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A review by disheveledfox
Go by Kazuki Kaneshiro
5.0
Wow, Go grabbed me from the very beginning! Normally, I can quickly pinpoint what it is about a book that sucks me in: the writing style, the plot, the characters, the topic. It’s normally the fulfilment of just one or two of these things that makes me an easily satisfied reader. With Go, it was every one of these individual parts that lead me to reading rapture.
Go is a coming of age story centered on the discrimination of Zainichi, residents of Japan who are of Korean descent. Although culturally assimilated, Japan keeps Koreans at arm’s length and effectively contained, limiting their prospects in life. Sugihara, a third-generation Zainichi in high school, tells his story (one which he asserts is a love story, though I didn’t find it terribly central) in first-person. So, interesting topic that I know nothing about? ✅
Sugihara is a school bruiser determined to break free of Japan’s discriminatory society. His inner dialogue is pure power fantasy with him pitted against the world. He’s intelligent, plucky, completely full of himself as only teenagers can be, and idealistic. Overall, a loveable asshole and a breath of fresh air. Relatable, compelling character? ✅ The brief glimpses we get of his parents are also fantastic!
The writing style is simple, direct, and funny. ✅✅✅ I loved how accessible it was and how efficiently the story was told. The only exception to this was Sugihara’s love of listing off all sorts of pop culture he was into: movies, books, music, you name it. A lot of it was from before my time, so I skimmed the lists as they didn’t add anything to the story. I think it just effectively showed how much energy teenagers put into trying to define themselves.
Go is a coming of age story centered on the discrimination of Zainichi, residents of Japan who are of Korean descent. Although culturally assimilated, Japan keeps Koreans at arm’s length and effectively contained, limiting their prospects in life. Sugihara, a third-generation Zainichi in high school, tells his story (one which he asserts is a love story, though I didn’t find it terribly central) in first-person. So, interesting topic that I know nothing about? ✅
Sugihara is a school bruiser determined to break free of Japan’s discriminatory society. His inner dialogue is pure power fantasy with him pitted against the world. He’s intelligent, plucky, completely full of himself as only teenagers can be, and idealistic. Overall, a loveable asshole and a breath of fresh air. Relatable, compelling character? ✅ The brief glimpses we get of his parents are also fantastic!
The writing style is simple, direct, and funny. ✅✅✅ I loved how accessible it was and how efficiently the story was told. The only exception to this was Sugihara’s love of listing off all sorts of pop culture he was into: movies, books, music, you name it. A lot of it was from before my time, so I skimmed the lists as they didn’t add anything to the story. I think it just effectively showed how much energy teenagers put into trying to define themselves.