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stephilica 's review for:
Spring Snow
by Yukio Mishima
The best thing about Spring Snow is the prose. It’s simply beautiful. The metaphors and similes were creative, the different points of view were all complex and unique to each character, and the conversations on philosophy were stimulating. Important themes on justice, the basis of reason, the transience of life, the delicacy of beauty, the meaning of elegance, etc. are examined through the lives and opinions of the large cast. While the novel takes a Buddhist bent towards answering many of the large questions it tackles, it does so with a nod to other opinions and a thorough examination of its own. (I may not agree on a religious level, but on an intellectual one, the logic was interesting to follow)
Beyond the themes they embody, the characters are simultaneously infuriating and endearing. Satoko and Kiyioaki are both slowly revealed to the reader in all of their strengths and weaknesses. They grow together and apart in a destructive but well-written journey.
While the ending struck me as dissatisfying, it was also tragically appropriate, and thematically consistent with the novel’s message about national loyalty and the impermanence of beautiful things like love.
(On a separate note, the Audible edition was masterfully narrated by Brian Nishii; his expressions for the characters flitted from the mock-bravado to nervous breathiness in perfect amounts, and he quickened or slowed his reading speed to match the tension of a scene. While I switched between the Kindle and audiobook formats, I found Nishii’s performance to be an immersive and preferable experience)
Beyond the themes they embody, the characters are simultaneously infuriating and endearing. Satoko and Kiyioaki are both slowly revealed to the reader in all of their strengths and weaknesses. They grow together and apart in a destructive but well-written journey.
While the ending struck me as dissatisfying, it was also tragically appropriate, and thematically consistent with the novel’s message about national loyalty and the impermanence of beautiful things like love.
(On a separate note, the Audible edition was masterfully narrated by Brian Nishii; his expressions for the characters flitted from the mock-bravado to nervous breathiness in perfect amounts, and he quickened or slowed his reading speed to match the tension of a scene. While I switched between the Kindle and audiobook formats, I found Nishii’s performance to be an immersive and preferable experience)