A review by chimo
The Setting Sun by Donald Keene, Osamu Dazai

5.0

"Anger, low self-esteem, shame, toxic love, self-doubt, aloofness, guilt, agony, selfishness, fear, emptiness, helplessness, anxiety... " and all these negative emotions in a single novel. This book smelled of death. "Osamu Dazai" has this ability to detect people's weaknesses and zoom in on them, making that dark shadow visible. I was reading, and at a certain point in the novel, I started feeling on edge and had an intense need to cry. I find it incredible that he can convey the emotions of the characters so clearly and vividly in such a straightforward tale and writing style; he makes me feel the feelings behind the sentences. I believe that the source of the suffering of Dazai is this ability to see the invisible mask on people's faces and reaching a level when he can't take it anymore, you can see this in his novel. I've read three of them so far, and in all three, I couldn't help but wonder if he was writing about himself.
I loved the novel, and I would welcome Dazai to the club of my favorite authors.