I confess that I purchased this book on a whim. I was fascinated by the title and when I read the book review:
A glimpse into the humorous, sardonic woI confess that I purchased this book on a whim. I was fascinated by the title and when I read the book review:
A glimpse into the humorous, sardonic world of Dazai Osamu, presenting a new and very different look at a one of the recognized masters of Japanese, and indeed global, literature. These works from the middle years of his brief career show a skilled hand, with angst muted and his penchant for subtle comedy deftly displayed.
Well I was indeed smitten.
I’ve never heard of this author before but I was following my gut feeling and knew that this book was for me.
This work comprises seven short stories:
On Love and Beauty The Chrysanthemum Spirit The Mermaid and the Samurai Blue Bamboo Alt Heidelberg Romanesque Lanterns of Romance
Well I thought that the first story was so pedestrian that I nearly abandoned the book. My disappointment really upset me. I kept on telling myself that I was tired, I had worked for many hours on a rather tedious medical document and perhaps my brain was fuzzy. So the next morning, full of optimism, with the sun shining majestically above and a fabulous view of the Pyrenees, I started again on the first story. Oh no, not for me and sadly commenced the second, expecting a repeat of the first story, The Chrysanthemum Spirit which was sheer beauty. Basically it’s the story of an old man, and a young couple and all have a love of Chrysanthemums. I felt choked after I read this – it was so touching and poignant.
And onto The Mermaid and the Samurai.
Oh my, the writing was sheer bliss as was the content. This is all about a samurai named Chudo Konnai, a man of great courage and unquestionable integrity, who served as administrator of the coastal areas. Well one day, he’s on a boat and sees a mermaid. Well I won’t go into this but remarkable things happen and the ending is sublime. I loved it!
Reading became even better with Blue Bamboo (the best in the book) and it quite overwhelmed me. All I can say is that I now view crows very differently!
As for Alt Heidelberg., well never borrow money is the maxim here, mixed in with the joy of youth, too much saké and beer. An excellent story.
Romanesque is a story about “Taro the Wizard”. Read it! But then we encounter “Jirobei, the Fighter”. Now this is an individual on a mission. He wants to fight but unfortunately never gets the opportunity to do so. It is really amusing to see how he thinks that he’s finally going to fight someone and then gets thwarted. I loved it! As for “Saburo, a Liar.” Well that’s indeed an interesting concept.
And the final story, Lanterns of Romance is a sequel to the first story On Love and Beauty. Definitely not for me.
As for rating this, well all I can say is that it’s just excellent. I’m ignoring the first and last stories as they just happened to be there!
From the time she was born, Tsugumi was ridiculously frail, and she had a whole slew of physical ailments and defects. Her doctors announced that From the time she was born, Tsugumi was ridiculously frail, and she had a whole slew of physical ailments and defects. Her doctors announced that she would die young and her family began preparing for the worst. Of course everyone around her spoiled her like you wouldn’t believe.
I loved "Kitchen" by this author but I actually prefer this book. What it is, I've really tried to fathom it out, basically is that it comes down to the simplicity in the style of writing. Having said that, I've read different translations with the two books and the style is definitely different. This book is more American in its style. I’m not saying there is anything wrong with that but one needs to localize here and, of course, the book is targeted for different markets.
This book is about Maria, but also a love story about Tsugumi, who sounds a dreadful individual. I was ready to dispose of the book after two pages and throw it into the Saison river but no, I decided to persevere with it as I loved "Kitchen" and would you believe it but I was soon well and truly enchanted with the story.
The fact that Tsugumi was an invalid has, I believe, been responsible for her behaviour. Perhaps that was why she was such an “enfant terrible”, as she spent so much time in bed that she had too much time to reflect. She was somewhat insular. I was reminded of Proust for some obscure reason. If one spends so much time on one’s own, one really reflects and the mind and emotions can run wild, especially with the imagination and yet, I feel, one can be so enriched by this.
The story is told by her cousin Maria, who appears to be somewhat in awe of Tsugumi and is spending her final summer with her by the sea at Tsugumi’s parents’ inn, before she moves to be with her family in Tokyo and then go to university there.
