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moonchildshine's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
reflective
fast-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? N/A
5.0
Have you ever read a book so good you feel like your mind had been blown when you finished it? Like, you already know this book is good when you read the first quarter but then it's progressively getting better and better? I rarely read a book which has that kind of effect but I'm ecstatic to say that this is one of the book.
You know, I deadass thought it couldn't get any better when I read chapter 2---please, I cried alot (but in a full contentment, not in sadness, mind you)--but with every page-turn, it always prove me wrong. I was so mesmerized. How can Keigo Higashino wrote this kind of masterpiece??? Just, how???
Chapter 2 and Chapter 4 was my favorite, but chapter 5 (the last chapter) is so fucking bewitching, enthralling, spellbinding and *insert hundreds of other similar adjective here*
There are so many characters, plus, it has omniscient 3rd pov. Usually, when I find a book like this, my little dumb brain would be so lazy to keep up. But this book is extremely intriguing since the first page until the last. Never a dull moment. I'm sure, if I read this during weekend, I probably finish it in one sitting.
PS. God, I hope obliviate is a real charm so I can obliviate myself and read this for the first time in my life.
You know, I deadass thought it couldn't get any better when I read chapter 2---please, I cried alot (but in a full contentment, not in sadness, mind you)--but with every page-turn, it always prove me wrong. I was so mesmerized. How can Keigo Higashino wrote this kind of masterpiece??? Just, how???
Chapter 2 and Chapter 4 was my favorite, but chapter 5 (the last chapter) is so fucking bewitching, enthralling, spellbinding and *insert hundreds of other similar adjective here*
There are so many characters, plus, it has omniscient 3rd pov. Usually, when I find a book like this, my little dumb brain would be so lazy to keep up. But this book is extremely intriguing since the first page until the last. Never a dull moment. I'm sure, if I read this during weekend, I probably finish it in one sitting.
PS. God, I hope obliviate is a real charm so I can obliviate myself and read this for the first time in my life.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Abandonment
Minor: Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Abortion, and Death of parent
rieviolet's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-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
3.5
I really liked the mystery surrounding the Namiya General Store, I think it is a very interesting premise. I was quite intrigued by this "magical" aspect of the story.
After the first introductory section, the book divides into separate vignettes, that are still skillfully inteconnected but are told from different point of views. I have to admit that I am not the biggest fan of short stories collections, in general I struggle to appreciate them as much as a novel. In this case, I also had a bit of an up-and-down reading experience, with certain sections that I liked more and other sections that dragged a bit for me and that I found less enjoyable. I still appreciated the ending, and I found it a good way of wrapping up the story.
Also I think that I started reading expecting a very lighthearted and magical story and while it was a magical and surreal story, it dealt with quite a lot of very heavy topics and I'm not so sure if all of them (and the characters involved) were handled equally well.
Lastly, I have to mention a brief passage that left a bad taste in my mouth. I do not know how the original Japanese sentence was or how the English translation adapted it, but in my translation there was a scene in which a man (maybe in his 20s?) is reflecting about a young girl and he thinks something along the lines of "There was a completely unusual sensuality for a little girl, and he would have liked to find a way to make her turn around towards him". All that I could think was why, why do you have to inlcude such a comment, was it really necessary? I really did not like it.
After the first introductory section, the book divides into separate vignettes, that are still skillfully inteconnected but are told from different point of views. I have to admit that I am not the biggest fan of short stories collections, in general I struggle to appreciate them as much as a novel. In this case, I also had a bit of an up-and-down reading experience, with certain sections that I liked more and other sections that dragged a bit for me and that I found less enjoyable. I still appreciated the ending, and I found it a good way of wrapping up the story.
Also I think that I started reading expecting a very lighthearted and magical story and while it was a magical and surreal story, it dealt with quite a lot of very heavy topics and I'm not so sure if all of them (and the characters involved) were handled equally well.
Lastly, I have to mention a brief passage that left a bad taste in my mouth. I do not know how the original Japanese sentence was or how the English translation adapted it, but in my translation there was a scene in which a man (maybe in his 20s?) is reflecting about a young girl and he thinks something along the lines of "There was a completely unusual sensuality for a little girl, and he would have liked to find a way to make her turn around towards him". All that I could think was why, why do you have to inlcude such a comment, was it really necessary? I really did not like it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Moderate: Cancer, Child abuse, Domestic abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Grief, Car accident, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Fatphobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Abortion, War, and Classism
rockwithyou's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Terminal illness and Abortion
thewordsdevourer's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
utterly remarkable and one of the best books i've ever read. despite its relatively short length, the book took me some time to finish because of its content, which is high in emotional impact while also requiring some mental somersaults. the miracles of the namiya general store is full of dynamic characters, but its plot is perhaps the most extraordinary thing of all: no details go wasted, every story thread is--incredibly--interconnected.
a great example of show-not-tell, it says a lot when the reader can feel so touched--at times to the point of being speechless--despite the narrative being in 3rd-person pov, the tone being factual, and the writing not being flowery at all. the connections between all the characters and the intricacies of the time aspect still amazed me. i love this book so dang much.
while the problems encountered by the characters can be surprisingly dark at times, i appreciate how they all ultimately end on a hopeful note. w/ that said, it wasn't until i was nearly done w/ the read that i realized that this is a book i had unknowingly been wanting to write and waiting to read all my life. poignant, insightful, and miraculous.
a great example of show-not-tell, it says a lot when the reader can feel so touched--at times to the point of being speechless--despite the narrative being in 3rd-person pov, the tone being factual, and the writing not being flowery at all. the connections between all the characters and the intricacies of the time aspect still amazed me. i love this book so dang much.
while the problems encountered by the characters can be surprisingly dark at times, i appreciate how they all ultimately end on a hopeful note. w/ that said, it wasn't until i was nearly done w/ the read that i realized that this is a book i had unknowingly been wanting to write and waiting to read all my life. poignant, insightful, and miraculous.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Suicide attempt, and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying, Terminal illness, and Fire/Fire injury