A review by frank_atlas
Earthlings by Sayaka Murata

dark emotional funny mysterious sad medium-paced

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

3.5

This book was odd, yet interesting. The dialogue was so bizarre that it felt like an alien trying to speak an “Earthling” language. The story of Natsuki’s childhood was written so nicely it really captured the naive nature of childhood and how our perception of things as children are so vastly different from the reality of our surrounding. I found the storytelling from childhood a bit more interesting than the latter half of the book and the pacing just felt a bit too clunky for me where I struggled to push forward at times. The characters were one of my favorite aspects of the book as they were very fleshed out.  I enjoyed the distinct nature of their personalities and the fact they didn’t blend together into s “which one is that again?” Nature some books fall into.

Overall I’d rate “Earthlings” ✨ 3.5 of 5 ✨ I recommend this book if you’re really looking for an out of this world WTF read. While I didn’t fall in love with this one it was absolutely one of the strangest books I’ve ever read