Rakugo, or a type of traditional Japanese humor with a long history, is the focus of this little book for children. I don't know much about rakugo, apart from seeing it on TV or in movies, so, in that respect, it won't affect much my review.
This book is a compilation of some very simple stories, with very simple humor, and a couple of puns and plays on words to make the reader laugh. It is all quite childish, and even if they may bring the reader to chuckle a couple of times, the level of the humor (as a read) is just too low. Also, being rakugo dependent on word play, this book, even with its easy Japanese, may be a difficult read for foreigners (because it will be difficult to get some of the puns without an acceptable level of the language). On the other hand, the book also contains a couple of pages dedicated to explain the world of rakugo, the theaters were it is shown, the variety shows that surround it...
Probably best to watch the real thing. Rakugo seems to be lost without the acting of a performer.
The best: a nice introduction to the world of rakugo
The worst: too simple
Alternatives: I don't know much about rakugo, so... manga with humor: "OnePunch Man" or "ヒロイン失格", and in English: Terry Pratchett, "The Order of the Stick" & "War and Peas: Funny Comics for Dirty Lovers" for older readers
5.5/10
(Original Japanese)
Wednesday, January 29, 2020
Sunday, January 26, 2020
Doctor Mirage - Magdalene Visaggio, Nick Robles (Illustrator)
Doctor Mirage was capable of seeing the dead. But now, even her dead husband, who was always by her side, has disappeared. Mirage cannot live without him, so she will try her best to reunite with him, whatever she has to do.
"Doctor Mirage" is another of those supernatural comic/books with a simple story, and not a particular original development, that, however, surprises for different reasons, giving the reader a very entertaining and enjoyable time.
For starters the drawing style. Even if the drawings are not top-notch, the use of strips and color is amazing, and do suit perfectly the story, giving it a dreamy and kaleidoscopic atmosphere that feels like a trip to the underworld.
This use of color and strips is also mixed with some simple, but well used, storytelling techniques, perfectly combining the writing with the image, and making Mirage's story a seamless affair, with almost nothing that needs trimming.
Quite the contrary. It actually feels the story should be a little bit longer, because the ending feels a little bit rushed, and it's kind of a mess, as if it needed another chapter or two to better develop the story and its characters.
Minor quibbles, as "Doctor Mirage" is totally worth it.
The best: the use of color is amazing; it is a touching story; it has some very original storytelling/strip usage
The worst: the ending feels rushed
Alternatives: "Gretel", "The Dresden Files", "亜人" ("Ajin")
6/10
(Original English)
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy*
"Doctor Mirage" is another of those supernatural comic/books with a simple story, and not a particular original development, that, however, surprises for different reasons, giving the reader a very entertaining and enjoyable time.
For starters the drawing style. Even if the drawings are not top-notch, the use of strips and color is amazing, and do suit perfectly the story, giving it a dreamy and kaleidoscopic atmosphere that feels like a trip to the underworld.
This use of color and strips is also mixed with some simple, but well used, storytelling techniques, perfectly combining the writing with the image, and making Mirage's story a seamless affair, with almost nothing that needs trimming.
Quite the contrary. It actually feels the story should be a little bit longer, because the ending feels a little bit rushed, and it's kind of a mess, as if it needed another chapter or two to better develop the story and its characters.
Minor quibbles, as "Doctor Mirage" is totally worth it.
The best: the use of color is amazing; it is a touching story; it has some very original storytelling/strip usage
The worst: the ending feels rushed
Alternatives: "Gretel", "The Dresden Files", "亜人" ("Ajin")
6/10
(Original English)
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy*
A Rose to the Torch - Bartholomew Lander
A young girl, that has been harboring a secret for all of her life, suddenly finds herself in the middle of a feud between to warring sides of hemomancers, the scourge of humanity.
The secret being that she is a hemomancer herself. Hemomancers being humans with the power to use their blood as a weapon. Lander being someone who has probably read "Tokyo Ghoul" just a few days before starting to write this book.
