The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories

This is a collection of quirky, offbeat stories that might come under the banner of magical realism – where the setting is very real but what happens there is not. Two stories were excellent – ‘Q & A’ made me shake with laughter, while the highly atmospheric ‘The Dogs’ gave me the shivers.

Some of the other stories (e.g. the titular ‘The Lonesome Body-Builder’, ‘The Women’, ‘The Straw Husband’) speak to the experience of women in a repressive, patriarchal society. But quite a few others (e.g. ‘Fitting Room’, ‘How to Burden the Girl’) felt outlandish and pointless. A very mixed bunch.

Already much heralded in her native japan, Yukiko Motoya gets a first-ever English translation and we finally get to see why she has already received numerous literary awards. These 11 stories in the collection are ambiguous, surreal, and sometimes downright disturbing. As the collection progresses the stories become increasingly fantastical and, as good literature should, they make you think, not just ‘what the heck did I just read?’ but also ‘what does it actually mean?’

Many of the stories focus on, and are narrated by, women. Many look at relationships and marriage and, by extension, examine the role of women in modern Japanese society. From a wife who decides to become a bodybuilder, to men challenged by their partners to a show more duel to liven up their relationship, to a woman out jogging with her husband who just happens to be made of straw… Each story looks at moments of shifts in a relationship, moments of release or freedom. The longest story in the collection, ‘An Exotic Marriage’, involves a couple who literally change shape as their relationship develops, until he spontaneously explodes and turns into a flower, which the wife then plants in a peaceful mountain setting (there is an equally strange sub-plot involving a neighbour and a cat). Other stories, however, have a much darker tone, with violence, death, and incest all making an appearance. Motoya certainly covers a lot of ground in quite a short collection!

Some stories work better than others, but all of them made me think. I’m still trying to figure out a few of the stories, but that’s no bad thing if a book resonates long after you put it down. The translation seems to be excellent, and there are certainly echoes of other great names in Japanese literature (Murakami being the one most people will have read) - but Motoya proves that she has her own unique voice and vision. Yes, definitely a book to recommend – one that will take you out of your comfort zone. I can’t wait to see what appears next from this author.

(With thanks to the publisher and Edelweiss for an ARC in return for an honest and unbiased review.) show less

The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories is a collection of eleven short stories by Yukiko Motoya that center around the idea of identity, of being oneself and how hard selfhood can be to define and maintain, particularly in relationships with others. The title story, “The Lonesome Bodybuilder” is perhaps one of the most conventional, a woman whose self-confidence has been eroded by her husband’s criticism takes up body-building and learns more about herself and her husband.

Perhaps the most hilarious story is “Fitting Room” where an over-accommodating clerk is determined to find the right outfit for a client who won’t come out of the fitting room. In “Typhoon” a young boy mocks people opening their umbrellas in the impossible show more winds until he learns it is because they can fly. “I Called You By Name” is hallucinogenic with uncertainty. Is there someone hiding behind the curtain or is she losing her grip?

“An Exotic Marriage” is disturbing and seems to capture so many of the themes in this book. A woman notices her husband appearance is changing, but then so is hers. A neighbor tells her of how a woman was changing to look like her husband until she put a rock between them. A close friend explains how to her marriage is like an ouroboros, each partner consuming the other.

“Paprika Jiro” and “How to Burden the Girl” are both fantastical stories with great battles and high body counts of cartoonish like evildoers, the latter though is a disturbing new examination of the Oedipal Complex. “The Women” and “Q & A” reconsiders the objectification of women, the later is hilarious. “The Dogs” is almost Lovecraftian weird, though the narrator is perhaps the most self-possessed. Is it because she is all alone?

“The Straw Husband” is another look at marriage. A woman marries a straw husband who when he is angry, musical instruments fly out his mouth depleting his life force. It’s really strange to try to explain, but like all the stories makes total sense while you’re in the midst of them.

I love the discipline and pure craft of a good short story. With few words, Motoya creates a new world in each story, one that has an internal logic even though it is a world never imagined before. This is magical realism at its best. The mundane becomes surreal and reveals who and what we are.

The stories in The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories are like nothing you will have read before. That’s what makes them so exiciting.

I received an e-galley of The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories from the publisher through Edelweiss.

The Lonesome Bodybuilder: Stories at Soft Skull Press
Yukiko Motoya on Wikipedia; official website is in Japanese

https://tonstantweaderreviews.wordpress.com/2018/12/15/9781593766788/ show less

This new translation was at times fun and unique. The Akutagawa Prize winning story "An Exotic Marriage," was a magical realist masterwork, but the other stories burned very dimly by comparison. The author writes in a style similar to Kelly Link, I thought, but with fewer fantasy elements.
There are a lot of literary gimmicks, some morbid jokes inserted haphazardly, and plenty of dark irony. I would not elevate the collection as a whole to the clean mastery of Yoko Ogawa but it has the scattered brilliance of a Joy Williams collection, with some ideas that really stretch the suspension of disbelief.
If Motoya has one thing on her side, it is the element of surprise. She's another contender coming out of Japan with a yearbook photo on the show more back cover, witty and intelligent and ruthless, like Ogawa and Banana, and Mieko and Hiromi Kawakami. These writers sprout up and laugh in the faces of the traditional old farts like Kenzaburo Oe. I recommend picking this one up and giving it a whirl. show less

It’s a very odd book. The was that the author combines these Japanese myths into day to day life is extremely unique and well written. It is a wonderful translation and an amazing peek into the world of the authors mind.

3.5 stars rounded up-- I thought the premises of the stories were really really interesting and creative. The execution was pretty good but I think there is a lot of room to grow, at the same time. I didn't like the dead dog. That made me sad.

While the titular story holds its charm, and subtle social analysis and indulgence of society, I felt that the rest of the collection fell short. This is a shame, but the collection was still worth reading.

2 stars.