A review by readwithev
The Memory Police by Yōko Ogawa

emotional reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? N/A
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

The writing style is rich and poetic without feeling weighed down with adjectives. Ogawa also expresses emotions clearly with great similes. She focuses on characters rather than plot. The Memory Police aren’t the primary focus of the book.  “what makes our memories important? How do they shape us? Can we keep living without certain memories?” These are the questions Ogawa’s characters ask themselves.
The ending fell a bit flat for me so that’s why the book only gets 3.75 stars. I wish there was more conclusion with what and who exactly the memory police are and what happens to the survivors on the island. Even if the main female character doesn’t remember these details or if they’re told to us (the reader) through a flashback or second means, i would have liked these details.
We never find how how the memory police were created, who’s the main source of authority, why they choose specific objects to disappear, etc. The main female character doesn’t try to stop the memory police and one tries to form a military resistance against them. However, she and others do form safe houses and a boating-escape attempt is mentioned. These lack of violent resistance against the Memory Police was most interesting to me. As if the loss of items (and therefor themselves) created a docile population. We also never learn the main female character’s name, the old man’s name or R’s full name. Its as if the memory of names has been erased from the characters’ minds too. I  love that the main female character’s novel about the typist is a frame or allegory for what’s happening in her life.
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