1/10
Today I finally finished reading the novel Moshi Moshi by Banana Yoshimoto, which I started reading months ago and never finished.
I'm proud of myself for having finished it. I haven't been reading a lot lately, since I've started working from home. Previously I had done all my reading on the bus during my commute, so I don't have a "reading space" at home. My Youtube addiction also doesn't help, and reading in bed just makes me fall asleep.
📘 "Earthlings" by Sayaka Murata, translated from Japanese into English by Ginny Tapley Takemori
Well, I did it. I finished it. I did not come out unscathed.
This is the second book I've read from the author, the other being 'Convenience Store Woman'. I went in kind of expecting that level of alienating from society. I was wrong. This is a good book, but I feel like I must warn anyone who needs CWs to check them out. Do it. Mentioning them here might be a spoiler, though.
Be prepared that this book goes off the rails. Then it tumbles down the mountain, into a ravine. At the bottom it catches fire. It triggers something, so it explodes. It's catapulted into space, without oxygen, and suffocates. Then it falls down and on entry in the atmosphere it burns. Back on earth, dropping into the ocean, it concludes by drowning. Its body gets ripped apart by wildlife. Is that the journey you want to go on? Truly ask yourself that.
Save to say this book is shocking and upsetting, but it's with great critique of societal norms and modern life. It's just fed up with being subtle. I loved how it mixed up extremely relatable thoughts and frustrations with the most repulsive and upsetting things, making you question your own sanity.
The structure of the book is pretty cool. With six chapters, it switches between Y Y A Y A A regarding young/adult life. Uneven chapters are slow shocks, even chapters are extreme shocks. The geographical elevation goes high low high low high, etc. There's more patterns throughout. I have no idea if it's all on purpose, or if I'm simply seeing things, but I enjoyed it.
I've grown fond of Earthlings, but I don't know if I can stomach reading it again. They're completely different titles, but the stress I felt reading this was a bit like the anxiety I felt while reading 'Blood on the Tracks' by Shūzō Oshimi. Maybe in a million years, once I can reread it in the original Japanese, I'll consider it.
I saw Sayaka Murata will release a new novel in English later this year. I'm excited, but as soon as I saw the cover (all these tiny plastic baby dolls), I got worried. But I'm always yearning for more books about how normal is abnormal, so I know I'll cave in anyway.
📘 "This is Amiko, Do You Copy?" by Natsuko Imamura,
translated from Japanese into English by Hitomi Yoshio
This book took me a couple of weeks to read because I kept taking breaks between each chapter.
Amiko is a (neurodivergent?) kid who doesn't fit in and can't understand social cues. This book is from her point of view. As a reader we can see her being rejected constantly -getting bullied by peers, getting neglected by her family. She herself doesn't really understand what's going on and why, which makes it extra painful. The text slowly escalates into sadder and sadder circumstances.
It's certainly written well, but only read this if you're ready to get your heart broken.
#AmReading #books #bookstodon #JapaneseLiterature #JapaneseLit #WomenInTranslation
📘 "Nipponia Nippon" by Kazushige Abe,
translated from Japanese into English by Kerim Yasar
I was so discouraged when I started reading this book and realized that it was about an incompetent, sexually frustrated young man, angry at society and willing to solve all of his problems with violence. But! I judged too quickly.
The author makes this story smart and interesting by being subtly critical of the protagonist with his language use. There are twists and turns and reveals and a satisfyingly strange ending. I felt toyed with as the reader, but didn't mind it at all.
I'm really curious about some of the choices the translator made, and wish there was an interview or podcast somewhere about it. For example, the main character's plan to 'exterminate' the hopes and dreams and heritage of the Japanese, as a society, is called "the final solution" throughout the book. Also the importance of the crested ibis' Latin name, the kanji explanations that were vital to the story... An analysis of the translation would be fascinating.
#AmReading #books #bookstodon #JapaneseLit #JapaneseLiterature
Just started this book. So far it’s pretty good. Magical realism, immersive, and very Japanese.
Til now I’ve not read any other Japanese author aside from Murakami.
If you know of any fiction authors from the Land of the Rising Sun (with English translations of their work) please do recommend them!
#Books #Author #Fiction #MagicalRealism #Japan #Japanese #JapaneseLit #reading
Idol, Burning by Rin Usami and translated into English by Asa Yoneda is a novella about obsession and mental health. The teenage narrator and online slang made this translation a challenge that I think Yoneda handles fantastically.
I explore what we lose and gain in certain translation choices in my review of Idol, Burning
---> https://j-entranslations.com/idol-burning-translation-review/
TheNudeSurrealist
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