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nitroglycerin 's review for:
Under the Eye of the Big Bird
by Hiromi Kawakami
challenging
dark
mysterious
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
N/A
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
What happens to humans in the future?
When AI becomes truly intelligent?
When we bomb ourselves to oblivion?
What comes after?
This was my sixth book by Hiromi Kawakami and probably my second least favourite overall. It was a good and enjoyable collection of short interlinked stories, but it didn’t live up to The Third Love which I read last year and really enjoyed, and lags behind her more well known Strange Weather in Tokyo or The Nakano Thrift Store. My least favourite if you’re wondering is Record of a Night Too Brief which was also short stories.
Kawakami’s strength is in her writing, and that’s what shone though. The world she created in Big Bird was bizarre but one I could picture well as her world building and setting descriptions were top notch.
Spanning hundreds of thousands of years in the future, Kawakami explores humanity and its existence. These interconnected stories can be difficult to get through and there isn't a plot in the classic sense, but the existential dread it invokes makes it worth it. Highly influenced by the falling birth rate of Japan no doubt, many of the stories focus on reproduction (thankfully in less graphic ways than some other recently translated Japanese books). Highly recommended for those who enjoy post apocalyptic, speculative Fiction..
When AI becomes truly intelligent?
When we bomb ourselves to oblivion?
What comes after?
This was my sixth book by Hiromi Kawakami and probably my second least favourite overall. It was a good and enjoyable collection of short interlinked stories, but it didn’t live up to The Third Love which I read last year and really enjoyed, and lags behind her more well known Strange Weather in Tokyo or The Nakano Thrift Store. My least favourite if you’re wondering is Record of a Night Too Brief which was also short stories.
Kawakami’s strength is in her writing, and that’s what shone though. The world she created in Big Bird was bizarre but one I could picture well as her world building and setting descriptions were top notch.
Spanning hundreds of thousands of years in the future, Kawakami explores humanity and its existence. These interconnected stories can be difficult to get through and there isn't a plot in the classic sense, but the existential dread it invokes makes it worth it. Highly influenced by the falling birth rate of Japan no doubt, many of the stories focus on reproduction (thankfully in less graphic ways than some other recently translated Japanese books). Highly recommended for those who enjoy post apocalyptic, speculative Fiction..