January 2009 « 1morechapter.com

Japanese Literature Challenge Complete

January 30th, 2009 | Leave a comment

Bellezza was a wonderful host for this second Japanese literature challenge, and I enjoyed this one as much as I did the first challenge.

My favorites were The Housekeeper and the Professor and Fear and Trembling. Fear and Trembling was not technically Japanese, but it was set in Japan and had a lot to say about Japanese culture. I loved both of these books! I also read two mangas, a Japanese vampire book, and a book by a Nobel laureate. I’m very happy with the books I read, and I continue to be very much interested in both Japanese books and movies. Thanks, Bellezza, and I look forward to the next challenge as well!

Books I read:

X-Kai by Asami Tohjoh
Vampire Hunter D by Hideyuki Kikuchi
The Housekeeper and the Professor by Yoko Ogawa
Thousand Cranes by Kawabata
X-Kai- Vol. 2 by Asami Tohjoh

Of interest:

Fear and Trembling by Amelie Nothomb (originally in French but set in Japan)

Japanese movies I watched:

Fear and Trembling by Amelie Nothomb

January 29th, 2009 | 1 comment

DVD

Book

I absolutely loved Fear and Trembling. I actually watched the movie first and loved it as well. I must say it follows the book almost exactly. It’s a fascinating study of the clash of cultures. The book is translated from the French, and the film is a combination of French and Japanese with English sub-titles.

In this short semi-autobiographical novel, Amelie Nothomb describes the experiences of ‘Amelie’ during her year at a Japanese corporation. Amelie is smitten with Japan, knows the language, and is ecstatic that she obtained a corporate position as a translator in the country where she was born. The job is not all she hoped, but she tries her best to stick out her position the way a Japanese person would. I found this book (and movie) to be truly fascinating. Nothomb obviously loves Japan and Japanese culture, but even she finds that the differences of East and West are sometimes difficult to overcome.

In speaking of the Japanese woman:

“It is best to avoid any kind of physical pleasure because it is apt to make you sweat. There is nothing more shameful than sweat. If you gobble up a steaming bowl of noodles, if you give in to s*xual craving, if you spend the winter dozing in front of the fire, you will sweat. And no one will be in any doubt that you are coarse.

The choice between sweat and suicide isn’t a choice. Spilling one’s blood is as admirable as spilling sweat is unspeakable. Take your life, and you will never sweat again. Your anxiety will be over for all eternity.”

I own two other books by Nothomb – The Character of Rain and Sulphuric Acid — and I’m very much looking forward to both!

1999, 2001 for the English translation, 132 pp.

4.5/5

X-Kai- Vol. 2 by Asami Tohjoh

January 28th, 2009 | Leave a comment

X-Kai- Vol. 2 by Asami Tohjoh is only the second manga I’ve read. The first was X-Kai- Vol. 1 last year, which I primarily read because it was an ‘X’ title, and because I wanted to expand my horizons by reading manga. I liked the first volume quite a bit better. This second volume does finish up Kaito’s story which is nice, but it also has some darker themes going on as well.

Kaito is an assassin who works in a flower shop by day and also takes care of a boy named Renge. He doesn’t like his occupation but does it to help pay for his brother’s hospital care. His brother is a severe burn victim. There are four ’secrets’ in this volume, and the book includes both Renge and Kaito’s brother in the story. As I said, interesting to read — but dark.

2000, English translation 2006; 200 pp.

2.5/5

Thousand Cranes

January 27th, 2009 | Leave a comment

Thousand Cranes by Yasunari Kawabata, was first translated into English in 1958. Kawabata won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1968, and he died in 1972.

I found Thousand Cranes interesting, but a little hard to follow. Two of Kikuji Mitani’s father’s mistresses insert themselves into Kikuji’s life. He falls for one of them, and later her daughter. A tea ceremony is central to the story, but it’s meaning is a little lost on this Westerner. It’s a short novel, but one I’m afraid I just didn’t ‘get.’

I also own Kawabata’s Snow Country, which I still plan on reading at some point, but unfortunately I didn’t find Thousand Cranes to be all that exciting.

1949-1952, 1958 for the English translation, 147 pp.

3.5/5

Graveyard Book wins Newbery!

January 26th, 2009 | Leave a comment

Wow!! Congrats to Neil Gaiman for winning the Newbery with The Graveyard Book. I’m shocked but very pleased!! See my review HERE.

I’ve been a bad book blogger… (TSS)

January 25th, 2009 | Leave a comment

Unfortunately, it’s been awhile… I’ve been reading but for some reason am struggling to write any reviews lately. I’ve also been succumbing to a guilty pleasure of mine — foreign films. I’m in love with Netflix instant viewing and can’t get enough of it right now. Also, I’ve had some DVDs on my shelves for awhile that I’ve finally made time for as well. So, up first is what I’ve been reading and hope to finish by January, and then on to some short movie reviews.

I finally finished Thousand Cranes by Nobel laureate Yasunari Kawabata. It’s a short book, but for some reason I couldn’t rip right through it like I usually do with shorter works. It’s about a son whose dead father’s ‘women’ insert themselves into his life. A tea ceremony also had quite a bit to do with the story, but of course I couldn’t quite fully understand the cultural significance of that part.

I’m almost done with Fugitive Pieces by Anne Michaels, which I read to fit into the Canadian, 1%, Book Awards, and Orange January challenges. (I’m a master at overlapping.)

I’ve also started Kafka on the Shore by Murakami to try to fit in one more Japanese title before the end of January. It’s also on the 1001 list.

In addition, I hope to finish Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford so I can put up a review before it’s released on January 27.

Now on to my movie madness… With the exception of the first title, all of these are slow character movies. I happen to love slow character movies, so your mileage may vary on these if you don’t have similar tastes.

Run, Lola, Run (German) — A+

Lola and her boyfriend Manni must get 100,000 Marks before a certain time or Manni’s probably dead. I’ve had this one on my shelf for awhile, and with great music, dialogue, and action, it’s going to stay there!
~

Kinamand (Danish) — A+

(Kinamand is Chinaman in English) This one really surprised me. Very touching. Keld’s wife divorces him and he marries Ling solely so she can get a visa to stay in Denmark. Will their relationship remain one only of convenience?
~

Carol’s Journey (Spanish) — A

Great movie set during the Spanish Civil War. Carol moves from New York to her mother’s village in Spain and meets her relatives for the first time. I really loved Carol’s spunk and her growth in her family relationships. This one taught me a bit of Spanish history as well.

The Lovers of the Arctic Circle (Spanish, set in Spain and Finland) — B+

It was very interesting to watch this one after Run, Lola, Run — some similarities but without all the action. Otto and Ana believe in fate and coincidences. Their names are both palindromes (the same forward and backward) and fairly important to the story. One scene in this movie was so amazing — a shot of the midnight sun moving horizontally to the horizon in the arctic circle. Beautiful!
(This movie has some graphic scenes.)

Something Like Happiness (Czech) — B

This was kind of depressing but I liked the story. Apartment dwellers living in a factory town trying to make the best of their lives. Home is still home, no matter the circumstances.
(Graphic scenes and language)

Now I have some more Japanese films on my shelves that I want to get to!

1morechapter.com

Japanese Literature Challenge Complete

Fear and Trembling by Amelie Nothomb

X-Kai- Vol. 2 by Asami Tohjoh

Thousand Cranes

Graveyard Book wins Newbery!

I’ve been a bad book blogger… (TSS)

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