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A review by maxturner
The Last Children of Tokyo by Yōko Tawada
4.0
This is such a difficult book to review. And yet I was so close to giving it 5 stars.
There are things in this book, on a technical level, that I usually hate but they just didn't bother me. I was so engaged and invested in the story.
I've seen people call this charming or enchanting, and that sums it up. It's a slow, meandering slice of life ramble - a style I like when done well, as this is. But that life we're seeing a slice of is in a future that is deeply intriguing but that none of us would want to live in.
I'm only a fan of this density of world building when it is done well and purposefully - not just jarring exposition dumps. Here the world building is pretty much constant, but it makes sense that it is and with each page we learn more about this deeply troubling future. The world building is essentially another main character in this story that we get to know as we read on.
Speaking of the main character - we follow Yoshiro in his caring for his great-grandson, Mumei, with regular flashbacks to different parts of his incredibly long life. His is both a charming and devastating story, making it all too easy to root for Yoshiro and share his pain. He is so well drawn out and the more the story reveals about him the more I grew to care for him.
All that said, on a technical side, usually head hopping will take me out and whilst the majority of this book is a limited third person following Yoshiro, the final quarter starts to jump around to other characters, including Mumei including a brief stint in first person with Mumei. And I have taken it into account in giving it only 4 stars. Whilst it briefly bothered me, it felt even more revelatory to the story especially seeing this harsh and unforgiving world that Yoshiro tried to protect him from, through Mumei's eyes.
Another reason for the 4 stars is the abruptness of the ending. Once we're in Mumei's POV there is a sudden multi-year jump that is handled in a bizarre way - that didn't feel out of place in this book, but I did still want more. Mumei is just suddenly many years older and doesn't really remember the intervening time. But again, this just moved the story and things felt suddenly faster and then... ended abruptly.
And I don't even hate that. It felt purposeful and reflective of this terrible world, that this boy - meant for so much more - came to a sudden end.
I not only enjoyed this book, I loved it. It's going to live rent free in my brain for a long time to come.
There are things in this book, on a technical level, that I usually hate but they just didn't bother me. I was so engaged and invested in the story.
I've seen people call this charming or enchanting, and that sums it up. It's a slow, meandering slice of life ramble - a style I like when done well, as this is. But that life we're seeing a slice of is in a future that is deeply intriguing but that none of us would want to live in.
I'm only a fan of this density of world building when it is done well and purposefully - not just jarring exposition dumps. Here the world building is pretty much constant, but it makes sense that it is and with each page we learn more about this deeply troubling future. The world building is essentially another main character in this story that we get to know as we read on.
Speaking of the main character - we follow Yoshiro in his caring for his great-grandson, Mumei, with regular flashbacks to different parts of his incredibly long life. His is both a charming and devastating story, making it all too easy to root for Yoshiro and share his pain. He is so well drawn out and the more the story reveals about him the more I grew to care for him.
All that said, on a technical side, usually head hopping will take me out and whilst the majority of this book is a limited third person following Yoshiro, the final quarter starts to jump around to other characters, including Mumei including a brief stint in first person with Mumei. And I have taken it into account in giving it only 4 stars. Whilst it briefly bothered me, it felt even more revelatory to the story especially seeing this harsh and unforgiving world that Yoshiro tried to protect him from, through Mumei's eyes.
Another reason for the 4 stars is the abruptness of the ending. Once we're in Mumei's POV there is a sudden multi-year jump that is handled in a bizarre way - that didn't feel out of place in this book, but I did still want more. Mumei is just suddenly many years older and doesn't really remember the intervening time. But again, this just moved the story and things felt suddenly faster and then... ended abruptly.
And I don't even hate that. It felt purposeful and reflective of this terrible world, that this boy - meant for so much more - came to a sudden end.
I not only enjoyed this book, I loved it. It's going to live rent free in my brain for a long time to come.