A review by kymzii
Life Ceremony, by Sayaka Murata

challenging dark reflective slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

Body Horror and Culture Shock
This is a collection of short stories that deal (somewhat metaphorically) with issues surrounding culture, food and lifestyle. However, it is the way Murata approaches these subjects that lift these stories out of banality i.e.
Spoiler one story involves cannibalism and fertility rituals and another involves using dead human bodies as clothes and furniture.
Her tone is cool and removed and her characters seem a little closed off even when they are baring their souls. My one criticism is that some of her stories go nowhere and the collection would have been better without them e.g. the story where
Spoiler a woman things she is a building (I'm still not sure what actually happened) or another when a woman is describing how she has a different personality with different friend groups (it just didn't go any where and her husband gets needlessly upset about the whole thing).
 
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