Scan barcode
A review by newamsterdame
The Goddess Chronicle by Natsuo Kirino
3.0
Kirino's spin on Japan's creation myth is a long, deep look at the cyclical nature of women's suffering. The female characters of this story-- from the goddess Izanami to the central narrator Namima-- are all assigned roles which they cannot escape. The male characters, on the other hand, are able to push and pull at their destinies and change outcomes. Mahito is able to lift his family's curse through deceit, Izanaki can take different forms and eventually escape his destiny as a life-bringer. But the women, no matter what their hopes or desires, no matter how drastic their actions, don't seem to have the same power.
This translation of Kirino's prose is crisp and efficient. There are places in which it feels like the chanting of the priestess guiding a funeral process, and places where it is clinical and brutal when describing sudden death or murder. Although many of the interior thoughts and motivations of characters remain shrouded, the book portrays Namima, Izanaki and especially Izanami very deeply.
Ultimately, this is a story that uses the lives of mortals to try and capture the suffering of gods-- the cumulative and continuous suffering of a female god presiding over death. In that mission, we're ultimately left a little unsatisfied. But that may be because such suffering really is beyond comprehension.
This translation of Kirino's prose is crisp and efficient. There are places in which it feels like the chanting of the priestess guiding a funeral process, and places where it is clinical and brutal when describing sudden death or murder. Although many of the interior thoughts and motivations of characters remain shrouded, the book portrays Namima, Izanaki and especially Izanami very deeply.
Ultimately, this is a story that uses the lives of mortals to try and capture the suffering of gods-- the cumulative and continuous suffering of a female god presiding over death. In that mission, we're ultimately left a little unsatisfied. But that may be because such suffering really is beyond comprehension.