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Title: Masks by Fumiko Enchi ISBN: 0-394-72218-3 Publisher: Vintage Books USA Pub. Date: 01 November, 1983 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $11.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.89 (9 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A Woman's play things
Comment: This was a pretty interesting book. I read _The Waiting Years_ three years ago and had always intended to read more of Enchi's novels, for some reason or another it took me over three years to read the next one.
_Masks_ is a very interesting, but also very strange little book. The book revolves around two men, Tsuneo Ibuki and Toyoki Mikame, who are both highly educated and intelligent men, but all of their intelligence and education is thrown out the window when it comes to the widow, Yasuko Tagano.
Tagano is a very pretty young woman who decided to remain with her mother and law instead of returning to her family after her husband's death in an avalanche. She shows interest in both me, but is unwilling to commit to either. The men believe that she is being controlled by her mother-in-law, Mieko. That remains to be seen. Very good book, and should be an interest to those who enjoy reading _The Tale of Genji_
Rating: 5
Summary: A Tantalizing Read
Comment: I first studied this writer in college (with her book, The Waiting Years). I expected Masks to be similar, but it was extremely different. It is more modern and twisted. The story revolves around two women, one older and one younger (the younger is the widowed wife of the older woman's son). However, their relationship is not straight-forward; they have a psychic, almost sexual, connection. They use this connection to play with the hearts of the men around them. I found the descriptions in this book particularly striking; there is a party scene with the release of fireflies that I can still very clearly visualize. It was extremely enjoyable to delve into the dark depths of the two women. Just like in the story, the men are inconsequential. This is a great read for those who prefer things a bit uneasy and weird.
Rating: 5
Summary: What's real--what's hidden--what's love & who's in control
Comment: This book ought to be turned into a movie. Merchant Ivory could do it --& so could Hollywood...anyway--this is a most readable story--deep in every respect. Who are these women: The mother in law--the daughter in law--the twin--the young wife--the maids? Who hatched the scheme? Who really wants to be with whom? How do you replace a dead son--husband--brother? Where do dreams and reality intersect? The characters and we are investigating the spirit world--communication beyond the grave and outside language. And the masks-the perfect metaphor-serene, quite, beautiful, culturally pure-who wears them and why--are they just a part of the ancient culture--like the women's outward appearance--something that adheres to formal requirements--or is something much more complex behind the masks--like the results of the women's activities?
There is plenty to ask--and the book doesn't necessarily TELL YOU the answers--you are left to think about many, many questions. Some people have written that this book is about angry women. I think that is an interesting idea--but I don't see anger I just see women working within the confines of the culture they live in to get what they want. Is that anger or is that how power is actually wielded in the everyday world of men & women's relations. I think the later--but you need to read the book to answer that question for your self. This book is well worth the time to read. The story alone is compelling--the questions it raises will stay with you.
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Title: The Waiting Years by Fumiko Enchi, John Bester ISBN: 477002889X Publisher: Kodansha International (JPN) Pub. Date: 01 November, 2002 List Price(USD): $17.00 |
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Title: Kitchen by Banana Yoshimoto ISBN: 0671880187 Publisher: Washington Square Press Pub. Date: 01 March, 1994 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: A Personal Matter by Kenzaburo Oë, John Nathan ISBN: 0802150616 Publisher: Grove Press Pub. Date: 01 June, 1982 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Snow Country by Yasunari Kawabata, Edward G. Seidensticker, Edward Seidensticker ISBN: 0679761047 Publisher: Vintage Books USA Pub. Date: 01 January, 1996 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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Title: Black Rain (Japan's Modern Writers S.) by Masuji Ibuse, John Bester ISBN: 087011364X Publisher: Kodansha America Pub. Date: 01 July, 1994 List Price(USD): $12.00 |
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