A review by mina
Grotesque by Natsuo Kirino
I’m disappointed because after reading some reviews, I realized that the English translation butchered the original pretty badly and it even changed the ending?
Other than that, this novel is HEAVY – incest, pedophilia, underage prostitution, murder, suicide, eating disorders, etc… so fair warning to anyone interested in picking it up. I usually don’t gravitate to this kind of content, but the first half was captivating enough that I wanted to keep reading. The second half dragged on for so long and became so convoluted with a new cast of (irrelevant) characters and unnecessary plot points that the impact of the book’s message lost its punch by the end.
Grotesque does do a good job in pointing out misogyny in Japanese society and how the beauty ideal plagues women – regardless of whether the woman is “ugly” or “beautiful.” But overall, I couldn’t get passed the gratuitous trauma-porn, the unlikeable characters, or the translation flaws.
Not a bad book, but definitely not the kind of novel I like to spend hours processing.
Other than that, this novel is HEAVY – incest, pedophilia, underage prostitution, murder, suicide, eating disorders, etc… so fair warning to anyone interested in picking it up. I usually don’t gravitate to this kind of content, but the first half was captivating enough that I wanted to keep reading. The second half dragged on for so long and became so convoluted with a new cast of (irrelevant) characters and unnecessary plot points that the impact of the book’s message lost its punch by the end.
Grotesque does do a good job in pointing out misogyny in Japanese society and how the beauty ideal plagues women – regardless of whether the woman is “ugly” or “beautiful.” But overall, I couldn’t get passed the gratuitous trauma-porn, the unlikeable characters, or the translation flaws.
Not a bad book, but definitely not the kind of novel I like to spend hours processing.