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A review by notoriousesr
The Man with the Compound Eyes by Wu Ming-Yi
adventurous
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Wayo Wayo is an isolated island in the Pacific, where each second son must set out on a fatal sea journey. When Atile’i goes to sea, his shipwreck on the Pacific Garbage Patch ends up bringing him to the East coast of Taiwan, where the garbage washes ashore in a catastrophic tidal wave. There, he meets Alice Shih, who is mourning the disappearance of her husband and son.
A strange kaleidoscopic piece of environmental literature, this book was hard for me to parse. I felt like it didn’t really hit its stride until about 2/3 of the way through, and even then the author introduced a totally new character, which threw me off. The writing is hypnotic and beautiful, even though there were a few translation choices that confused me (why translate Hualien, a real place, as “Haven” when all the other real place names are romanized normally??). That being said, I found myself very moved by the latter half of the book, and the kaleidoscopic structure reflects the titular character, which is definitely a feat. Overall, 3 out of 5 whale spirits.
A strange kaleidoscopic piece of environmental literature, this book was hard for me to parse. I felt like it didn’t really hit its stride until about 2/3 of the way through, and even then the author introduced a totally new character, which threw me off. The writing is hypnotic and beautiful, even though there were a few translation choices that confused me (why translate Hualien, a real place, as “Haven” when all the other real place names are romanized normally??). That being said, I found myself very moved by the latter half of the book, and the kaleidoscopic structure reflects the titular character, which is definitely a feat. Overall, 3 out of 5 whale spirits.