Books Read 2025

[hitbyambulance]

Banana Yoshimoto - Kitchen : i really enjoy her writing - it's not for everyone, but her minimal style and turn of phrases (in translation) is just really comforting to read*. the main novella is from 1988 and the short story is from 1986 - these were her first two published pieces and it is kind of now a nostalgic look at a slice of then-contemporary 1980s Japan. it's fascinating to see the sympathetic-but-weirdly-muddled depiction of one of the novella's main characters who is transsexual? transgender? (it's not made exactly clear, not sure if the author herself knew) from a Japanese woman's 1980's POV.


* in a way, it's also the same reason i really enjoy Kazuo Ishiguro's writing - although he is an author on a whole 'nother level - and even from Haruki Murakami (in translation), to an extent. also, tho Yoshimoto hits some heavy topics, Ishiguro tends towards the deeply disturbing

Jim Carroll - The Basketball Diaries : it was recommended on some Goodreads review of Jack London's _John Barleycorn: Alcoholic Memoirs_ to read this book right after as a back-to-back 'the kids aren't alright' set. well, i just happened to have this one on my shelf, so i did - i was not prepared at all for how outré this was going to be. never knew the guy was a heroin addict, 'hustler' and knife-point robber at age 14, and considering also the exploits from his diaries at the time (the mid 1960s) are only the ones he actually decided to publish and share... raw and brutal. (surprised he lived as long as he did, but he did succumb eventually to Hep C.)

[Jaymann]

Better than succumbing to hepcat.