Reviews with content warning for Suicide attempt - Gagal Menjadi Manusia

I've been meaning to read this book for two years, so when I saw it in a Barnes & Noble when picking up a gift for a friend, I decided that now would finally be the time.

I'm so glad I read this. It was dramatic, melancholic, and deeply philosophical. It was one of the best explorations of the human experience I've ever read. It was one of the few translated books that I found to have beautiful writing. It was, in an odd way, comforting.

This book does a great job of balancing the intensity of Yozo's life and emotions; although it is often a very calm, slow-paced story, there are moments (especially towards the end) when it begins to spiral and peak in the best way possible.

I am sure I will revisit this book (and this review) in the future, because I loved it and I could think about it probably for the rest of my life, but for now, we're on to other things.

Since I still haven't started school yet, there may be time for one final book of Sad Book Summer, but if not, this was a remarkable way to close the season out. It wasn't tender or gentle in the way that many other sad books are, and it had almost no positivity or happiness in it, but sometimes, that's the only thing I want to read. I think this may very well be my favorite book of the year. 5/5. Incredible.

There were too many amazing quotes for me to pick just one favorite, so here are my top three:

"There are all kinds of unhappy people in the world."

"I wonder if I have actually been happy."

"It is curious, but the cathedrals of melancholy are not necessarily demolished if one can replace the vulgar "What a messy business it is to be fallen for" with the more literary "What uneasiness lies in being loved."

Content Warnings

micahsch17's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

Content Warnings

perth_is'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? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

sausten03's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional sad tense slow-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

hongstoes's review against another edition

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dark reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

This book is a perfectly lonely immersive experience. I loved reading this and it will stick with me for a while. Do yourself a favor and read the prologue and epilogue! This is not the time to skip them.

I knew halfway through the book that I wanted to reread it. It's quick with fairly simple prose that allows you to lose yourself in it.

The ending was perfect - "He was a good boy" nearly brought me to tears.

I absolutely recommend this.

Content Warnings

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