Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Stories beneath the surface, 26 April 2006
Each of the stories in this potent collection in some way reveals the source of Mishima's white ants that mark the process of decay, of evolution. Howell, with a relentlessness akin to the various obsessions of his characters, is compelled to heighten for us the reality of moments of decision, dread, sexual extreme, and ultimately of the dark places of our dreams which -- however
unwilling we are to admit it -- unite us all.
With a simultaneous intimacy and distanced objectivity Howell's
tales of modern Japan explore the expressionist experience of the human condition. Whether prepared for it or not, whether able or not to change direction, the charcters [almost all men] in these stories become dangerously aware that the socially acceptable choices they've made -- primarily involving lives of undemanding occupation funding unremarkable domesticity -- have forced their more creative, risky, obscene thoughts deeper and deeper into the realm of the white ants.
It would be too easy to dismiss these men as all going through male menopause with their fixations on young female flesh, on the objectification of sex and relationships, on the fetishistic
elevation of objects and dream image. Masks, dolls, school
uniforms, fears of flying, even of simple human interaction, all
populate the inner life to which Howell imparts an almost liquid
quality of flow and stasis, reminding us of Heraclitus's assertion
that we "cannot step into the same river twice."
It's not possible, nor pehaps proper, to reach easy conclusions
about the reality of action in these stories. Much more important
are the vivid and inescapable realities of thought and imagination.
If Howell's stories say anything it is that we suppress and repress these wriggling, niggling beasts inside at our peril. Lives of quiet desperation explode under the weight; they will destroy us.
This is no easy read, but Howell's courage is matched by a
wonderful facility with language. An exhilarating collection.
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5.0 out of 5 stars
Stories of Modern Japan, 24 May 2004
Brian Howell has an exceptional and disturbing viewpoint of the Japanese. His stories don't just slide under the skin of his characters, they slide under the skin of the reader too.From the strange experience of the salaryman with the disappearing family in 'Not Really Human' through to a masterly depiction of a young girl's experience Cocoon, Howell's shows us a bleak but rather beautiful Japan, where little has changed since Mishima fell in love with death. Architectural themes permeate the stories, bringing a strange iconography of space and design that makes the perversities and sorrows of Howell's characters emblematic. A thoroughly good read, these tales will stay with you long after you close the book. If you enjoy complex and demanding short stories, if you love Yukio Mishima or if you have ever thought about living in Japan, this collection with resonate with you.
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