The Bridegroom Was a Dog

Rating:
Summary: Is this really the same book in English?
Review: Bride Groom was a Dog? Is this really the translation of Inumukoiri? That mythical modern-day fairy tale that won the Akutagawa Award? Even the title sounds lousy. What happened to the sense of mystery, the portent, the magic? This is the worst translation I have seen since the Japanese version of the lyrics to "A Hard Day's Night" !!

Rating:
Summary: Creative and disturbing
Review: I'm thankful to have some translations of this amazing writer of Japanese fiction. These stories provide a rich and surreal reflection on gender and cultural identities and the final story is one of the best depictions of feeling out of place, whether living with a new family or in a new country (in this case both). Sorry to see that this is out of print, but happy that "Where Europe Begins" is now out.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful Book!
Review: If you love good writing, you will love this book. As Kafka was rebuked by the first readers of his day only to become one of the most influential writers of this century, so too Tawada is walking an unmarked road that will eventually gain the accolades it deserves.

Rating:
Summary: Creative and disturbing
Review: This book apparently won the Akutagawa Award, Japan's highest literary honour. How the judges deemed fit to place her in the company of such writers as Tanizaki Junichiro and Kawabata Yasunari is beyond me. The stories start off interestingly enough but the style of writing soon dulls the impact. Whether this is the fault of the writer or the translater I'm not sure but it is certainly distracting. The reader will find themselves being trailed behind some wonderfully imaginative stories, only to be abruptly dumped with a half page ending. I was left with the impression the the author had built up these grandiose fairy tales and was at a loss as to how she was going the come up with an ending. Very unsatisfying.