moniipeters's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-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
5.0
This is the second book I’ve read by Yūko Tsushima and while the subject matter is simple, her storytelling is captivating.
The story gives a raw and real view into single motherhood by choice from the lens of a 21 year old woman living in a society that shuns and disapproves of those lifestyle choices. Taikiko’s character is very raw and honest. She’s young, naive, spiteful, and even selfish at times, but I love how we see her character change and grow in a realistic way through the course of her son Akira’s first year.
Tsushima’s honest and simple writing style makes the story feel timeless. A lot of the dilemmas and challenges Taikiko faces throughout the book could still be applicable today, despite the book having been written in 1980. You feel like you truly understand this character, despite any bad decisions she may make.
The story gives a raw and real view into single motherhood by choice from the lens of a 21 year old woman living in a society that shuns and disapproves of those lifestyle choices. Taikiko’s character is very raw and honest. She’s young, naive, spiteful, and even selfish at times, but I love how we see her character change and grow in a realistic way through the course of her son Akira’s first year.
Tsushima’s honest and simple writing style makes the story feel timeless. A lot of the dilemmas and challenges Taikiko faces throughout the book could still be applicable today, despite the book having been written in 1980. You feel like you truly understand this character, despite any bad decisions she may make.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and Domestic abuse
jessdekkerreads's review
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
3.0
My first for #JanuaryinJapan for #jessandmorgansbookclub & so, I’ll discuss more in depth during our live show on Feb. 5.
“At school she hadn’t actually liked running at all, yet now she could not stop seeing this image of herself. It was not that she was running away. She just wanted to be tough and free to move. A state that knew no emotion. To be allowed to exist without knowing emotion.”
“It wasn’t as if there was anywhere she wanted to go. She simply wanted to be on the move with Akira, by subway or bus, through the vastness of the city. It seemed to her that only by staying on the move could she bring sights to her eyes and sounds to her ears, and remember the softness of her own body.”
Once I read this was a piece of autofiction w/ an introduction by Lauren Groff, about a young mother in the early days of motherhood, written by an infamous Japanese author, I was ready to dive straight in. When interviewed by the Chicago Tribune in 1989, Tsushima stated: “...Women figures I created in my novels also don’t compromise with reality. They may appear stoic, but they are strong enough to search for their own happiness in their own ways. And we see that early on in this novel. Our protagonist, Takiko Odaka, is a young, single mother, living in an abusive household with her parents in the 1970s.This wasn’t common at that time, a child born out of marriage. Thus, Takiko was determined to keep her baby, to find a way to survive, amongst the hardship, all the while not losing her own sense of identity. Takiko was seeking freedom, which she finds amongst the Gardens, surrounded by nature.
Definitely a quiet, slow moving novel, one I enjoyed, but ultimately, may get lost amongst the rest this year, not quite memorable for me, unfortunately; but, I absolutely will read more by this author.
krammedshelf's review
challenging
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Violence
emmu's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
koistinn's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
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
4.0
roll_n_read's review
I’ve adored just about everything I’ve ever read from Yuko Tsushima. At first I thought I was feeling luke warm on this, but the book builds in the softest, most brilliant way and somehow Tsushima again envelops a story of single-motherhood with light and longing and love.
birdwithbooks's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.75
jwang194's review against another edition
4.0
another tsushima book about a struggling single mother! in some ways, this one felt somehow more hopeful than territory of light, although it's possible this is due to even greater negligence from the mother...
the themes of generational trauma and societal marginalization appear here as they do in tsushima's other works, although from a slightly different angle: takiko still lives with her parents, and akira is an infant for the entirety of the book, so the transferral of trauma is more explicit. also, takiko actually ends up finding a job that suits her, with coworkers who are at the very least respectful of her private life, if not actively supportive.
somehow, though takiko's own success and wellbeing comes at the expense of her infant son's, whom she neglects and unintentionally abuses in typical tsushima fashion. because of (and perhaps in someways despite) this, i found her alternately pitiable and detestable, yet somehow always lovable. perhaps it's due to her unrelentingly stubborn pursuit of independence (and her repeated, fated failure to achieve it). greatly conflicted about the commentary this book gives on single motherhood, but i appreciate its art overall! again as is typical in a tsushima book, light appears in unexpected places and gives the entire book a strange sheen in one's mind.
"Rubber plants hurtled along them, and dracaenas and silk cotton trees, ground rattans and coco palms. Green things whose very simplicity and lack of emotion struck her as harsh. Day by day, Takiko felt herself taking on the simplicity of their greenness."
the themes of generational trauma and societal marginalization appear here as they do in tsushima's other works, although from a slightly different angle: takiko still lives with her parents, and akira is an infant for the entirety of the book, so the transferral of trauma is more explicit. also, takiko actually ends up finding a job that suits her, with coworkers who are at the very least respectful of her private life, if not actively supportive.
somehow, though takiko's own success and wellbeing comes at the expense of her infant son's, whom she neglects and unintentionally abuses in typical tsushima fashion. because of (and perhaps in someways despite) this, i found her alternately pitiable and detestable, yet somehow always lovable. perhaps it's due to her unrelentingly stubborn pursuit of independence (and her repeated, fated failure to achieve it). greatly conflicted about the commentary this book gives on single motherhood, but i appreciate its art overall! again as is typical in a tsushima book, light appears in unexpected places and gives the entire book a strange sheen in one's mind.
"Rubber plants hurtled along them, and dracaenas and silk cotton trees, ground rattans and coco palms. Green things whose very simplicity and lack of emotion struck her as harsh. Day by day, Takiko felt herself taking on the simplicity of their greenness."