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命売ります [Inochi Urimasu]
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Start your review of 命売ります [Inochi Urimasu]
Propulsive romp from Mishima, a major departure from anything I've seen by him. This is an intentionally campy, pulpy novel about a man who decides to sell his own life. A sequence of linked vignettes unspools - there are vampires, spies, rants about carrots, and a fairly ludicrous number of sex scenes. The book has low stakes, so Mishima's occasional turns toward the philosophical don't land, but this is a fun satire, and an interesting complication in his oeuvre.
Was Mishima embarrassed by this decidedly quirky, goofy little book? Worlds away from his other fiction, this posthumous novel reads like a mystery thriller, with a light-hearted tone, dark themes, and represents a gray-area exploration of the human psyche. Is the main character dissatisfied, or simply mad? Are the oddballs he gets entangled with justified, selfish, or reprehensible?
I am no expert in Mishima's work, but I have read enough of it to notice a preoccupation with death, particularly ...more
I am no expert in Mishima's work, but I have read enough of it to notice a preoccupation with death, particularly ...more
I think I read everything that is translated into English by Yukio Mishima. Recently three more works came out, which means the Mishima estate is allowing more translations of his excellent writing. "Life for Sale" is very much a pulp-style story. It reminds me in of parts of the books by Edogawa Rampo. Not in its violence, but its pulp-style of prose writing. And this is very much a page-turner, with some absurdity attached to the narrative. Mishima wrote this book in 1968, almost exactly two
...more
Failed suicide?
Cockroaches?
Gangsters?
Vampires?
Syphilis?
Spies?
Secret organizations?
LSD?
I'm sold.
Cockroaches?
Gangsters?
Vampires?
Syphilis?
Spies?
Secret organizations?
LSD?
I'm sold.
He failed at commiting suicide and decides that life is not worth living and puts his life up for sale. Strangest things happen and for a while he looks like the coolest person alive - careless and free. but we find out that he is just another human. Really entertaining and possibly quite deep and meaningful particularly considering how Mishima died himself.
Mr. Toads wild ride aint got nuthin on this! Mishima has a way of making the bizarre seem ordinary, common place, expected and darkly funny. The tone of this reminds me of Kafka, Shirley Jackson and of PKD in that Surely I must be peeking into the mind of a mad genius way.
I quite enjoyed this delightful romp of existential, albeit macabre, erotica as our snotty protagonist struggling with ennui slouches with equanimity through the surreality his life has devolved into.
I could not help but note ...more
I quite enjoyed this delightful romp of existential, albeit macabre, erotica as our snotty protagonist struggling with ennui slouches with equanimity through the surreality his life has devolved into.
I could not help but note ...more
Remember when I said I wanted to read more Mishima? Well I did and then this happened - I came across this surreal story about a young man who wants to sell his life after a failed suicide attempt. At parts comical, bizarre, in the style of later Murakami (I see where he would have got his inspiration) this was a holiday novel that you read and forget in an instant. Enjoyable while it lasted.
grew on me quite a bit by the end of it- it's a little more pulpy than i initially thought but i really warmed up to the humor of it. a lot of funny characters and a memorable sad sack of a protagonist
Amazing. Absolutely loved this. The plot and writing style were both right up my alley. A healthy dose of magical realism and some funky storytelling. It's tough to leave a review here without giving any of the plot away.
Hanio is one of my favorite literary characters now. The story of Mishima is just intoxicating and overwhelmingly sad at the same time. What a loss to the literary world.
I tried to space out the reading of this so I could enjoy it more. This is a book I will read again and ...more
Hanio is one of my favorite literary characters now. The story of Mishima is just intoxicating and overwhelmingly sad at the same time. What a loss to the literary world.
I tried to space out the reading of this so I could enjoy it more. This is a book I will read again and ...more
3.5/5
I gave up reading Japanese authors in high-school when their general writing style which focused more on the meaninglessness of life as a metaphor of suffering didn't really hold any appeal to me and often left me very angry or frustrated (I am looking at you, Kobo Abe!).
However, since I started taking Japanese classes and this author being recommended by both friends and people on social media I respect, I decided to try again and give Yukio Mishima a chance.
