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A review by bookmaddie
Talk to My Back by Yamada Murasaki
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
5.0
I was so excited to find this manga at the library—it's heralded as a groundbreaking work of alt-manga, one of the first pieces to explore what it's like to be a housewife in Japan in the 1980s. But even though it was created over 40 years ago (oof!), it feels fresh and prescient, with many of the themes and questions that Yamada explores still relevant, even here in the United States.
The art is amazing, spare in moments but full of warmth as we follow the story of a young woman caring for her two children and often-absent husband. Yamada is honest in her depiction of motherhood and what it's like to be forgotten behind the label of wife, mother, and caretaker. Our main character battles with her desire for independence and intellectual stimulation with her desire to keep her family close and watch her daughters grow up. This is one of the most thought-provoking graphic novels I've read, yet it is still funny, warm, and full of love.
It is super interesting to think of this graphic novel in the context of some more recent Japenese fiction by female writers that I've read—more specifically, Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami. Motherhood and how to balance family vs independent pursuits seems like it's still a big question in Japan, and this is a great foundation for understanding what came before some of today's more blatantly feminist literary explorations. So happy to have stumbled upon this!
The art is amazing, spare in moments but full of warmth as we follow the story of a young woman caring for her two children and often-absent husband. Yamada is honest in her depiction of motherhood and what it's like to be forgotten behind the label of wife, mother, and caretaker. Our main character battles with her desire for independence and intellectual stimulation with her desire to keep her family close and watch her daughters grow up. This is one of the most thought-provoking graphic novels I've read, yet it is still funny, warm, and full of love.
It is super interesting to think of this graphic novel in the context of some more recent Japenese fiction by female writers that I've read—more specifically, Breasts and Eggs by Mieko Kawakami. Motherhood and how to balance family vs independent pursuits seems like it's still a big question in Japan, and this is a great foundation for understanding what came before some of today's more blatantly feminist literary explorations. So happy to have stumbled upon this!