The Woman in the Dunes

Exceptionally bleak capital realism. It makes a lot of sense reading about Kobo Abé's love of Kafka, as both are similarly preoccupied with the hopelessness of living under capitalism, how it alienates us from people who ought to be allies, and the seeming inexscapability of it's control. They also both utterly fail to perceive women as human beings, describing them as anywhere between silly, beautiful nothings to stupid animals.

I don't know enough about Japanese literature to fully lump this in with the dry, thematically interesting but socially upsetting western canon, but if you dislike that mode of writing this isn't going to change that. It might just be my translation, but this is written (somewhat appropriately) with the flare of an exhausted biologist recording the movement of moss.

I imagine I'd have a lot more fun discussing this in a class than actually reading it. If anyone wants to commiserate about it's highs and lows (lol, cause he's in a hole) let me know.