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A review by versmonesprit
The Temple of the Golden Pavilion by Yukio Mishima
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
1.0
I sometimes wonder what would happen if I didn’t read Yukio Mishima’s fascist manifesto, Sun and Steel. Because his works are imbued with his fascist ideals, but seeing so many decent Mishima fans, I keep wondering — would I have picked up on them?
Either way, I can’t go back in time to un-read it, so it seems Mishima will remain forever tainted for me. I have unfortunately bought three more of his books, and yet a fourth of his stories is included in a collection I have, so my pure hate relationship with him isn’t over. I just regret buying The Temple of the Golden Pavilion upon recommendation by a book-friend, saying I’d like it more than The Sailor who Fell from Grace with the Sea. Did I? Apparently yes, if we consider that was a 0.25/5 for me and this a 1/5. Certainly not a worthy improvement by any means, and I do genuinely feel bad about the money I spent on Mishima’s works. More than un-reading Sun and Steel, I’d want to go back in time to un-buy all of his works.
The first 60 pages were excruciating to read, and just when I was convinced the book would flow from then on, the clubfooted man’s unending monologue brought back that impossible-to-push-through quality. It was a profoundly infuriating experience also because it betrayed Mishima’s total inability to write a single different narratorial voice. You couldn’t tell a single character apart, because not once does he bother to change and adapt their voice. So yes, Mishima is just a shitty author beyond the limits of my personal vendetta too. Because also: for an unending, drivelling, repetitive book that is supposedly about beauty, it says nothing at all. It wouldn’t even fill 5 pages if you were to take out the repetition! And if you were expecting this book to be about the main character’s obsession with the temple, HA HA, no! It’s just a chronicle of his life. Don’t let blurbs and reviews dupe you into believing Mishima had an interesting idea.
I wish it were possible to die a thousand deaths. I would have loved delivering Mishima the remaining 999, not only for being a scummy person, but also for being such a horrible writer. I genuinely felt my blood pressure rise, my jaw lock and tremble, tears of frustration creep into my eyes when the book kept going on and not ending.
Either way, I can’t go back in time to un-read it, so it seems Mishima will remain forever tainted for me. I have unfortunately bought three more of his books, and yet a fourth of his stories is included in a collection I have, so my pure hate relationship with him isn’t over. I just regret buying The Temple of the Golden Pavilion upon recommendation by a book-friend, saying I’d like it more than The Sailor who Fell from Grace with the Sea. Did I? Apparently yes, if we consider that was a 0.25/5 for me and this a 1/5. Certainly not a worthy improvement by any means, and I do genuinely feel bad about the money I spent on Mishima’s works. More than un-reading Sun and Steel, I’d want to go back in time to un-buy all of his works.
The first 60 pages were excruciating to read, and just when I was convinced the book would flow from then on, the clubfooted man’s unending monologue brought back that impossible-to-push-through quality. It was a profoundly infuriating experience also because it betrayed Mishima’s total inability to write a single different narratorial voice. You couldn’t tell a single character apart, because not once does he bother to change and adapt their voice. So yes, Mishima is just a shitty author beyond the limits of my personal vendetta too. Because also: for an unending, drivelling, repetitive book that is supposedly about beauty, it says nothing at all. It wouldn’t even fill 5 pages if you were to take out the repetition! And if you were expecting this book to be about the main character’s obsession with the temple, HA HA, no! It’s just a chronicle of his life. Don’t let blurbs and reviews dupe you into believing Mishima had an interesting idea.
I wish it were possible to die a thousand deaths. I would have loved delivering Mishima the remaining 999, not only for being a scummy person, but also for being such a horrible writer. I genuinely felt my blood pressure rise, my jaw lock and tremble, tears of frustration creep into my eyes when the book kept going on and not ending.