The synopsis seemed very very ...more
I gave up reading Japanese authors in high-school when their general writing style which focused more on the meaninglessness of life as a metaphor of suffering didn't really hold any appeal to me and often left me very angry or frustrated (I am looking at you, Kobo Abe!).
However, since I started taking Japanese classes and this author being recommended by both friends and people on social media I respect, I decided to try again and give Yukio Mishima a chance.
The synopsis seemed very very ...more
Jan 25, 2020
Veronika K
rated it
it was amazing
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
favourites,
book-club-reads
I thought that this book was absolutely beautiful. Swaying back & forth between 4 & 5 out of 5 stars, I finally settled for the highest grade. It's an extremely short & easy read, but nevertheless executed perfectly by the author. I loved the way it was structured with short chapters that made you want to read on & on. Besides that, you were instantly drawn into the story, wanting to finish it as fast as possible to know which ending was attributed to it.
It reminded me a bit of ...more
It reminded me a bit of ...more
This was a 4 star read... until the last 10 pages.
This story could have been interesting if the female characters weren't written as either ugly and in love with the lame main character, a sex object, or a murderous psycho.
I loved this. It reminded me of Fran Ross' Oreo. A postmodern odyssey tale that's half part noir and half part existentialist farce.
Reads like a weird dream, a quality often found in Japanese literature. As a result such things as vampires and secret organizationsfind easy purchase in this story. It also allowed me to accept the many affairs our protagonist has over the course of this book and the lack of depth to some characters.
Some circumstances in the book lead to some interesting questions and developments and the open ending leaves the reader in delightful uncertainty.
Enjoyed this read though it stayed mostly on the ...more
Some circumstances in the book lead to some interesting questions and developments and the open ending leaves the reader in delightful uncertainty.
Enjoyed this read though it stayed mostly on the ...more
2.5 Stars
I picked this up on a whim, only having read the back and looked at the cover (I may have a bad tendency to judge by covers). The set up fascinated me, a man fails to kill himself so he puts his life up for sale, letting fate do what it will. I saw it as an endless world of opportunities for strange stories, and I can't deny that's what I got.
I also can't deny that I didn't care for them.
The portrayal of women is pretty crap, each woman he encounters falls in love with him for no ...more
I picked this up on a whim, only having read the back and looked at the cover (I may have a bad tendency to judge by covers). The set up fascinated me, a man fails to kill himself so he puts his life up for sale, letting fate do what it will. I saw it as an endless world of opportunities for strange stories, and I can't deny that's what I got.
I also can't deny that I didn't care for them.
The portrayal of women is pretty crap, each woman he encounters falls in love with him for no ...more
A fascinating tale of Hanio, a man who decides to put his life up for sale after unsuccessfully attempting suicide. The premise is enough to intrigue, but also bleak enough to know that this won't necessarily be a feel good story. I loved the book and found Hanio's journey to be both exciting and thought-provoking. The characters that he meets and the situations he finds himself in are executed brilliantly. I don't often say this, but I wish it had been longer. I could definitely have spent
...more
Aug 17, 2019
Catarina Martins Caeiro
rated it
did not like it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
2019
An atypical Mishima work. It doesn't have the eloquence (it tilts to the poorly-writen) and clever cynicism I'm used to - only a fervent, delirious really, imagination and scarce glimpses of poetry. It's not a page-turner as much as an easy-reading, very appropriate to its purpose (since this work was published in a playboy magazine), it proves Mishima's ability to adapt his works to a broader audience and to the demands of those who hire him - in that sense, the title comments on the work of
...more
Brilliant, pulpy, ridiculous FUN. A brilliant romp that doesnt take itself too seriously. Speckled with wisdom and satire, its simply dead good.
...more
Jan 17, 2020
Killer of Dreams
rated it
it was ok
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
japanese-literature
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
A deliriously absurd pulp fiction.
