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A review by hookandbookclub
Life Ceremony by Sayaka Murata
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This short story collection won’t surprise you too much if you’ve read Murata’s novel Earthlings, but be ready for a little more gore and creepiness.
Several short stories make up Life Ceremony, including the self-titled one.
Its not clear whether the stories all take place in the same alternate reality but many could be called speculative fiction.
The author clearly questions society and our arbitrary rules and customs. In the book new traditions are presented and they might have you wondering, why we do the things we do anyway, and why wouldn’t we take it a step further?
If you have a leather sofa, and a woolly jumper, why not a teeth chandelier, or a human hair sweater?
In the stories we get glimpses into the human condition, existential questioning, and glances at human relationships.
These stories feel like a contemporary kind of satire, or something speculative.
There is a disquiet to them.
Having read Earthlings towards the end of last year, I was keen to read this but I preferred Earthlings. It’s along the same vein of weirdness but being a standalone novel, more time is given to develop the world and the characters.
Life Ceremony gives us instead many vignettes of alternate visions of social customs, without much room for plot or character development. I feel like many of the short stories could be the basis for longer works though, and some of them seemed to recall Earthlings.
One point of advice for the squeamish or just in general: Avoid snacking while reading!
Several short stories make up Life Ceremony, including the self-titled one.
Its not clear whether the stories all take place in the same alternate reality but many could be called speculative fiction.
The author clearly questions society and our arbitrary rules and customs. In the book new traditions are presented and they might have you wondering, why we do the things we do anyway, and why wouldn’t we take it a step further?
If you have a leather sofa, and a woolly jumper, why not a teeth chandelier, or a human hair sweater?
In the stories we get glimpses into the human condition, existential questioning, and glances at human relationships.
These stories feel like a contemporary kind of satire, or something speculative.
There is a disquiet to them.
Having read Earthlings towards the end of last year, I was keen to read this but I preferred Earthlings. It’s along the same vein of weirdness but being a standalone novel, more time is given to develop the world and the characters.
Life Ceremony gives us instead many vignettes of alternate visions of social customs, without much room for plot or character development. I feel like many of the short stories could be the basis for longer works though, and some of them seemed to recall Earthlings.
One point of advice for the squeamish or just in general: Avoid snacking while reading!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Body horror, and Cannibalism