Reviews with content warning for Suicidal thoughts - N.P.

I don’t know what to say about this book. It’s well written with characters and a ‘plot’ that makes you carry on reading, it’s engaging to start but then… I dunno? ‘n.p.’ follows the story of Kazami as she’s recounting around 6 months of a year whilst also thinking back to things (sort of). The central storyline consists of a book by the Japanese author Sarao Takase who shortly after completing the 89th story died by suicide and then the three people who have tried to translate the final story into Japanese (as it was written in English) then decide to die by suicide too. Kazami is roped into this world by the book’s latest victim Shoji who was her boyfriend. In the present day she’s reintroduced to Takase’s twin children Otohiko and Saki, then later to someone else involved with the family called Sui but revealing her connection is kinda a spoiler. Other things happen and it’s decent-ish, I liked seeing the MC becoming friends (kinda) with them but also a large chunk of this book was a little frustrating sort of.

The book does have some positives with Yoshimoto’s writing being somewhat like a dream - it’s very strange to describe but it’s very intriguing. Parts of ‘n.p.’ are also very funny in a not witty or humorous way but just so bonkers I guess that I did quite like. The premise is also very fascinating and as soon as I got this I wanted to give it a read but held off to the beginning of July. But around halfway through I felt a little let down and it’s not that I had very high expectations but more I didn’t know where it was going or more importantly why. The discussion of incest and the ways certain characters try to minimise or romanticise it was very uncomfortable, and the more things fitted into place and the book developed I did want to remove myself in some essence… does that make sense? Like a few books I’ve read recently where suicide is a primary focus/motif, I wasn’t very pleased with the discourse on this matter. The character’s attitudes seemed rather blasé and it frustrated me when an inappropriate/unconcerned level of attention was given to the topic - I get suicide is viewed differently in East Asia then the ‘West’ but I don’t know, it’s a strange one to ponder. As I went on reading I was still enjoying the act of reading it but not necessarily the story or engaging with the characters. That being said, the ending was very good and I liked the ambiguity to it.

I do and don’t recommend this book. That that as you will.

Content Warnings

generalmalfoy's review against another edition

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emotional reflective 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? Yes

5.0

I read this book in German.
What I enjoyed the most was the prose, especially how the author wrote so picturesque that I could really see and feel the situation in my head. It all felt very gentle but at the same time matter-of-fact. The translator did wonderful work of achieving this so well in the German edition - I am sure the Japanese and English editions are very similar in this.

It was my first book by Banana Yoshimoto, but it will surely not be the last.
The story itself was interesting, albeit a bit unusual for me - I don't read a lot of contemporary fiction. The way the author dealt with the heavier topics of this book (see content warnings, though they might be minor spoilers) read very well and it didn't feel too overwhelming or uncomfortable, even though the topics themselves can easily be so.

While reading, I felt rather calm and somehow content and comforted, in a very weird way. For me, it was a meditative read, if one could call it that.
I loved this book, the love being calm and meditative. Being like this, I give it 5 stars.

Content Warnings

that_vnr's review against another edition

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challenging emotional fast-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

3.0

Content Warnings

kot_zbigniew's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

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

2.0

I liked the surreal summer vibes, but other than that there was nothing interesting there for me. If it was longer I probably wouldn't even finish it.

Content Warnings

omnimalizm's review

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dark emotional mysterious reflective slow-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

3.75

Surrealistyczna, przygnębiająca, przyciągająca niczym magnes i skłaniająca do refleksji historia o miłości, samotności, stracie i konwenansach. Prosty, ale obrazowy styl mnie urzekł, chociaż dialogi wydawały się niezbyt wiarygodne.

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