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A review by mimosaeyes
A Man by Keiichiro Hirano
4.0
You know how sometimes the blurb of a book promises that it explores a bunch of themes that sound interesting, but when you actually read it, the story just kind of skims across those ideas without saying anything? This is not one of those times. This novel genuinely made me think deeply about identity and personal histories. And it doesn't do it in a pretentious way; in fact, everything feels very grounded because of the framing of Kido's investigation.
Another thematic aspect that I wasn't expecting is the extended commentary on Zainichi racism. In a way, this can also be seen as part of the book's discussion of identity, as ethnic Koreans who live in Japan and pass as Japanese are another kind of invisible identity, potentially. In another sense, it's simply another part of the book's concerns - contributing to the overall realistic texture of the novel. I really enjoyed this.
Another thematic aspect that I wasn't expecting is the extended commentary on Zainichi racism. In a way, this can also be seen as part of the book's discussion of identity, as ethnic Koreans who live in Japan and pass as Japanese are another kind of invisible identity, potentially. In another sense, it's simply another part of the book's concerns - contributing to the overall realistic texture of the novel. I really enjoyed this.