Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - Heaven

Middle school was definitely a tough and challenging time for myself, and so it is for the 14-year-old narrator who goes through relentless bullying, including physical abuse, because of his lazy eye. The continuous torment has worn him down to the point where he feels defeated, believing that nothing can change his situation. However, things take a turn when he encounters a classmate, Kojima, who is also a victim of bullying as well. She starts sending him handwritten notes, and he's drawn to her unique writing style and her voice, which reminds him of a 6B pencil – soft and rigid, almost unbreakable. Even though they seldom meet in person, their friendship deepens through their written correspondence. During a summer break visit to an art museum, Kojima introduces him to her favorite painting, which she calls "Heaven." The painting depicts a man and a woman who have found harmony after enduring immense suffering.

Although "Heaven" wasn't my first Kawakami book, its definitely a different one. Set in Japan in the early 1990s, it looks like its going to be a coming-of-age story about two outsiders who find comfort in each other's company. However, they aren't seeking a typical romantic love. Trapped in their suffocating present, they are on a quest for answers to a fundamental question: why do we suffer? The narrator's and Kojima's in-depth conversations to explore this question. Kojima has a well-defined personal philosophy, which she shares through monologues. She believes that everything, even suffering, has meaning and can be transformative. She says that, in the end, we'll reach a place or understanding that wouldn't have been possible without enduring all the pain and hardship. But what do the bullies believe in? In a pivotal and heart-wrenching conversation, the narrator confronts one of his tormentors with this question. The bully, Momose, dismisses the idea, scoffing at the narrator's moral conviction and arguing that he shouldn't be responsible for considering others' feelings.

It's definitely a book focused on human condition. Messy and raw emotions of being a teenager. There's a definite vulnerability and passion in building friendships. The powerful contrast of the two main characters are a not so simple understanding of weakness. It's definitely thought-provoking and at times, gut-wrenching. The brutal encounters of the narrator, making us share in his fear and pain. The horrifying reality of childhood bullying is exposed to the maximum in this book. The meaning and understanding of pain is just incredible.

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teriodvarkova88's review against another edition

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dark emotional 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? Yes

5.0

Because we're always in pain, we know exactly what it means to hurt somebody else.

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the_last_bookshelf's review against another edition

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challenging dark reflective sad tense slow-paced

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

2.25

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hello_lovely13's review against another edition

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dark emotional sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

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literaryjunarin's review against another edition

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3.5

“But I wasn’t crying because I was sad. I guess I was crying because we had nowhere else to go, no choice but to go on living in this world. Crying because we had no other world to choose, and crying at everything before us, everything around us.”

I don't particularly appreciate reading about bullying but here I am. This little story is about a 14-year-old boy and his classmate Kojima who are both the target of violent bullies. And when I say violent, it is violent with blood and all the like. It was a difficult read.

The conflicting ideas of the characters were interesting. Kojima believes that all the pain and suffering she's going through has meaning. She continues to behave in a way that draws scorn and bullying because she believes that she will be rewarded in the end, while the narrator is just passive through all that. He doesn't fight back or report them to teachers and just quietly cleans himself up after getting beaten. He contemplates why people bully the weak but can't find the answer. I think the nihilistic views of the bully are not believable though. He doesn't sound fourteen. Don't people their age bully because they think it's cool and do it because they can?

While I loved reading a study of human nature, there's not much to dig into here. It was not as profound as I thought it would be.

And I must say because I can't ignore it, what's with the graphic description of snot and sweat?

Content Warnings

natasha_dd_'s review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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erickauribe's review against another edition

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emotional sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

The writting is incredible, and it was interesting to see the different POV on why the people act the way they do, and how we justify or give meaning to our lifes. A lot philosophical ideas were thrown into the narrative.

Spoiler

However, the bullying scenes were a bit too harsh to read, I understand the meaning of these scenes, it was just hard to go through

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