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oliveth16's review against another edition
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
mirnaki's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
annamack2023's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
relaxing
sad
slow-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
2.0
williamvonbaskerville's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
monkeydhonz's review against another edition
I didn’t finish this book but I’m finished with this book.
I was enjoying to the protagonist’s journey of grief and healing. I liked the relationships with her mom, the town, the bar, the food. But about half way in, I was having a hard time staying interested, but invested just enough to decide to stick with it. That is until this WILD event - Yoshi finds herself at the place of the man she’s been seeing, they’re getting intimate but she realizes she’s not ready to move forward. No big deal - they stop. but then she says: “it’s not like I was raped or anything” to which he replies: “I think what happened to you and your mom was worse”
It was a really strange and unexpected couple of lines. Just took me out of it.
I was enjoying to the protagonist’s journey of grief and healing. I liked the relationships with her mom, the town, the bar, the food. But about half way in, I was having a hard time staying interested, but invested just enough to decide to stick with it. That is until this WILD event - Yoshi finds herself at the place of the man she’s been seeing, they’re getting intimate but she realizes she’s not ready to move forward. No big deal - they stop. but then she says: “it’s not like I was raped or anything” to which he replies: “I think what happened to you and your mom was worse”
It was a really strange and unexpected couple of lines. Just took me out of it.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
frumpburger's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars. An interesting meditation on the trauma of loss and how we can put ourselves back together piecemeal, but some of the story/emotions didn’t resonate with me. I am not sure if this is a result of cultural differences or of the writing/translation, but it that keeps this from being a 4 star book for me.
The older man bit, which some others have mentioned, skeeved me out, too.
This isn’t a review, I know; it’s just a brief impression. Others have written detailed and eloquent reviews of this book. It’s definitely worth a read, but not something I will come back to.
The older man bit, which some others have mentioned, skeeved me out, too.
This isn’t a review, I know; it’s just a brief impression. Others have written detailed and eloquent reviews of this book. It’s definitely worth a read, but not something I will come back to.
dr_orby's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.25
sbn42's review against another edition
3.0
This is the first Japanese author's novel that I have been able to complete. The story revolves around a young woman, her mother, her father's ghost, and several of his old acquaintances. The father dies at the hand of his mistress, leaving mother and daughter to deal with the shock. The daughter has to move out to keep from being smothered by her mother's grief. She finds a tiny apartment in a hipster neighborhood of Tokyo, starts to deal with her grief, and finds a job in a bistro. She has a surprise when her mother leaves the fancy apartment the family had and moves in with her, temporarily, just as she begins to deal with her grief.
The story paints a wonderful picture of the funky neighborhood that is full of life. The energy is absorbed by her mother who seems to come to terms with her situation and blossoms. Unfortunately, we get very little of her story. The daughter seems to revel in her agony. She finally has to start to plan ahead when she finds out the building the bistro is in is to be demolished. She plans to meet the bistro owner in France to try and develop ideas for a new restaurant.
Descriptions of the food and music and neighborhood wrap around you like a warm garden, until the last part of the book. All the sudden, the daughter makes a couple bad decisions that are incongruous.
The translation was awkward in a number of places, just enough to remind you that this is not a native english writer.
The story paints a wonderful picture of the funky neighborhood that is full of life. The energy is absorbed by her mother who seems to come to terms with her situation and blossoms. Unfortunately, we get very little of her story. The daughter seems to revel in her agony. She finally has to start to plan ahead when she finds out the building the bistro is in is to be demolished. She plans to meet the bistro owner in France to try and develop ideas for a new restaurant.
Descriptions of the food and music and neighborhood wrap around you like a warm garden, until the last part of the book. All the sudden, the daughter makes a couple bad decisions that are incongruous.
The translation was awkward in a number of places, just enough to remind you that this is not a native english writer.
lilnoto's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
“I guess the body lives, even if your heart’s died…”
“We were too young, and had too much ahead of us. There was no way we could stay this peaceful.”
“I’d assumed that once I’d passed the age of twenty, I’d gained the power to do everything alone. But I’d been wrong about that…”
“Plus, your head— it might just be youth, I don’t know—it’s far too full of words. I know there’s nothing i can really do about that, but i can’t help but want to empty it out for you.”
“…I found myself holding something within me that could only be described as an enormous happiness as though a star had fallen, twinkling, straight into my chest.”
“We were too young, and had too much ahead of us. There was no way we could stay this peaceful.”
“I’d assumed that once I’d passed the age of twenty, I’d gained the power to do everything alone. But I’d been wrong about that…”
“Plus, your head— it might just be youth, I don’t know—it’s far too full of words. I know there’s nothing i can really do about that, but i can’t help but want to empty it out for you.”
“…I found myself holding something within me that could only be described as an enormous happiness as though a star had fallen, twinkling, straight into my chest.”