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samdalefox 's review for:
The Melancholy of Mechagirl
by Catherynne M. Valente
challenging
dark
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Short no spoilers review.
It's difficult to give an overall rating as the book is compromised of several short stories, poems, and a novella. (You can read each of these in any order). I've given it 4 stars overall as I appreciated the author's unique style and I think the collection works well together. She combines Eastern and Japanese short story literary devices, personal autobiographical influence, science fiction, and lots of Japanese folk lore. The end result is quite magical. If you're not familiar with Japanese folklore you will sometimes understand from the context that it's presented, and sometimes you might need to look a word or two up.
Short stories I enjoyed:
The melancholy of mechagirl (loved the flow and combination of scifi words). Fifteen panels of the Baku and the Jotai (an easier story to follow whilst being introduced to Japanese creatures I didn't know before). Ghosts of Gunkanjima (a little heavy handed but effective at bringing this historic place's horrors to light). Story no. 6 (imaginative, intriguing short story, easy to follow). Fade to white (obvious Western caricature and criticism, excellent weaving of two stories and inclusion of scifi elements). Killswitch (fascinating. This story was the one most grounded in reality, interesting commentary on society). The girl with two skins (devastating to read, even more interesting when you research the symbolism of foxes in Japanese culture). Silently and very fast (this is the novella and makes up a good 40% of the total book. Focusing on artificial intelligence, the story is rich in visual imagery but also has a genuinely unique commentary on the moral existence, purpose of, and place for AI in a human universe.)
It's difficult to give an overall rating as the book is compromised of several short stories, poems, and a novella. (You can read each of these in any order). I've given it 4 stars overall as I appreciated the author's unique style and I think the collection works well together. She combines Eastern and Japanese short story literary devices, personal autobiographical influence, science fiction, and lots of Japanese folk lore. The end result is quite magical. If you're not familiar with Japanese folklore you will sometimes understand from the context that it's presented, and sometimes you might need to look a word or two up.
Short stories I enjoyed:
The melancholy of mechagirl (loved the flow and combination of scifi words). Fifteen panels of the Baku and the Jotai (an easier story to follow whilst being introduced to Japanese creatures I didn't know before). Ghosts of Gunkanjima (a little heavy handed but effective at bringing this historic place's horrors to light). Story no. 6 (imaginative, intriguing short story, easy to follow). Fade to white (obvious Western caricature and criticism, excellent weaving of two stories and inclusion of scifi elements). Killswitch (fascinating. This story was the one most grounded in reality, interesting commentary on society). The girl with two skins (devastating to read, even more interesting when you research the symbolism of foxes in Japanese culture). Silently and very fast (this is the novella and makes up a good 40% of the total book. Focusing on artificial intelligence, the story is rich in visual imagery but also has a genuinely unique commentary on the moral existence, purpose of, and place for AI in a human universe.)
Short stories I didn't enjoy:
Ink water milk (I enjoyed it at the time of reading, but quickly forgot about it). Thirteen ways of looking at space time (I was torn where to place this one. I really enjoyed a few of the thirteen installments, and I personally liked the heavy use of scientific words, but overall it felt more like a writing exercise for the author, it didn't feel coherent as thirteen stories). One breath, one stroke (the only one for me where the Japanese imagery and folklore was too frequently obscure to enjoy reading it fluently). The emperor of tsukayama Park (lovely imagery, difficult for me to understand or relate to). Memoirs of a girl who failed to be born from a peach (it made be suitably uncomfortable, but I'm not sure I fully grasped the emotional importance of the work).
Ink water milk (I enjoyed it at the time of reading, but quickly forgot about it). Thirteen ways of looking at space time (I was torn where to place this one. I really enjoyed a few of the thirteen installments, and I personally liked the heavy use of scientific words, but overall it felt more like a writing exercise for the author, it didn't feel coherent as thirteen stories). One breath, one stroke (the only one for me where the Japanese imagery and folklore was too frequently obscure to enjoy reading it fluently). The emperor of tsukayama Park (lovely imagery, difficult for me to understand or relate to). Memoirs of a girl who failed to be born from a peach (it made be suitably uncomfortable, but I'm not sure I fully grasped the emotional importance of the work).