[DeepL Translation - needs review] I was born in the dirt. There were no parents. There was only violence. The radio was broadcasting information about the war. This is an Akutagawa Prize-winning novel by an astonishing 27-year-old newcomer, which was highly praised as a profound, fresh, and authentic piece of literature.
The protagonist is a 27-year-old young man. He makes his living as a cab driver. He grew up in an institution where children were abandoned by their parents, and a distant ...
Gruesome book with a silver lining
This book contains the titular story 土の中の子供 as well as a short story.
土の中の子供
What a powerful story! But! Please be aware that this one is not for the faint of heart; the trigger warnings apply with all their strength, and please make sure you've noticed them if you are sensitive wrt certain triggers. (Further triggers: Alcoholism, sex, stillbirth.)
In this story, we encounter a young man who tries to go to the extremes regarding various kinds of bodily and mental sensations. We follow him through a short stretch of his life, while gradually learning about his incredibly cruel childhood, which makes his behavior much more relatable. We also get a glimpse of how his life might unfold into the future.
Personal opinion and interpretation: I have no issues with the violent and horrifying parts of the book, but of course I wondered from the start what our protag was up to with his behavior. Him confirming that he is neither masochistic nor suicidal helped a lot, to be honest. I think he is mainly trying to "feel himself", which is understandable given he basically shut himself off from his bodily sensations during his childhood torture. Also, interesting side aspects like his alcoholic girlfriend and his hallucinations while being at the children's home director's place made the story very realistic as well as very unsteady, in a way. I thought that these two broken characters finding and supporting each other even through such hard times gave hope for a somewhat brighter future for the two of them. Also, him not wanting to see his father was very consequent, even though he might have received some money from him, perhaps. So it felt to me that he became very strong and self-confident even after his horrible experiences. This gave the book a very bright and hopeful ending, I thought.
蜘蛛の声
A short story that raises issues such as "What is reality?" "What is memory?" "What is truth?". Very interesting, and left me with a lot of questions.