Terminal Boredom

Contrary to the title, I found this to be a rather fun read. It can be finished in one or two sittings.

Speculative fiction short stories by a mid-20th century feminist Japanese performance artist and writer…what’s not to like? Well, the writing, that’s what. I found myself consistently interested in the ideas but bored by the actual writing. Characters were hollow vehicles for ideas and plot and I just could not get into it.

This collection of stories explores some interesting territory around mental illness and sense of self, but ultimately the standoffish tone of almost all the narration grated on me. For any one story I think it was a reasonably effective device, but across the whole book it really limited my emotional engagement.

I see this as a very vivid portrait of Suzuki's mindset at the time she wrote it. The stories read as a tragedy, especially when you know the ending of the author's personal story, but there was nothing I found compelling. The pedestrian stories make blatant and unsuccessful attempts to sound interesting while ultimately going nowhere. It felt as if the author tried to include things that she knew make critics and scholars swoon. Unfortunately, the heavy-handedness with which they were forced into the narrative makes them fall flat, and they are ultimately lacking the very things she was trying to achieve.

Wat een vondst zijn deze sciencefiction verhalen van de Japanse Izumi Suzuki. Geschreven in de jaren ‘70 en ‘80 verschijnen ze nu eindelijk in vertaling. De mysterieuze en langzaam onthulde verhalen gaan veelal over dolende personages (meesten vrouwelijk) en hun angsten, vervreemding, onzekerheid en de hopeloze zoektocht naar een uitweg. Onsentimenteel verteld maar altijd met een psychologisch realisme dat weet te raken.

A solid consistent collection of muted set pieces on losing or ceding control of your mind or your volition, with characters alternately bored or terrified at the prospect.

Kudos to Verso for translating them.