Or not, but while reading "A Rose to the Torch", "Tokyo Ghoul" was the reference that kept popping into my mind. Because the fights in that manga were, in my mind, quite similar to the blood fights Lander was describing in this book.
However, back to the review... This book is not a horrible one, far from it. However, it is horribly convoluted, and its world is not well developed, leaving many of the events just Deux Ex machina moments. We never really get into the mind of Coral, let alone Leblanc or Lena. Many of Coral's reactions come out of the blue, before we have really connected with her, and some of the uses of the blood, the power the hemomancers have over it and all the messy stuff there, is difficult to follow. It feels Lander was envisioning every scene in his mind as if he was watching a show or a manga, but on paper, they don't work so well. And many of the side quests feel unnecessary, just to have some eye candy moments. Lena's character, in particular, feels like an ill conceived decision.
The ending is actually quite acceptable, even though rushed, with a couple of little but nice surprises, and leaves the reader with a nice 'bloody' aftertaste.
Nothing, though, to make it stand out of the pack.
The best: the ending is nice enough (even if messy); some intents to be original
The worst: nothing to make it stand out; the hemomancers' powers are a mess and don't mix well with guns; their motivations and actions are also head-scratching
Alternatives: "Tokyo Ghoul", "The Dresden Files"
4.5/10
(Original English)
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy*
The secret being that she is a hemomancer herself. Hemomancers being humans with the power to use their blood as a weapon. Lander being someone who has probably read "Tokyo Ghoul" just a few days before starting to write this book.
Or not, but while reading "A Rose to the Torch", "Tokyo Ghoul" was the reference that kept popping into my mind. Because the fights in that manga were, in my mind, quite similar to the blood fights Lander was describing in this book.
However, back to the review... This book is not a horrible one, far from it. However, it is horribly convoluted, and its world is not well developed, leaving many of the events just Deux Ex machina moments. We never really get into the mind of Coral, let alone Leblanc or Lena. Many of Coral's reactions come out of the blue, before we have really connected with her, and some of the uses of the blood, the power the hemomancers have over it and all the messy stuff there, is difficult to follow. It feels Lander was envisioning every scene in his mind as if he was watching a show or a manga, but on paper, they don't work so well. And many of the side quests feel unnecessary, just to have some eye candy moments. Lena's character, in particular, feels like an ill conceived decision.
The ending is actually quite acceptable, even though rushed, with a couple of little but nice surprises, and leaves the reader with a nice 'bloody' aftertaste.
Nothing, though, to make it stand out of the pack.
The best: the ending is nice enough (even if messy); some intents to be original
The worst: nothing to make it stand out; the hemomancers' powers are a mess and don't mix well with guns; their motivations and actions are also head-scratching
Alternatives: "Tokyo Ghoul", "The Dresden Files"
4.5/10
(Original English)
*Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the copy*
Saturday, January 25, 2020
Etüden im Schnee (Memorias de una osa polar) - Yōko Tawada
Ego-trip. This is how one ends feeling like after reading "Etüden im Schnee" by Yōko Tawada, the story of some polar bears who do little to hold our attention, a story that stretches for so long that every page ends up feeling like 100, and which doesn't make much sense whatsoever.
And it starts well enough. The first polar bear, let's call her the matriarch,'s story is more or less interesting, with a nice touch of magic realism, treating the bear like a human that goes to conferences, works, finds love... All played more or less straight, making for some acceptable humor and a nice atmosphere. However, Tawada decides then to stretch the story with two more polar bears, the daughter and the grandson, whose adventures are really, but really really boring, and whose lives are also boring as hell. The descriptions stretch, the commentary becomes too much in your face, and the reader will stop caring at all about what is going on. Not that it makes much sense anyway <spoiler> what is Michael Jackson doing there?</spoiler>.
Bad.
