Reviews with content warning for Bullying - Prairie Ostrich

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Prairie Ostrich by Tamai Kobayashi

5 reviews

jmbz38's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

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talonsontypewriters's review

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emotional reflective medium-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? Yes

4.25

Sometimes, you read something that feels as though it was exactly what you needed to read. At this time, as this person, just in general. Maybe it even feels as though it was outright written for you, it touches and appeals to you so deeply. Whatever the case, it strikes a deep part of you, perhaps one you didn’t even fully know existed, and you are endlessly grateful that you managed to stumble upon it, out of the millions and millions of works out there.

Prairie Ostrich ended up being one of those books for me. It’s not a sprawling epic in either length—I’d say it took under four hours total to read—or content, and in fact it’s rather unassuming. But it’s perhaps because of and not despite its humble, everyday story that it struck such a chord. Something about the mundane has always gripped me, and it’s rare that I see it handled with all the grace and reverence of broader, more fantastical tales.

Here, though—here, that is the definite impression. Perhaps it’s on behalf of the narrator, or the overall writing, which drew me in from the first few paragraphs. Portraying a child’s perspective is a difficult undertaking, but Kobayashi handles it incredibly well, keeping things reasonably authentic while also not simplifying things. Egg’s character shines through in each line; the frankness she expresses is both realistic and endearing, and feeling for her and her situation comes very naturally. The writing style certainly wouldn’t appeal to everyone—the syntax is punchy and there’s a lot of repetition, things that I generally don’t love but ended up really enjoying here—but I can’t recall a time when it bored or grated on me. It’s entertaining and beautiful, with each metaphor and, on the opposite end, blunt statement interesting yet grounding.

Egg and her family are the only characters out of the assortment of inhabitants of their rural community really explored in detail. This is a positive, in my opinion, as it highlights the isolation and alienation they experience as the only Japanese family in the area, as well as how Egg, for all the kindness and care she is shown to hold, is still eight years old, and prone to that self-centeredness. What character work is there is interesting and thoughtful, although I’d agree that devoting more time and effort to fleshing out Egg’s parents and siblings would have lent a lot to the novel.

However short it may be, Prairie Ostrich isn’t that light of a read—its themes and plots are heavy, and its protagonist’s youth and naivete makes them hit twice as hard. There’s definite care in most of their portrayal, but few punches are pulled. It stokes a certain feeling of discomfort in the reader (or at least this reader), but not in a negative way; I’m happy to let that discomfort sit and stew.

My most glaring critique would be that while the pacing is fairly decent throughout the novel, the conclusion comes across as rushed and abrupt, with several subplots left hanging and those that are resolved not quite cleanly so. This diminishes the impact of some themes, and ultimately prevents a feeling of complete satisfaction. There were definitely some things I’d like to have seen explored in greater detail, but the limited perspective and length kept this from coming to fruition. Had the novel’s timespan been stretched even a couple of months longer, I think there could have been a greater sense of closure, but as is, the ending is a tad disappointing.

A rather small-scope story that packs quite the emotional punch, Prairie Ostrich has a strong start and potential but ultimately falls somewhat flat. Still, to me, it was a magical book for one that lacked magic entirely.

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faesissa's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced

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

3.5

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renjamin's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

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

4.5

Sit on an ostrich egg it will not crack. The secret is they break from the inside.

It’s so hard for authors to accurately capture the viewpoint of a child and when it is done well it can be phenomenal. Kobayashi does something truly magical here by creating W child so introspective and thoughtful yet so grounded and real. This book deals with so many difficult topics but that sense of childlike innocence stops it from feeling like it’s too heavy to go on. Egg is truly remarkable and reading this book felt like being inside of her head. The ending was a little rushed in my opinion but the journey there was remarkable.

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angelkisses's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.0

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