Initially Maria was not too enamoured with Tsugumi but slowly this recedes and love soon replaces it. There is the most remarkable letter written at the end of the book that nearly brought me to tears I must confess. It was heart-breaking.
But Tsugumi finds love with Kyoichi and it is like a different individual has been born, summoned here by the rebirth of the phoenix. All of her loyalty in her love rises to the fore and even includes Kyoichi’s dog, Gongoro, evidently a rather ghastly Pomeranian. But love works strange miracles in our life on this planet. Also when love is involved, other emotions make an unexpected appearance and then some rather unusual events occur. Revenge then enters into the equation and then the most remarkable things happen. I was quite breathless when I saw what Tsugumi was capable of. I could have never have done what she did. I would not have had the strength. All I can add is that there is a large hole involved…
The novella is multi-faceted. The sea is the foundation and essence of the book as is light. The two both enter into the soul somehow.
Surprisingly enough by the end of the book I was thoroughly enchanted with Tsugumi. To apologise didn't exist in her vocabulary and when she finally did apologise, the world exploded with amazement. How she changed with love!
I had translation work to do but abandoned that and sat myself down at the table on the terrace with my book, gazed at my beloved Pyrenees, and sipped a glass of iced water. It is rather hot here at the moment at 29°C. I read the book in one sitting and was so impressed with it that I then opened a bottle of Champagne and had a glass. I was celebrating, held it up and imagined that I was sitting on a moonbeam gazing down on Tsugumi and her world.
I’m not going to wax lyrical here but I love the book and that should suffice. And yes, I am indeed looking forward to reading another book by this remarkable Japanese author. ...more
...if a person hasn't ever experienced true despair, she grows old never knowing how to evaluate where she is in life; never understanding what joy...if a person hasn't ever experienced true despair, she grows old never knowing how to evaluate where she is in life; never understanding what joy really is. I'm grateful for it.
Samadrita in her excellent review began with:
There's something about Japanese writers. They have the unparalleled ability of transforming an extremely ordinary scene from our everyday mundane lives into something magical and other-worldly.
I thoroughly agree with her and that magical quality transforms what could have been a rather banal book into a great one.
The book is divided into two stories both concerning young Japanese women.
Kitchen
Mikage Sakurai has lost her dearly beloved grandmother whom she had been living with, and she feels lost, alone and vulnerable. She’s now an orphan as there are no other relatives. The tide has gone out and she doesn’t know when or whether it will return. She knows she has to find a new apartment to live in but hesitates. So when a casual acquaintance, Yuichi Tanabe, who used to work part-time in her grandmother’s favourite flower shop, invites her to stay with him and his mother, Eriko, she agrees, especially when she sees the enormous sofa, which would be her bed, in the living room and finally the kitchen. She was a particular lover of kitchens.
The place I like best in this world is the kitchen. No matter where it is, no matter what kind, if it’s the kitchen, if it’s a place where they make food, it’s fine with me. Ideally it should be well broken in. Lots of tea towels, dry and immaculate. White tile catching the light (ting! ting!).
I truly empathized with Mikage from the beginning of this story to the end. A tale that on the surface appeared to be simple and even trite at times, but which soon uncovered a multi-faceted kaleidoscope of human emotions which I had never seen expressed in this way before.
I was the sword in the scabbard firmly attached at Mikage’s side. I was her friend, her alter ego and champion in her quest to re-find herself, in fact her soul. I would protect her at all cost.
Such interesting characters are to be found in this rather philosophical work, individuals in fact who I continued to think about after I finished the book.
During the time that Mikage spends with Eriko and her son, Yuichi, the latter who appeared to be a quiet unassuming person, was slowly transformed into a soul-mate of Mikage which rather stunned her. She felt he knew her very soul.
When you’re travelling, every night the air is clear and crisp, the mind serene. In any case, if nobody was waiting for me anywhere, yes, this serene life would be the thing. But I’m not free, I realized; I’ve been touched by Yuichi’s soul. How much easier it would be to stay away forever.
Eriko in particular fascinated me. She was a transvestite, originally Yuichi’s father, then upon the death of his wife from cancer and thanks to plastic surgery, became his mother. She was also the owner of a gay bar. Eriko was such a vibrant individual, colourful and generous both emotionally and physically. She brought back purpose into Mikage’s life, but then tragedy struck again:
Truly great people emit a light that warms the hearts of those around them. When that light has been put out, a heavy shadow of despair descends. Perhaps Eriko's was only a minor kind of greatness, but her light was sorely missed.