The best: the first third
The worst: repetitive, narcissistic rubbish; the reader comes out of the book feeling Tawada thinks she has written a masterpiece (of course, it could be she is still scratching her head in amazement this was given the ok for publication)
Alternatives: ff you want to read about families, go for Jaume Cabré if you can; maybe Shigeko Yuki's "女中っ子"; Lucia Berlin's "A Manual for Cleaning Women"; "A Room of One's Own / Three Guineas" by Virginia Woolf
2/10
(Spanish translation by Belén Santana)
And it starts well enough. The first polar bear, let's call her the matriarch,'s story is more or less interesting, with a nice touch of magic realism, treating the bear like a human that goes to conferences, works, finds love... All played more or less straight, making for some acceptable humor and a nice atmosphere. However, Tawada decides then to stretch the story with two more polar bears, the daughter and the grandson, whose adventures are really, but really really boring, and whose lives are also boring as hell. The descriptions stretch, the commentary becomes too much in your face, and the reader will stop caring at all about what is going on. Not that it makes much sense anyway <spoiler> what is Michael Jackson doing there?</spoiler>.
Bad.
The best: the first third
The worst: repetitive, narcissistic rubbish; the reader comes out of the book feeling Tawada thinks she has written a masterpiece (of course, it could be she is still scratching her head in amazement this was given the ok for publication)
Alternatives: ff you want to read about families, go for Jaume Cabré if you can; maybe Shigeko Yuki's "女中っ子"; Lucia Berlin's "A Manual for Cleaning Women"; "A Room of One's Own / Three Guineas" by Virginia Woolf
2/10
(Spanish translation by Belén Santana)
Sunday, January 19, 2020
The Killings At Badger's Drift - Caroline Graham
A couple of months ago I read P.D. James's "Death In Holy Orders", in which an old lady was killed for seeing something she shouldn't have. And here we are again, in "The Killings At Badger's Drift" with an old lady being killed for seeing something they shouldn't have.
These British old ladies...
Luckily for us, "The Killings At Badger's Drift" is a better book than the other one, even if it also suffers of rushing to the resolution with as little police work as possible. Here we don't have our Sherlock's moments of analyzing what we know and what we have read; here we come to those moments of sudden clarity in a way that it is all too forced.
Well, too bad. Because the set up, with Chief Inspector Barnaby being visited by another old lady that tells him her friend has been killed, even if it all pointed out to an accident, is quite good, our 'hero' going all around the place, poking his nose everywhere and discovering everyone in that little, cute town is as dirty, corrupt and pompous as possible. The presentation of the characters is good, the conversations give us just little snippets that can, or not, give you an inkling to whom the killer may be, and some turns along the way help to pull you out of the scent and keep you on your toes till the killer is revealed.
A competent little mystery.
The best: The characters, all so sleazy and selfish; the atmosphere
The worst: it is easy to get a little bit lost with so many little set pieces; the resolution is a little bit lame
Alternatives: I have read so many whodunits that I am at a loss to recommend something that doesn't sound Agatha Christie-ish; so let's say "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn and a classic: "The Mystery of the Yellow Room"by Gaston Leroux
6.5/10
(English)
These British old ladies...
Luckily for us, "The Killings At Badger's Drift" is a better book than the other one, even if it also suffers of rushing to the resolution with as little police work as possible. Here we don't have our Sherlock's moments of analyzing what we know and what we have read; here we come to those moments of sudden clarity in a way that it is all too forced.
Well, too bad. Because the set up, with Chief Inspector Barnaby being visited by another old lady that tells him her friend has been killed, even if it all pointed out to an accident, is quite good, our 'hero' going all around the place, poking his nose everywhere and discovering everyone in that little, cute town is as dirty, corrupt and pompous as possible. The presentation of the characters is good, the conversations give us just little snippets that can, or not, give you an inkling to whom the killer may be, and some turns along the way help to pull you out of the scent and keep you on your toes till the killer is revealed.
A competent little mystery.
