#mieko kawakami heaven

[ironcolouredocean]

There are all kinds of things in the world I don't understand, but I really wanted to understand you.

[liriostigre]

Mieko Kawakami, Heaven (translated by Sam Bett and David Boyd)

[litsnaps]

[gossamerg1rl]

[ilyareads]

short books recs (under 200 pages)

1. Sweet Bean Paste by Durian Sukegawa

This book follows Sentaro, who runs a dorayaki stall, and his friendship with Tokue, who makes killer sweet bean paste. It is a heart-warming and endearing story that brings you comfort. I love the friendship between Sentaro and Tokue, especially seeing how it develops. The ending feels a little rushed. I kind of wished it was longer. Kind of sad. I cried. 10/10 would read again.

2. Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

The Funiculi Funicula cafe provides a time-traveling service, and the book, divided into four parts, retells different characters' experiences traveling in time. I always associate time-traveling with angst and regret, and this book has just that. I love how each part explores different relationship dynamics, so the time-traveling experience varies for each character. Very heart-warming, but very emotional as well. Cried a lot. It's a series but you don't have to read other books. But if you want more info on the cafe and the characters' backstory, then I highly recommend reading the other books.

3. Heaven by Mieko Kawakami

This book revolves around two students, who are victims of bullying. Due to their shared struggle, a friendship blossoms between them. The depiction of bullying and its impacts is raw and authentic, the story providing the perspectives of both the victims and the perpetrators. It was a rage-inducing but thought-provoking read.

4. The Travelling Cat Chronicles by Hiro Arikawa

This book follows Nana the cat as he embarks on a road-trip with his owner, Satoru. Now, cats are my absolute weakness. I love cats. I WOULD DIE FOR THEM. Which is why reading this book was hard and painful. The writing is witty, since it is written from the perspective of a cat. The plot itself is kind of predictable, but it doesn't make it any less painful. Tldr; Shredded my heart into pieces. Cried so hard, I couldn't breathe.

5. Almond by Won-Pyung Sohn

The story follows the main character, Yunjae, who suffers from a rare condition called Alexithymia that essentially makes him unable to feel emotions. Due to that, he couldn't understand social cues so people shun him. The development of the story centers on the people Yunjae are going to meet, and how his relationship with these people develops. The ending felt a little anticlimactic, but I loved it nonetheless.

6. Eartheater by Dolores Reyes

The unnamed protagonist can locate missing people and find out their fate by eating dirt, so people seek her to know the fate of their missing loved ones. It was definitely an interesting read, with elements of magical realism in relation to the protagonist's ability. It is also an intriguing depiction of femicide, a reflection of a system that continuously fails women. I felt rage for the women failed by the system and the sufferings they had to endure at the hands of hateful men.

7. A House is a Body by Shruti Swamy

This book is a collection of short stories, which is a raw and authentic depiction of what it is like being human. I enjoyed certain stories, while some left me utterly confused. The narratives are enticing and poetic, so despite some stories not hitting that hard, I enjoyed the writing.

8. The Vegetarian by Han Kang

After having a bizarre dream, Yeong-Hye declares that she is turning vegetarian, and this sudden change concerned her family. I made the mistake of thinking that this book is merely a depiction of what it's like to be a vegetarian. HELL NO. It utterly deviates from my expectation. I could only describe the book as bizarre and spooky, in an unconventional way. It depicts the complexity of the human mind when the contraint of societal expectations is disregarded.

[nehmesis]

If you want a summer read that's both small in size but also makes you feel deeply, Mieko Kawakami's Heaven is a great one; I wrote an article about it here !

[quotespile]

Was I afraid of getting hurt? If that was it, if that was what was haunting me, why couldn’t I stand up to him? What does it mean to be hurt? When they bullied me and beat me up, why couldn’t I do anything but obey them? What does it mean to obey? Why was I scared? Why? What does it mean to be scared?

Mieko Kawakami, Heaven

[aponii1]

One of my favorites quotes from Heaven by Mieko Kawakami.

[rainreads]

"i want to be friends"

"what was a friend supposed to do?"

heaven by mieko kawakami

[fingermosaic]

!!SPOILERS!!

okay okay so in Heaven by Mieko Kawakami it is very clear that Kojima and Momose represented the two different views on morality/meaning of suffering/power dynamics that the main character was caught between. and when Kojima was taken away, the main character made the decision that aligned with Momose’s view, meaning that he decided on that belief. (i think). (also Momose’s beliefs are EXTREMELY similar to Nietzsche’s)

BUT. the picture that was Heaven for Kojima, the main character never got to see it. i think this is because to Kojima, it represented two people who made it through the suffering and were able to live in harmony. And the main character never actually got to see the picture because in Kojima’s view, he didn’t get through the suffering, he just found a way to get out of it. In doing so, he left Kojima behind, meaning that the picture of two people wasn’t applicable to them anymore.

i need more opinions/thoughts on this gosh darn book because there are some parts of it that i am not understanding and i’m so interested in the messages it’s trying to get across

[random-poetry-account]

[sea-bunniez]

heaven moodboard ⁠✷

[samireads]

Japanese lit 🇯🇵 ✌🏻

[litsnaps]

[evadneares]

Mieko Kawakami, "Heaven"

[lorddougie]

"then it hit me: dying is just like sleeping. you only know you’re sleeping when you wake up the next day, but if morning never comes, you sleep forever. that must be what death is like. when someone dies, they don’t even know they’re dead. because they never see it happen, nobody ever really dies. this hit me like a sucker punch. "

- heaven, mieko kawakami