A review by diameters
Seventeen Syllables and Other Stories by Hisaye Yamamoto

challenging mysterious reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

namesake "seventeen syllables" was deeply compelling. love the literary tone. feels very much like a "literary" novel if that makes any sense. clear connections to sui sin far, but with a more modern style. the amount of detail in the descriptions and in the build up of the emotional conflicts made me pause and think about if i have ever written a character half as compelling as the three lines that yamamoto gave to rosie's father. 

after reading each story i usually had a brief moment (3-8 seconds) of just genuine confusion and/or misery. felt like reading killing and dying. felt like reading a literary short story.