Specs
Reviews
(3.80/5)A quiet story with a louder message
We follow the daily life of 律（りつ）who has just started her fifth year of elementary school. She's a shy and reserved girl who is keenly aware of the social hierarchy and where she sits in it. If she can just find a friend group of like-minded quiet girls, she can get through the year without much fuss.
But then she meets another girl in class who pique's her curiosity, 瀬里奈（せりな）. 瀬里奈 is at the rock-bottom of the social food chain and is seemingly unaware of that and disinterested in getting along with anyone. How is she is like that? How can she be so naive? Why is she so odd?
This is a tale that should be relatable to many of us who weren't always "popular" at school. Through 律's eyes we deconstruct the social systems that suffocate us and, perhaps, learn to be free of them and accept ourselves for who we are.
For the most part, this book is pretty slow-paced so should be avoided if you're seeking action. And although the message of the story is an important one, it's nothing ground-breaking. So for that, I'm giving it 3 stars.
My rating definitions:
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ (5 stars) - Loved
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐ (4 stars) - Really liked
- ⭐⭐⭐ (3 stars) - Liked
- ⭐⭐ (2 stars) - Meh
- ⭐ (1 star) - Disliked
A story of friendship and accepting yourself
I think this might be my favorite Murata to date, even surpassing コンビニ人間 which was my first and fave.
Murata's themes of not naturally fitting into the societal mold and of trying to fit in, of social outcasts, of finding release in a workplace and it's rules, of masks and molds and the true self, are all present as well.
While always prevalent, I did not find them pretentious at all. 律 was, while not always a character I could understand, always one I could sympathize with. Trough her eyes I also grew to understand (and sympathize) with 世理奈, I think at times more so than 律 herself.
In the end, for me this was a story about friendship and coming into and being yourself. I hugely enjoyed it. The story is paced very well and Murata managed to fit in her themes much more naturally than some of her other books imo.
The language used is as usual very accessible and probably a similar difficulty as コンビニ人間.
A synopsis: (premise, not really spoilers as such) Starting in 5th grade elementary school, we follow 律's first person POV as she tries to fit into a new class. She soon (and quite strategically) finds her place in a lower hierarchy group.
At the bottom of the class hierarchy and an outcast, 世理奈 makes no effort to fit in and stands out with emotional outbursts and a disregard for the people and situation she is in.
(Here start spoilers) Throughout that year, the two girls come together in an interesting friendship dynamic. A lot happens, 律 almost unintentionally helps 世理奈 out of her shell (into a different one) and into a high group in the hierarchy.
(Spoiler intensifies) Nothing is really resolved and they drift apart; cue time shift to 8 years later. 律 is methodically and meticulously carving out her place as a middling, unassuming and inoffensive member of society; at the same time, she seems to have found her place at her バイト at a family restaurant. When she meets 世理奈 again for the first time after grade school, they quickly reconnect, but their dynamic has changed a lot. 世理奈 and 律 begin to influence each other and change again.