The best: The characters, all so sleazy and selfish; the atmosphere
The worst: it is easy to get a little bit lost with so many little set pieces; the resolution is a little bit lame
Alternatives: I have read so many whodunits that I am at a loss to recommend something that doesn't sound Agatha Christie-ish; so let's say "Gone Girl" by Gillian Flynn and a classic: "The Mystery of the Yellow Room"by Gaston Leroux
6.5/10
(English)
Intemperie - Jesús Carrasco
A novel of nowhere, anywhere, with a little child running from someone at its center, in a dry, deserted environment, seethed by heartless characters; that is what "Intemperie" is about. A novel that is dry, unwelcoming, and not precisely naive, that suffers from Carrasco trying to bite more than he can.
Because this would have worked better as a short story, the plot losing steam as the pages turn around, our child's misadventures becoming a little bit too long in the tooth as Carrasco overwhelms us with as many words we haven't heard of as he can use. He does, though, create an amazing atmosphere, which could be anywhere in Spain after the Civil War as much as in a post-global warming-gone crazy near future. The story's setting, characters, plot is ambivalent by necessity, by desire, our journey the same as the child's, walking from one place to the other with purposelessness, just to stay alive. With violence, death, around every corner, with selfishness, lust, in front, behind, everywhere. Too bad it is not more tightly done, because this ends up being an exercise in mood creation.
The best: the use of language; the atmosphere; the dry violence; the way it makes the reader feel this is a world we could find ourselves in any moment in the near future
The worst: Carrasco gloats a little bit too much in his use of language, transforming the story in a 'search in the dictionary' quest; this would have been way better as a short(er) story; some moments are dragged on and/or are too repetitive
Alternatives: it reminds, as it says on the cover, to some of Delibes's stories (in atmosphere and writing, not as much in plot); and maybe also "For Whom The Bell Tolls" to add a little bit more options
6/10
(Castilian or European Spanish, whatever you want to call it)
Because this would have worked better as a short story, the plot losing steam as the pages turn around, our child's misadventures becoming a little bit too long in the tooth as Carrasco overwhelms us with as many words we haven't heard of as he can use. He does, though, create an amazing atmosphere, which could be anywhere in Spain after the Civil War as much as in a post-global warming-gone crazy near future. The story's setting, characters, plot is ambivalent by necessity, by desire, our journey the same as the child's, walking from one place to the other with purposelessness, just to stay alive. With violence, death, around every corner, with selfishness, lust, in front, behind, everywhere. Too bad it is not more tightly done, because this ends up being an exercise in mood creation.
The best: the use of language; the atmosphere; the dry violence; the way it makes the reader feel this is a world we could find ourselves in any moment in the near future
The worst: Carrasco gloats a little bit too much in his use of language, transforming the story in a 'search in the dictionary' quest; this would have been way better as a short(er) story; some moments are dragged on and/or are too repetitive
Alternatives: it reminds, as it says on the cover, to some of Delibes's stories (in atmosphere and writing, not as much in plot); and maybe also "For Whom The Bell Tolls" to add a little bit more options
6/10
(Castilian or European Spanish, whatever you want to call it)
Wednesday, January 15, 2020
"82년생 김지영" ("Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982") ("Kim Ji-young, nacida en 1982") - Cho Nam-Joo
Dull. A research paper masquerading as a novel (with references et. al.), "82년생 김지영" ("Kim Jiyoung, Born 1982") is a very interesting, fascinating, and probably, needed look on women's life in Korea, let down by poor prose and a pointless, non-existent story, that leaves you feeling you are reading a table of contents of all the horrible situations a woman can go through in the country.
Because it is difficult to say this book has a story.
It all goes around Kim Ji-young, a young, married, with a child, woman, who starts to behave in a strange way. But the story doesn't stop to analyze or see the development of her behavior, but jumps in time to the moment she was born to lecture us on Korean women's life in the country from the 80s (every chapter more or less a decade).
