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A review by motifenjoyer
Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids by Kenzaburō Ōe
3.0
Nip the Buds, Shoot the Kids (1958) is the first novel by Japanese Nobel laureate Kenzaburō Ōe and was translated into English by Paul St. John Mackintosh and Maki Sugiyama. It's the third book I've read by Ōe, whose novel A Personal Matter is one of my absolute favorites. It's also particularly interesting because it's the only full-length novel Ōe wrote before the birth of his first son, who is disabled, in 1963. Ōe's son has been a profound influence on his work, so it's intriguing to see how his writing looked before his son was born.
Nip the Buds is told from the perspective of an unnamed adolescent boy. Along with his classmates in a boys' reformatory school, the narrator is evacuated to the countryside during World War II. But soon after they arrive in a small village, the boys are abandoned by the villagers, who are fleeing a plague spreading throughout the countryside. There are obvious parallels to Lord of the Flies, published four years earlier (although I haven't seen any confirmation that Ōe read or was even aware of that novel.) But Ōe's book is also clearly a product of its cultural and historical context. The introduction of the English edition I read states that "Ōe's anger against his elders' sheeplike complicity in the disastrous militarist adventure, against the generals who led the people to the end of the road only to abandon them, against the craven reversal of ideologies, is venomously evident," and the novel was clearly influenced by Ōe's upbringing during World War II.
Ultimately, I think I appreciated the intent of this book more than I actually liked it. Several Goodreads reviews I've read criticized the translation, which might be part of why I found it lacking (the other two Ōe books I've read were translated by John Nathan, who even got to go to Stockholm with Ōe when he was awarded the Nobel.) The pacing also seemed a bit odd to me, although it's difficult to explain why without spoiling the ending. I'm glad I read it, but it doesn't live up to Ōe's other great works IMO.
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Nip the Buds is told from the perspective of an unnamed adolescent boy. Along with his classmates in a boys' reformatory school, the narrator is evacuated to the countryside during World War II. But soon after they arrive in a small village, the boys are abandoned by the villagers, who are fleeing a plague spreading throughout the countryside. There are obvious parallels to Lord of the Flies, published four years earlier (although I haven't seen any confirmation that Ōe read or was even aware of that novel.) But Ōe's book is also clearly a product of its cultural and historical context. The introduction of the English edition I read states that "Ōe's anger against his elders' sheeplike complicity in the disastrous militarist adventure, against the generals who led the people to the end of the road only to abandon them, against the craven reversal of ideologies, is venomously evident," and the novel was clearly influenced by Ōe's upbringing during World War II.
Ultimately, I think I appreciated the intent of this book more than I actually liked it. Several Goodreads reviews I've read criticized the translation, which might be part of why I found it lacking (the other two Ōe books I've read were translated by John Nathan, who even got to go to Stockholm with Ōe when he was awarded the Nobel.) The pacing also seemed a bit odd to me, although it's difficult to explain why without spoiling the ending. I'm glad I read it, but it doesn't live up to Ōe's other great works IMO.
Check out my bookstagram for more international reads!