kcernugel 's review for:

Tokyo Ueno Station by Yu Miri

4.0

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this isn't anything exceptional but the prose is absolutely beautiful and the simplicity in the words and storyline is calming in a way that makes you want to keep reading. there's no chapters in this book, and i kind of liked having it just continue on sporadically with the reader having to piece together the character's timeline. i love a book where the main character is reflecting on their life for its entirety, and even with such a short book (~180 pages), i felt i gained enough insight to understand Kazu's life. it's a commentary on homelessness and poverty, specifically in Japan (Tokyo), and i liked looking at these issues through the lens of one person (a ghost, to be specific) to get a more personal and deeper understanding of the experience. how sad it is that Kazu is treated the same dead as when he was alive and homeless. it's a very surface-level book but it doesn't pretend to be anything it's not. i got through most of it on a train ride so it's a quick read but enjoyable.