however were pretty disturbing. Cannibalism, being a human building, an affair with a curtain (yes a literal curtain). Some of them felt like half formed ideas, where the story gave gruesome detail about the weird disturbing parts without the reflection or the zoom out on the bigger picture that makes the story make sense. So for a lot of this book, I had a confused face, as pictured in the post, teehee.
I can confidently say these stories are unlike anything I’ve ever read before. I think it would be interesting for anyone interested in social anthropology to read, but otherwise, I’d recommend skipping this one and read Convenience Store Woman instead. Unless of course you would like to read some disturbing, disgusting, gruesome, odd stories — if that is the case then this collection of short stories is for you!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Stalking, Excrement, Incest, Sexual content, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Acephobia/Arophobia
Minor: Death, Sexual assault, and Excrement
ellenisntcool's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I'll write my full thoughts later, right now I have to sit and figure it out
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body horror, Vomit, and Cannibalism
Moderate: Sexual content, Death, and Incest
Minor: Stalking
anemosise's review against another edition
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
i loved so many of the concepts in these short stories, it's such a joy taking a (what mostly feels like a deeply personal) look into sayaka muratas head. my only complaint is that I wish some of the stories delved into their concepts a little bit more ferociously
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cannibalism and Vomit
Moderate: Sexual content, Incest, and Death