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Escalator
 
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Escalator (Paperback)

by Michael Gardiner (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
RRP: £8.99
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Customers buy this book with The Box Man (Vintage International) by Kobo Abe

Escalator + The Box Man (Vintage International)
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Product details

  • Paperback: 192 pages
  • Publisher: Polygon An Imprint of Birlinn Limited (30 Mar 2006)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 1904598625
  • ISBN-13: 978-1904598626
  • Product Dimensions: 21.2 x 14 x 1.6 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 688,756 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Product Description

Review
'Each story is like a perfectly crafted art song, no froth, no candy-pop, just clever, diamond-hard ejaculations of love, despair and kio.' Suhayl Saadi

Product Description
In the title story, Shinya is surprised to find himself on the career conveyer belt totally unaware of his destination. In 'Model', a young Japanese student blithely lives her life under 24-hour surveillance, in order to pay her way through one of Japan's 'prestigious' universities. Sparsely written and beautifully observed, these stories resist cliche and overstatement, and refuse to judge their subjects, presenting a compelling glimpse under the skin of an enigmatic country.

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Customer Reviews

6 Reviews
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Average Customer Review
5.0 out of 5 stars (6 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Michael Gardiner is a new voice to be heard by everyone!!, 8 May 2006
By Chloe Fields (Buffalo, NY) - See all my reviews
A real page turner. Escalator moves like a runaway train. The plot in each story is superb and keeps you wanting to read more. I can easily say it's the best collection of stories I have come across in a long time. The characters are great and you feel emotionally attached to them. Get this book today you won't regret it!!!
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Stories you want to hug, 26 April 2006
By Kiara (Glasgow, UK) - See all my reviews
Michael Gardiner's Escalator is a box full of love. I used to imagine Japan as an almost faceless society, with so many people moving in one direction. Gardiner dares to look at each individual who resists this facelessness by listening to their thoughts and putting them on his pages. The stories are set in Japan but it tells you how we who live in the modern society anywhere in the world are struggling for love, the love Gardiner gives plenty to his characters and through them to his readers. A must for anyone who has ever felt a bit lost or lonely in the everyday life.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Bittersweet without sweet but not bitter, 16 April 2006
By Carol (London, UK) - See all my reviews
I have quite a few Japanese colleagues, and have heard the expression "Escalator Society" and "Escalator Schools" from them, which gave me a frightening image; once you get on it, you cannot get off, and cannot control your destination. That title and the cover of the book with the image of the national flag gave me an impression which was rather negative than positive at first sight. Now, I am very glad that first impression didn't stop me from reading this collection, which is in fact filled with sympathy and love that we have sometimes difficulties expressing towards our others, even though we so much want to. To me, the book was all about relationships between individuals - between families, lovers, work colleagues, or even strangers, and how this thing which is probably most fundamental to our living is sometimes so hard to get to. I felt I wanted to reach out to the characters in the book and give them a big hug, but that was not an easy thing to do, not because the characters are encaged in the book but because we all are encaged in this world called society which moves like a neverending escalator. By the end of the book, however, the escalator I picture has turned into something more dreamy, something that may show a hint of a comfortable journey. Some may compare the book to the film "Lost in Translation", but the image I have after finishing the book is more like "Chungking Express", of course with that famous Hillside Escalator...
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Japan as an everyday environment as opposed to a holiday destination
My only experience of Japan is a stopover in Narita on my way home from 1 month's holidaying in Australia, and what I remember most vividly is how clean and organized Narita... Read more
Published on 15 April 2006 by Rolf van de Velde

5.0 out of 5 stars review of Escalator
This is an intriguing collection of short stories depicting a view of life in Japan. It is impossible to put down. Read more
Published on 13 April 2006 by Kate Downie

5.0 out of 5 stars Escalator To The Very Top
Escalator by Michael Gardiner is a joy. A good looking cover inspires trust which is amply rewarded by the subtle and satisfying stories within. Read more
Published on 6 April 2006 by Ian Docherty

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