The moon and light are also important themes that flow throughout this story.
In addition, there are innumerable turns of phrase that are unforgettable but I particularly liked:
Their faces shone like buddhas when they smiled., and
The dirigible traversed the sky like a pale moonbeam, its tiny lights blinking on and off.
When I finished this tale, I thought of love won and then lost, tragedy, pain, and suffering that I had just encountered but then beauty, hope and optimism are also there. What a marvellous mix.
Moonlight Shadow
...Wherever he went, Hitoshi always had a little bell with him, attached to the case he kept his bus pass in. Even though it was just a trinket, something I gave him before we were in love, it was destined to remain at his side until the last.
This story is also about a young woman called Satsuki who has lost her loved one, Hitoshi but it has more of a metaphysical feel to it. Yes, she has this same dreadful sense of loss as the earlier story. Hitoshi had a brother called Hiiragi, who had lost his girlfriend Yumiko at the same time as Hitoshi had been killed.
Satsuki often goes to the bridge where she used to meet Hitoshi and one day she meets a young woman called Urara. And due to this meeting, Satsuki and even Hiiragi have these metaphysical experiences. This story is all rather dream-like and so different to Kitchen but still excellent in its own right.
When I looked at this title I kept on thinking about the music of Mike Oldfield's Moonlight Shadow. In the preface, the author mentions that she wished to dedicate this song to Mr Jiro Yoshikawa, who had introduced this music to her, the inspiration for this story.
Two exquisite stories and highly, highly recommended. ...more
Not for me I'm afraid. Personally I found the book to be somewhat trite and pedestrian. As for the numbers...Not for me I'm afraid. Personally I found the book to be somewhat trite and pedestrian. As for the numbers......more
The theme of death permeates this lyrical and poetic book. It is as if the author is preparing himself for his own demise, especially running in tandeThe theme of death permeates this lyrical and poetic book. It is as if the author is preparing himself for his own demise, especially running in tandem with another theme, that of suicide. And that Kawabata is in fact searching for a way in which to make that ultimate separation from life as we know it on this planet of ours. Thus I was not at all surprised to read that Kawabata committed suicide in 1972.
There are distinct pros and cons to this work and regrettably the latter prevail.
The positive points demonstrate the unique writing style of Kawabata and the way he demonstrates his love of nature.
The negative point is that the rhythm is incredibly slow and pedestrian. I had the odd sensation too as if I were straddling an ancient giant tortoise on its way to die. I’m amazed in fact why I didn’t abandon the book but something kept me going – intrigue I believe for the final outcome, which nevertheless disappointed me no end as it tailed into nothing
The characters:
Shingo, sixty two years old, losing his memory somewhat, is coasting downhill towards that ultimate destination (that age at the time was considered old – I believe this book was first serialized between 1949 and 1954). He suffers from disappointment with his daughter Fusako, who has a failed marriage and two children and is back at the family home. He doesn’t appear to like her.
Yasuko, a rather dull wife a year older than Shingo and is really quite boring.
Fusako, who has not been granted great looks and it is evident that Shingo doesn’t love her as one should a daughter.
Shuichi, Shingo’s son, showed initial promise but he was cheating on his wife Kikuko and soon became thoroughly annoying and boring.
Now Kikuko, Shuichi’s wife, well she’s a really interesting personality and definitely with hidden depths. She was, I believe, the catalyst in the book and not Shingo. I often wondered about her feelings for Shingo – were they in fact fatherly or not and vice versa with Shingo? There are delightful dialogues between them but my, so slow moving, like feathers in a slight breeze. In fact at one stage I fell asleep.
I did nevertheless find the geishas mentioned in the book to be quite fascinating.
There were some rather old-fashioned phrases such as “they were in their cups” - inebriated.
I see that many people love this book and evidently Kawabata was a great Japanese writer getting the 1968 Novel Prize for Literature, which is no mean feat. So this doesn’t mean that I will not read any of his other works. It is just that this one was not to my satisfaction. ...more
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