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Title: Botchan by Natsume Soseki, Alan Turney ISBN: 0-87011-367-4 Publisher: Kodansha America Pub. Date: 01 September, 1992 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $10.00 |
Average Customer Rating: 4 (12 reviews)
Rating: 4
Summary: Fun Read
Comment: This was the first Natsume Soseki novel I read and I though that it was quite an entertaining read. The Hero of the story is a Tokyoite named Botchan. Not one to really care about the feelings of others, Botchan displays his feelings openly and is ready for a fight all the time. After graduating the scholl of physics Botchan heads to one of Japan's southern islands to teach mathematics. He dislikes the place immediately and compares it with his home Tokyo through out the book. He nicknames all of his fellow teachers and superiors: names such as Redshirt, the Clown, and The Badger. Well to put a long story short Botchan runs into many difficulties with his fellow teachers and students, and ends up in many comic situations. There is a bit of Racism on page 138, but one must take it in context of the book, and understand that this book was written in the year 1906. The only reason that this book did not receive 5 stars because there really is no plot, just good fun.
Rating: 4
Summary: Deceptively simple
Comment: Botchan is the third book I've read of Soseki's, and it was fun to read about the adventures and mishaps (mostly mishaps) that Botchan encounters in this tale. Botchan is a fun, quick read that shows off Soseki's sense of humor and wit.
This having been said, it seems prudent to remember that Soseki himself said that Botchan should not be considered a Japanese "ideal." His naivete and straight-forwardness are no match for the calculated actions that get him and others ousted from the school. With the final, humorous pummeling of Red-shirt and Clown, Soseki seems to be warning the reader that however heroic Botchan might be, his victories are hollow ones. After all, Red-shirt might be left with a black eye, but he has gotten rid of his enemies and he is presumably left also with "Madonna" and a higher salary (the salaries of Botchan, Porcupine, and Green Squash have to go somewhere, as hinted by Red-shirt midway through the book). So in the end, the bad guy gets the woman and the money and the good guy gets the slow boat home. Not exactly the ideal situation for a hero.
The good news is that Botchan doesn't seem to realize that he's won the battle but lost the war. Unlike other Soseki characters that have to undergo hardship in order to gain wisdom (Sensei in Kokoro comes to mind), it is hard to see Botchan really getting anything out of his experience in Shikoku. Of course though, ignorance is bliss.
If Botchan is your first experience with Soseki, give "Kokoro" a try ... it is a much more serious book, but many of the same themes appear. If you've read some of Soseki's later work but not Botchan, definitely take the time to read it. Having experienced the themes of suffering and guilt that are so prevalent in his later works, you'll probably be able to enjoy Botchan's light humor even more.
Either way, Botchan is a fun read, and a different, informal facet of Soseki that the reader does not normally get to see.
Rating: 4
Summary: Classic
Comment: This is a very simple and quick read. Nothing world shattering inside, but as it`s assigned the status of most popular book in Japan, it`s a must for anyone with the slightest interest in things Japanese. Although short, the characters are well-developed. The protagonist is neither hero, nor anti-hero, rather human, and very likeable because of this. Herein probably lies the key to its popularity. The only shame is the ending, which I liken to a 1980`s Honda City. That was car that had a really abrupt rear hatch and looked as if the company had run out of money after designing a perfectly acceptable front and middle part. Same goes for this book. It just ends, and the final threads are tied in one-line sentences. Not the greatest analogy in the world, but it gives you the general idea. Botchan, the hatchback of the literary world. Made for the whole family, easy to drive, not too meaty, but just drops off at the back.
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Title: I Am a Cat by Soseki Natsume, Aiko Ito, Graeme Wilson ISBN: 080483265X Publisher: Tuttle Publishing Pub. Date: 01 March, 2002 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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Title: Kokoro by Natsume Soseki ISBN: 0895267152 Publisher: Regnery Publishing Pub. Date: 01 May, 1996 List Price(USD): $14.95 |
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Title: Inside My Glass Doors by Soseki Natsume, Sammy I. Tsunematsu, Marvin Marcus ISBN: 0804833125 Publisher: Tuttle Publishing Pub. Date: 01 August, 2002 List Price(USD): $12.95 |
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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: The Three-Cornered World by Soseki Natsume, Natsume Soseki, Alan Turney ISBN: 0720611563 Publisher: Peter Owen Publishers Pub. Date: 01 April, 2003 List Price(USD): $19.95 |
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