A review by tej_reads
All the Lovers in the Night by Mieko Kawakami
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
From the start, I identified with Fuyuko a lot - a homebody, with few physical friends, and predictable existence. And so the realism Kawakami evokes hit hard, it was a very emotional read, you feel right there with Fuyuko; in and through her loneliness, alcoholism and depression. The melancholic tone continues till the end of the work, so it really is not a 'happy' storyline nor is it plot-driven.
Hijiri is a work friend of Fuyuko, and the friendship is one-sided in a way where Hijiri makes most of the effort to connect. Hijiri is interesting and so are most of the conversations between her and Fuyuko, Kawakami uses the characters to tackle the perception of 'middle-age' women in Japanese society, specifically the issues surrounding marriage, careers and motherhood. Kawakami does this brilliantly. However, often Hijiri does monologue where either a page or half a page is dedicated to her speech, to the point where I thought that part about celery was added just to cut through the dialogue. Hijiri is also for all her talk of 'career women' and how women do not need anything in their lives to be complete other than themselves, rather misogynistic. Hijiri judges a female colleague for luring in men and sleeping with different men, in a way I found her to be a more interesting character than Fuyuko but perhaps that's because she spoke more and we heard her opinions.
All the Lovers in the Night is beautiful work showing the fragmentation of Fuyuko Irie's life and the hope that comes with living for yourself.
Book #153 of 2022
Hijiri is a work friend of Fuyuko, and the friendship is one-sided in a way where Hijiri makes most of the effort to connect. Hijiri is interesting and so are most of the conversations between her and Fuyuko, Kawakami uses the characters to tackle the perception of 'middle-age' women in Japanese society, specifically the issues surrounding marriage, careers and motherhood. Kawakami does this brilliantly. However, often Hijiri does monologue where either a page or half a page is dedicated to her speech, to the point where I thought that part about celery was added just to cut through the dialogue. Hijiri is also for all her talk of 'career women' and how women do not need anything in their lives to be complete other than themselves, rather misogynistic. Hijiri judges a female colleague for luring in men and sleeping with different men, in a way I found her to be a more interesting character than Fuyuko but perhaps that's because she spoke more and we heard her opinions.
All the Lovers in the Night is beautiful work showing the fragmentation of Fuyuko Irie's life and the hope that comes with living for yourself.
Book #153 of 2022
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Misogyny, Sexual assault, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Pregnancy