A real Camus absurdity permeates the entire novel and a Hunter S Thompson nonchalantness towards the outer edges of society gives the main character Hanio a likability thats often lacking with characters exploring the edges of society. It brings a desire to see to what depths he will plunge as he hops from one nefarious misadventure to the next, and what starts as an ironic hope that he survives (to see the next ridiculous scenario he finds himself in) grows to ...more
A real Camus absurdity permeates the entire novel and a Hunter S Thompson nonchalantness towards the outer edges of society gives the main character Hanio a likability thats often lacking with characters exploring the edges of society. It brings a desire to see to what depths he will plunge as he hops from one nefarious misadventure to the next, and what starts as an ironic hope that he survives (to see the next ridiculous scenario he finds himself in) grows to ...more
Yukio Mishimas name has been appearing on my recommendation lists ever since I started reading Japanese fiction, but this is the first of his books that Ive read. Newly published by Penguin Modern Classics, in a fresh translation by Stephen Dodd, it tells the story of Hanio Yamada, who is thoroughly disillusioned by the world around him. Having failed in a suicide attempt, feeling crippled by the sheer meaninglessness of existence, Hanio comes up with a plan. He places an ad in the paper: Life
...more
I started this book thinking that it would be good but, as seemingly the worst rated Mishima book on Goodreads (still 3.67 average, I believe), not amazing. I was wrong. I really enjoyed this book; it was a complete page turner. It is an odd book, definitely, but I enjoyed that fact, since each mini-story or encounter, while still interacting with the essential themes of Hanio's life, were varied and brilliant. I actually felt quite an attachment to Hanio by the end of it and was a little sad as
...more
(I received an ARC of the 2020 reprint of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest opinion). This book is a trip, unfolding like the Japanese cousin of The Stranger by Camus. The protagonist wants to die, but is not very good at it, starting with a failed suicide at the beginning of the book, then just keeps rolling whatever life throws at him after he puts his life up for sale. It's a dark comedy, if you choose to think of it that way, which is also something that
...more
This was a very strange book built around the premise of the value of a life. Themes are dark. I learned about the author and his dark life and it makes the story sadder. The second half was more enjoyable than the first. I'm not honestly sure HOW I feel about this one.
full disclosure- I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
full disclosure- I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
Strange Japanese fiction reminds me of Murakami, but this book was written a generation before him. Maybe it is the translation style or my imagination is reductive. A man puts his life up for sale and has strange misadventures. Women, including a vampire, are not particularly depicted well in this book.
Sep 04, 2019
Steve Gillway
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
black-comedy
Strange, disturbing book. It starts off as a very black comedy, but then turns into something more like the surrealism of Vonnegut with violence. When I looked at the blurb, the author turned into a bit of a dictator. I wonder how this book is viewed in Japan.
Badly-written rubbish that Mishima must have bashed out for some quick cash. No wonder it was untranslated for so long - it should have stayed that way. Of the three recently-translated Mishima books, 'Frolic of the Beasts' is the one to go for.
picked this up at a random bookshop in London because the back seemed interesting. At first I read it and put it down for a few days but once I picked it back up I finished it that same day. It was dark and strange yet beautiful at the same time.
This book is mind blowing and you will find yourself having many WTF moments as you go through it. Highly recommended, an eerie, surreal read that will have you hooked!!!
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Yukio Mishima (三島 由紀夫) was born in Tokyo in 1925. He graduated from Tokyo Imperial Universitys School of Jurisprudence in 1947. His first published book, The Forest in Full Bloom, appeared in 1944 and he established himself as a major author with Confessions of a Mask (1949). From then until his death he continued to publish novels, short stories, and plays each year. His crowning achievement, the
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“Allí estaba él, yendo raudo en pos de la muerte, poniendo en ello todo su empeño, mientras que aquel matrimonio no tenía ninguna prisa por morir. En el suelo del jardín estaban diseminados pétalos de flor de cerezo que el viento había transportado desde algún lugar. Era de día, pero la sala estaba sumida en una fresca penumbra mientras la blanca mano del anciano pasaba las páginas de la antología poética. Él y su esposa dedicaban el tiempo a tejer su muerte lentamente, como si estuvieran tejiendo un suéter, preparándose para la llegada del invierno. ¿De dónde procedía semejante serenidad?”
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