Classics Considered

It’s been a while since my last post, but I have been reading intermittently. I am still reading Sherlock Holmes (!) and Noli Me Tangere. Most recently, I have been spending more time at the library and read a couple of short books to mix things up a bit.

Jacob’s Hands: A Fable

Jacob’s Hands is a novelized screenplay by Aldous Huxley and Christopher Isherwood that was published posthumously. It never was made into a movie, but it was produced as a radio drama in 1956.

As a story about a man who discovers he is a healer—and must determine how to ethically use his gift—this is a great concept with some thoughtful moments. Too much was given away in the prologue, though, which woefully detracted from the emotional punch of the last chapter. Having read a few books by Huxley including some nonfiction, I was also expecting some philosophy in this, and there really wasn’t any. Someone should still turn this into a movie and flesh out the ideas a bit more.

Farewell, My Orange

I picked up this debut novel by Iwaki Kei on a whim at the library because the blurb sounded so intriguing—a Japanese woman and a Nigerian woman cross paths in Australia. I was disappointed how pedestrian the book actually felt. Some traumatic events occur, yet I had a hard time connecting with them or with the characters, especially when those conflicts resolved without too much difficulty. The two protagonists were also giving a bit of Mary Sue… they hardly seemed like real women with complex personalities and flaws; they seemed more like stand-ins for the author’s messages about prejudice, language, and motherhood. The messages are fine and important, but presenting them in a heavy-handed way doesn’t make for great reading. (Perhaps this is a fault of the translation?) By the end of the book I was really annoyed, and overall it wasn’t worthwhile for me. I think if you’re looking for a short Japanese novel about a (neuro)minority experience, Convenience Store Woman, for all its flaws, is a much better read.

Check out Dolce Bellezza’s challenge for more Japanese literature reviews: