ブラックボックス

What does it mean to have your life together?

Summary:

Black box follows Sakuma who is working as a bicycle messenger riding through the streets of Tokyo in the midst of the pandemic. Sakuma can’t hold down one job for long due to his tendency to succumb to outbursts of aggression and as a result, floats between irregular employment. As he rides through the streets of Tokyo both thinking and trying not to think about his life, the reader gets insight into his struggle to “get it together” and live as an adult. Sakuma can’t seem to understand what concrete steps he should take in order to live that way and finds himself unable to focus, his eyes glazing over whenever confronted with adult tasks or topics like insurance, job benefits, and paying taxes. He feels like there is something separating him from the world of working people, who disappear into offices where it is unknown what exactly goes on inside. Even when he visits offices on his bicycle messenger job, he feels a sense of alienation and irritation that he can’t be a part of that world. However, instead of confronting these feelings and his inability to “get it together” head-on, he distracts himself with work, social media, Netflix, and video games until one day he finds himself in a situation where he can no longer look away from who he is.

Japanese level: N1+

This book features both N1 level grammar, N1+ level and specialized vocabulary. The prose leans towards the verbose side as well. You can expect to need to read this one closely to follow along.

Specialized vocabulary you’ll encounter:

Vocabulary about bicycles & bicycle parts, and vocabulary related to the Japanese justice system.

You may be interested in this book if:

You want to read a very current story that examines social issues such as irregular employment and the wealth gap in Japan

You want to read a story taking place during the pandemic

You enjoy stories with heavy characterization and like exploring the psyche of others

My review of the book:

★★★★☆

I found this to be a difficult read but a very enjoyable one. Throughout the novel, there is a great sense of motion as we bounce back and forth between the present and past memories and weave in and out of traffic together with Sakuma on his bicycle. This made for an entertaining read that propelled me through, despite the dense prose.

I am similar in age to the main character and even though we have little in common, I couldn’t help but relate deeply to some of the passages about the difficulty of being grown-up and not knowing what to do, especially in the current times. We all know somebody like Sakuma and I suspect many readers will find a bit of themselves in him as well. Even though he isn’t necessarily society’s greatest member you still want to cheer him on as the reader and follow him to the conclusion. I loved the metaphors that Bunji Sunakawa set up in this book such as the black box or bicycles and how he related that to the general 「生きづさ」that many young people are feeling at the moment.

I also enjoyed the references to COVID-19 peppered throughout the novel and the examination of who in society it affected more or less. The choice to make the main character a bicycle messenger, a job which has seen a boom since the beginning of the pandemic with more people needing goods delivered, was also a very meaningful one. These elements made the novel feel very fresh and like it takes place in the same world that I live in.

Though 「ブラックボックス」has an overall dark tone, I didn’t feel bad after reading the conclusion at all. On the contrary, the last few pages of this novel left me with a soft, warm feeling and I suspect I will be left reflecting on it for a while. I look forward to rereading this 10 years or so from now when I’m a little older and the world has moved on a bit.