A review by mundinova
Moshi Moshi by Mai Ohno, Asa Yoneda, Banana Yoshimoto

3.0

If someone had asked me how I'd spent this period in my life, I'd have said I'd done nothing in particular. It had all felt like a dream.

A touching story about dealing with sudden death, but suffers from a poor translation.

This is my first Banana book and I enjoyed it an average amount. I might have enjoyed it more if the translation was better. So many things just didn't make sense. Characters saying something normal, then another character laughing hysterically at a joke or turn of phrase that didn't translate at all. Luckily I have a friend who helped me with one scene (thanks, Martin!), but if you don't have someone to help you out ... well, things are going to be missed.

Outside of the poor translation, this is a beautiful mother/daughter story. As children we see our parents a certain way. It's a special transition in anyone's life when you get to know a parent as a friend. But other than that, the story is a little boring. Not much really happens. This is an emotional journey, not a fast paced action drama.

I found all of Yocchan's emotions believable for a young woman who likes organizing her understanding of the world through words (which another character uses to describe her). She may have a wisdom slightly beyond her years, but the expected poor/growing-as-a-person choices are still there.

Story: 2 stars
Character Development: 4 stars
Writing/Prose (translation): 2 stars