Reviews tagging 'Forced institutionalization'

The Swimmers by Julie Otsuka

12 reviews

cactusmotif's review

emotional reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Loveable characters? Yes

2.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Terminal illness, Dementia, Grief, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Child death, Death of parent, Abandonment, Death, and War

Minor: Xenophobia and Racism

knkoch's review

mysterious relaxing sad slow-paced

• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated

2.75

Again, something experimental! But not all experiments work, and this one didn't for me. It felt like the first and second half were two separate ideas stitched together and I wasn't fully convinced that it worked. I liked the first half better, though it still felt too light: not enough characterization or strong senses of people to really deepen things. There were so many people, pool-goers, listed early on that it became clear that all but one were just set decoration, tossed-off quirks fit for only a sentence. There was a strong vibe with the setting in the first half, but even for a short book it felt like it carried on a bit too long. 

The second half felt quite different, and while I appreciated the deeper characterization and focus on Alice, it felt jarring to shift away from the pool and what Otsuka seemed to be building earlier in the book. I guess the best interpretation I could see for these two very different halves coming together is 

Spoiler

that I could see how the routine of the pool community, and the anxiety over the crack and pool closure could be read as the sort of slow decline and degradation of Alice's mind and life as her dementia progressed. Her life, the pool and everything else, splinters and comes apart. But then I guess I'm left wondering, did the pool really close or is the story so set in Alice's mind that it just closed for her? Unexpectedly, without clear rational reasons, because that's how confusing and disorienting dementia may feel for those experiencing it? I suppose, but then the detailed reactions of everyone else in the community reacting to the pool closure doesn't make sense. Maybe they're reacting to her leaving?

I did like that Otsuka had a strong sense of style in her writing, and that she went to unexpected places in the story. I liked the use of second person, and in general the shifting sense of both vague and character-specific narration. I think I would try another book by her, as I'm finding that more compelling these days than sheer plot. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization and Terminal illness

Terminal illness:

Spoiler

non-Alzheimer's dementia.

kers_tin's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Dementia, Medical content, Terminal illness, Chronic illness, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Xenophobia and War

heatherjchin's review

challenging emotional mysterious 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? It's complicated

3.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Grief, and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Death of parent and Terminal illness

Minor: Medical content, Death, Child death, and Mental illness

tindin's review

emotional reflective sad

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

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Dementia, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Mental illness, Child death, Confinement, Miscarriage, War, and Medical content

Minor: Abandonment, Racism, and Xenophobia

venetiana's review against another edition

dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia

Moderate: Death, Death of parent, Grief, Miscarriage, and Terminal illness

Minor: Confinement, Forced institutionalization, Body shaming, Car accident, Gaslighting, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Child death, Dysphoria, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, War, and Ableism

monalyisha's review

emotional reflective relaxing sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

This slim novel begins in the cool, blue tranquility of an underground pool. Silence is the way of this subterranean world, and each busy swimmer is quietly grateful for it. By the time we reach the end, however, the silence has been relocated and transformed. It becomes infused with such a desperate (but commonplace) sadness. In between, there’s a spot of anxiety and utter absurdity. And, Otsuka asks (in not so many words), isn’t that life? A masterful piece of writing…but heartbreaking.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Dementia, Death of parent, and Grief

ashleysbookthoughts's review

emotional reflective sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.75

Have you ever read a book that affected you so much that it had a tangible effect on your life? The Swimmers, and specifically, Julie Otsuka’s writing in it, was that book for me. In fairness, I was primed for it. I was a competitive swimmer from the ages of 7-17. I quit swimming because I quit competing, and I hadn’t even attempted to swim a lap in more than a decade. 

But then I read Otsuka’s gorgeous, simple prose. And she wrote about the equalizing effect of the water. How our bodies are different, better in the water than on land. And I was hit with such a deep recognition and longing that I immediately made plans to start swimming again. I ached for it. I needed it. 

And, after all of that, after this huge effect on me, this book isn’t even really about swimming. It’s about memory, the nature of memory, and how forgetting affects not only us, but those who love us. Otsuka’s words stirred my memory and prompted me to revisit the thing I once loved most. But she also connected me to Alice, her family, and the heartbreak that is dementia, and made me ache for them as well. I loved this book. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia and Forced institutionalization

Moderate: Child death, Confinement, and Death of parent

krys_kilz's review

emotional sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character

4.0

I had a hard time getting into this book - there were just a lot of fatphobic remarks and other comments that didn't sit quite right with me in the beginning. But once I got beyond the first two chapters, I really enjoyed the final three.

I liked the voice Otsuka wrote from - the first-person plural we and the second-person singular you. It blurs the distinction between the collective and the individual and complicates conceptions of the "self." Even with the sort of disembodied narration style, the story is still incredibly emotional and heartbreaking. 

I loved the mirroring between the cracks forming in the pool and the fog descending on Alice's mind. It was a very clever parallel about being with the unknown, losing pieces of yourself, and the painfulness of a community coming to an end. It also really makes you reflect on how we treat elders in the so called united states - the isolation, abuse, and exile from community we put them and their families through.

tw: dementia, forced institutionalization, death of a parent, Japanese internment camps

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dementia, Forced institutionalization, and Terminal illness

Moderate: Death of parent, Racism, and Xenophobia

Minor: Child death and Fatphobia

mermaidsherbet's review

emotional sad fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Death of parent, Dementia, Grief, and Terminal illness

Minor: Racism, War, Animal death, Car accident, Child death, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Xenophobia