A review by dragonlilly
The Woman in the Dunes by Kōbō Abe

dark reflective medium-paced

3.0

In terms of the 'theoretical' and 'philosophical' sections of this book I only really liked two that felt like they had any real meaning or truth to them, and the rest felt useless or false. The main character is quite unlikable and only worsens as the book goes on, and his theories concerning sex and his understanding of sex I also did not care for. Strangely, I think he did not ask the woman enough important questions earlier on. However, I did like the general imagery of the sand and the final ending was done very well. Near the end, I did have a general impression for how the story would finish, but I found it to be written better than I first imagined, and was quite happy with it and the manner in which he was finally trapped. So, while I was frustrated with the main character, this ending makes me struggle to dislike the book because of how satisfying the last two pages are, as well as the general concept. 
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