Now, this is a book of passion, with a relentless anger and the need to say a message (a message it is difficult to disagree with, the life of a woman in Korea, if you believe even like, 10%, of what Nam-joo is saying, being kind of like living under constant surveillance in a dystopian state). But is a book that loses itself in the anger, and ups being a lecture were the author just constantly hits you on the head with data and terrible after terrible situation for Kim Ji-young, all of those situations being to blame on selfish, self-centered, violent, sexist, dangerous men. Now, there are a couple of moments were you see that Nam-Joo knows (or feels) that the system, the structural and cultural violence, are as much or more to blame than the individuals, but she does little to develop that, just centering on specific casesin a, look, my example is the only example! kind of exposition.
If there were also some moments of positive analysis to some of the men's behavior, or, better, more analysis on the way many women also play into theses structures and cultures of sexism, the book would have been better. As it comes, it feels like the author is gloating in those situations.
But see, I am doing a review of a research paper. This is not a novel, is just a series of serious and terrible situations to make Kim Ji-young, and the reader, miserable. A book that ends up as a shout out for being individualist and selfish, and not thinking but for oneself and one's own needs (free time, things, money, me, me, me!).
The best: how it criticizes some behaviors, micro-attacks, comments and situations in a sexist society; the 'anger' that is needed to change things; the way it depicts the paranoia state in which our heroine lives
The worst: it is just a relentless attack in list mode, with zero balance and not very well developed; it reinforces some ideas of selfishness and individualism
Further reading: heck, just go and read research papers; for Korea my recommendation would be "Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S.-Korea Relations" by Katharine H.S. Moon; East Asia in general (or more global, even): "Postcolonial International Relations" (Lily H. M. Ling), "Nightwork" (Anne Allison), "The Modern Madame Butterfly" (Karen Ma) or "East Asian Sexualities: Modernity, Gender & New Sexual Cultures" (several), and the chapter about Korea in Enloe's "The Curious Feminist"
5.5/10
(Spanish translation by Joo Hasun)
Because it is difficult to say this book has a story.
It all goes around Kim Ji-young, a young, married, with a child, woman, who starts to behave in a strange way. But the story doesn't stop to analyze or see the development of her behavior, but jumps in time to the moment she was born to lecture us on Korean women's life in the country from the 80s (every chapter more or less a decade).
Now, this is a book of passion, with a relentless anger and the need to say a message (a message it is difficult to disagree with, the life of a woman in Korea, if you believe even like, 10%, of what Nam-joo is saying, being kind of like living under constant surveillance in a dystopian state). But is a book that loses itself in the anger, and ups being a lecture were the author just constantly hits you on the head with data and terrible after terrible situation for Kim Ji-young, all of those situations being to blame on selfish, self-centered, violent, sexist, dangerous men. Now, there are a couple of moments were you see that Nam-Joo knows (or feels) that the system, the structural and cultural violence, are as much or more to blame than the individuals, but she does little to develop that, just centering on specific casesin a, look, my example is the only example! kind of exposition.
If there were also some moments of positive analysis to some of the men's behavior, or, better, more analysis on the way many women also play into theses structures and cultures of sexism, the book would have been better. As it comes, it feels like the author is gloating in those situations.
But see, I am doing a review of a research paper. This is not a novel, is just a series of serious and terrible situations to make Kim Ji-young, and the reader, miserable. A book that ends up as a shout out for being individualist and selfish, and not thinking but for oneself and one's own needs (free time, things, money, me, me, me!).
The best: how it criticizes some behaviors, micro-attacks, comments and situations in a sexist society; the 'anger' that is needed to change things; the way it depicts the paranoia state in which our heroine lives
The worst: it is just a relentless attack in list mode, with zero balance and not very well developed; it reinforces some ideas of selfishness and individualism
Further reading: heck, just go and read research papers; for Korea my recommendation would be "Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S.-Korea Relations" by Katharine H.S. Moon; East Asia in general (or more global, even): "Postcolonial International Relations" (Lily H. M. Ling), "Nightwork" (Anne Allison), "The Modern Madame Butterfly" (Karen Ma) or "East Asian Sexualities: Modernity, Gender & New Sexual Cultures" (several), and the chapter about Korea in Enloe's "The Curious Feminist"
5.5/10
(Spanish translation by Joo Hasun)
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