Strangers (original 1987; edition 2006)

I don't know how much of the problem was the translation, but this book left me lukewarm: neither the plot nor the characters felt strong, and as another reviewer mentioned, there were some odd turns of phrase. The use of out-of-date slang made me wonder if the wording was true to the author's intention. I thought the twist at the end was predictable. However, I did finish the book (which says something) and I can tell that I'll be puzzling over the meanings for days to come. ( )

I suddenly had this feeling that I did not want to meet the man's wife. To meet her would be to instantly obliterate the glorious time I was having because of the man's uncanny likeness to my father; I would have to come crashing back to reality. No, wait. That wasn't it. Or at least that wasn't all. A part of me was actually entertaining a secret hope, experiencing a secret terror. It couldn't be, could it? Surely it couldn't be.

A ghost story set in present-day Tokyo. Middle-aged television scriptwriter Harada has become dislocated from his friends and family since leaving his wife and is living a solitary existence in the apartment he used to use as an office. But things take a strange turn when he takes a trip to the area he grew up in and meets a man who looks exactly like his father. But Harada was 12 when his father died and this man is younger than Harada is now, so is he a ghost or could the resemblance just be coincidental? ( )

This books starts with a Japanese man named Harada in his third week of new bachelorhood after divorcing his wife. Harada writes screenplays for television. The tale initially seems to be about a man experiencing mid-life angst with divorce, work problems, and loneliness. But it veers sharply into the unreal when he encounters a man who looks like his deceased father, is invited to his home and finds his deceased mother there. This ghost story is sad and wistful. Even though the ghostly parents are sapping his life with each visit, there is such a paucity of affection in Harada's life that he continues to visit them for the joy of their gentle and unconditional love.

Harada is not a strong character, he has a grey life but seems unable to find the spark and energy that would make it more enjoyable. A lady friend that he dated while he was married has drifted away. He gave his home and much of his wealth to his ex-wife. He starts a relationship with a young woman, the only other resident in the office building where he lives, but it seems perfunctory. Even when he is angry or upset there is not much outward emotion.

I enjoyed the book, it is a fast read. At 201 pages I was able to finish it in a few hours. I had the feeling that it is poorly translated as evidenced by some awkward dialogue and odd turns of phrase. ( )

This is a beautiful little ghost story but not at all the scary kind, a more gentle approach with some dark undercurrents. It does lack a certain something though, the story is a bit too gentle, you don't really fear with the character or care very much about him. It is pleasant enough, a light read for a summer day. ( )

A Japanese Ghost Story that will Haunt you...

One of the things I love about the Japanese Literature I've discovered this year is its ability to weave the present day with the spirits of the past so matter of fact. Spirits are accepted as existing. Strangers by Taichi Yamada is such a story. It's a ghost story, but more than that. There is an underlying layer that makes this a much more complex story, one that will have you questioning your own heart...

Imagine meeting your parents when they are a young married couple... The exact age they were the last time you saw them... That is what happens to our main character, Harada, who is 47, recently divorced and pretty jaded. His parents were killed in an automobile accident when he was 12, and he was raised by his grandfather. One night he is compelled to visit the part of Tokyo where he grew up. He visits a theatre there, where he meets a man that looks exactly like his long-dead father... He can't believe his eyes, but he is compelled and soon obsessed to find out who this man is... How could you not be curious? And then as Harada is invited to the man's home and meets his wife, who just so happens to look just like his dead mother, how can you not be compelled to stay... even if you know none of this can be real. Or is real?

Taichi Tamada's prose is sparse but moving. He slowly builds the story around Harada, painting the story with a lost love & his divorce, new love, a demanding job, a son who has distanced himself from his father Harada after his parents divorce, and a strange building where Harada lives now. But it also is a story about the love one has for ones parents. As Harada deals with life as we all know it, there is this other surreal world that is wrapping itself around him, pulling him away from everything else. But how can Harada resist the love of his parents that he was cheated from as a small boy... The story is simply wonderful, with unexpected twists and turns that bring the story to a wonderful ending. It will haunt you after the last page...

I read this book is part of my Japanese Literature Challenge, which ends at the end of this month. I really enjoyed this book! What looked to be a simple story was not, and because of that it kept me turning the pages. Not to mention that Taichi Yamada writes well. It's a great introduction to Japanese Literature if you haven't read any yet, and at only 203 pages it's a reasonable time investment! ( )