Book review: GROTESQUE

First time when I met with Asian, especially Japanese literature was on my first year of college. In the library was one featured themed shelf, and one month theme was - Japanese literature. I reached for Murakami's "Norwegian wood" (how predictable), and until last year, I haven't actually been in contact with Japan in the form of literature. Until I grabbed this book from my boyfriend's shelf. This book comes from the pen of Natsuo Kirino, famous and very appreciated female figure of Japanese literature. Her novel "Out" is very honorable Worldwide, got great succes that even it was adapted on the big screens. "Grotesque" is her second crime novel +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ SYNOPSYS:  Tokyo prostitutes Yuriko and Kazue have been brutally murdered, their deaths leaving a wake of unanswered questions about who they were, who their murderer is, and how their lives came to this end. As their stories unfurl in an ingeniously layered narrative, coolly mediated by Yuriko’s older sister, we are taken back to their time in a prestigious girls’ high school—where a strict social hierarchy decided their fates — and follow them through the years as they struggle against rigid societal conventions.

Shedding light on the most hidden precincts of Japanese society today, Grotesque is both a psychological investigation into the female psyche and a work of noir fiction that confirms Natsuo Kirino’s electrifying gifts. (via Goodreads)

Cover attracted me immediately, like a clickbait (readbait, lol). The book starts in late 1980.s', when main character, half Swiss half Japanese, whose name we actually don't Know, describes her life in her dysfunctional family in 1970.'s modern Japan. Big focus is on relationship with her sister Yuriko Hirata, who was recently murdered, only few days before another prostitute in Tokyo.  Yuriko was everything that narrator wasn't: extraordinary beautiful, had no need to put any effort in anything, everything she ever achieved she achieved with her beauty, irresponsible, living like there's no tomorrow. And they never get along.

By the time the narrator starts to meet us with her college life, we meet with another character Kazue. Kazue was murdered few days after Yuriko. Following the plot wich leads to link between Yuriko and her, Kazue's point of view starts to be holder of the story in an almost equal way. And the whole journey reveals the darkest parts of the underworld where Kazue and Yuriko decided to belong.

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At the first, synopsis on the back of the book may seem like an invitiation to crime services investigation. Makes you expect that the link between the main female characters has many layers that has to be revealed. Instead, you gain whole insight in their connection. Narrator and Kazue were an aquaintances, while Kazue and Yuriko whey were nothing but school mates, who never even said "Hi!" to each other. But they both chosen the life path of going to criminal activities, such as prostitution, and ended up bitten by the same machinery behind it. They only shared point on the street for clients and later the murderers.

I found part of their life in girls college very important. In this part the reader gets concept of school system in Japan, which is "famous" for being very strict. So many things are on the list of demands for women who wants to be succesfull, and by their narrations we get the picture how hard it is for vulnerable female psyche. Be Popular! Be beautiful! Be the best dressed! Have the best grades! 

Then comes the part where narrator and Kazue were portrayed as grown up women, who are facing everything trivial daily challenges in corporative world ruled by strict patriarchy concepts. The consequences of they position on the hierarchy during the college years, which was very low, comes to it's fully clear picture.

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Characteriaztion:

Whole story about the main narrator (whose surname is Hirata), her sister Yuriko and Kazue Sato seems a lot like an allegory of the attitude towards position of women in modern day society of Japan.

Yuriko embodies every ideals which every woman had to tend to. She is portrayed somehowe shallow because of her physical beauty, that even reader starts to feel a little tingle of envy. Her life is split in life in Japan vs. life in Switzerland. Thanks to her physical appearence, she doesn't have to work much to get anything in life, on the both sides of the globe. People are just giving everything to her, in return for just a little bit of her attention. But she knows how to use to get what she wants. And knows how to.

Kazue was portrayed as the biggest victim of  modern society of all of them. All of her insecurities are floating on the surface, while she is putting all of her effort and energy to hide it. Her outlook on the world is naive, no matter how conscious about it's cruel side she is. 

The narrator seems like some flegmatic figure, living in her own world. Following the rules, but doesn't getting involved in any excitements and cheap thrills. At one point I got a feeling that she doesn't even care about her parents. Bu then I took the fact that family is not No.1. in Japanese society, so maybe it's normal behaviour, no matter how her family situation was anything but bright. She looks like passive observer of the world around her, the type of people who just shrug and move on.

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This was my first meeting with Natsuo Kirino's work. I was sticked to the book from first page to the last one, although my original expecation was that it was classical crime novel. I am glad that it turned that it wasn't. Her attitude is thet she hopes that her books will help her readers to find comfort in them, extracting the good emotions out. Well, "Grotesque" made me feel anything but comfort.

There were a lot of anxious and tough emotional episodes during my reading time. But, who said that only good emotions should get out.  The emotions this book produced in me were very intense, and some of them I still feel today, for instance, when I'm under high pressure, I still remember some parts of this book.

I'm glad that I got a little bit of picture of Japan whic is far away from cherry blossoms and anime, but brutally realistic. That's why no matter what, I'm having her novel "Out" high on the >to read< list. And will do my best to read more masterpieces of Japanese literature. 

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