Review: The Lake
June 26th, 2011 § 14 Comments
Title: The Lake
Author: Banana Yoshimoto, translated by Michael Emmerich
Published: Melville House / 2011
Genre: Fiction, Japanese Literature
Length: 208 pages
Source: publisher
Rating: 6/10
i’ve been trying to connect with my Japanese heritage in books and this was a natural choice. though i’ve never read any of her previous works, Banana Yoshimoto has made a name for herself in Japanese Literature circles and i was really looking forward to trying her on for size.
but, alas, this one didn’t work for me as much as i’d have liked. there was great potential that i could see in the writing, but i was so discouraged by one thing that i couldn’t get past. but, before i get to that, let me talk first about what i did enjoy.
The Lake is a coming-of-age novel about the young graphic artist Chihiro who, having recently lost her mother, is setting off on her own in Tokyo. when her eyes connect with Nakajima one day while looking out her apartment window, the intersection of their lives is laid bare. with compelling and haunting use of very simple, punchy sentences, Yoshimoto brings the lovers into an emotional place that is raw and rugged.
He makes me feel like I’ve suddenly awakened, and I want to go on watching him forever. That, I think, is what it is. I’m awed by his terrible depths.
in the development of the characters and relationship, i was intrigued. Chihiro and Nakajima are far from your cookie-cutter characters, with a quirkiness that was endearing. the dialogue in the budding relationship had a whimsical quality that was odd, yet maintained an authentic quality. the storyline, as it progressed, was certainly bizarre and maintained and progressed what came to feel like a dream sequence. and the character’s growth and simple naivete was heartfelt in a way that many novelists aren’t able to pull off.
so what went wrong?
i’m not sure if it was the translation or the editing or the writing, but something didn’t click for me. the language felt clunky, creating a disjointed reading experience that was distracting. so, while i did enjoy the concept and the characters, i never was able to quite buy into the story because i was constantly reminded of the fact that i was reading it. i’m not even sure if that makes sense, but for me, a good book makes me forget i’m reading and unfortunately this one kept hitting me in the head instead.
however, like i mentioned earlier, there was much to enjoy about this book and i can see how Yoshimoto has built up a strong base of fans over the years. i wasn’t discouraged enough that i’m unwilling to try another of her books.
other’s reviews:
Books in the Burbs
Literary Lotus
if i missed your review, let me know and i’ll be happy to add it to the list.
I didn’t read your review carefully as I still want to read the book myself. But, I’ll be back so we can discuss it together!
Same here. But it sounds like it wasn’t very good (just good-ish). I read Goodbye Tsugumi which I liked (I even remember where I was when I read it!).
I have read a few of Banana Yoshimoto’s books and I have to say that “Kitchen” was my favorite! I suggest giving it a try, since it seems to read a little more fluidly than the others I have read, but I like to give them all a try! If you do try this one out, let me know what you think!
i will definitely take a look at Kitchen. i had heard good things from others who had read it, so it’ll probably be the one to try.
I’ve only read Kitchen and Hardboiled & Hard Luck. The former was decent enough but the latter seemed to go over similar themes, adding nothing new.
Hmm, interesting. This is in my review queue for July and will be my first Yoshimoto, too. I sometimes find translations leave me feeling distanced from the story and I’ll be curious to see if I feel the same awareness that I’m reading (rather than being lost in the story!).
i hope that you do enjoy it, but completely understand if you don’t. i’ll keep an eye out for your review and we can compare notes.
I have also found that when I read the stories in their original language and then read a translation in my native language, there are definantly sentiments, humor and subtle bits leftout or translated to the best of the ability of the language, but just get lost in the end. It is a shame, and maybe asking too much to read all the great literature in the original languages of every person out there, but I think Kitchen is probably Banana Yoshimoto’s most accurately and best translated work so far. Her work in Japanese makes much more sense and the stories seem to be a lot less disjointed and more pleasant – as they were intended.
do you read books in Japanese?!? i speak Japanese, but my reading ability is so elementary that i’d never make it through an adult novel.
I am probably on par with you, but I read a copy of Kitchen with my aunt and mother, since it was short and a great thing to do with my family. Being half Japanese, this is important to me, so its something Im working on – but at the time I needed quite a bit of help reading it. But now, I am reading some things on my own, even though I still need help sometimes.
I have only recently heard of Banana Yoshimoto — I actually came across a reference to her work in Anna and the French Kiss. I too am part Japanese and have been trying to read more Japanese work. This book sounds like a good read but I understand how sometimes translations can leave you wanting more. Not sure if this will be the first Yoshimoto book I pick up but I will hopefully be reading her soon.
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