Escalator

by Michael Gardiner

In the title story, Shinya is surprised to find himself on the career conveyer belt totally unaware of his destination. In 'Model', a young Japanese student blithely lives her life under 24-hour surveillance, in order to pay her way through one of Japan's 'prestigious' universities. Sparsely written and beautifully observed, these stories resist cliche and overstatement, and refuse to judge their subjects, presenting a compelling glimpse under the skin of an enigmatic country.

Genres: Japan, Short Stories

192 pages, Paperback

First published March 30, 2006

About the author

Michael Gardiner is Professor in the Department of English and Comparative Literary Studies at the University of Warwick. He has published on modern Scottish cultural history, post-British cultures, the Scottish Enlightenment, and the cultural politics of nuclear disarmament. His books include The Cultural Roots of British Devolution (2004), From Trocchi to Trainspotting: Scottish Critical Theory since 1960 (2007) and At the Edge of Empire: The Life of Thomas B. Glover (2008).

Reviews

[Jeanette Sanders · Rating 4 out of 5]

was intrigued by the subject matter since I love to read about other cultures but did take a while to really get into the stories.
Most of the short stories are excellent and the characters are very believable. I felt that I was really seeing what it was like to live in Japan as a foreigner and as a native. The author covers a range of different personal situations although common themes emerge and the book really is interesting. The language at times seemed strange and I did have to check that I was not reading a translation from Japanese - I, incorrectly, thought it was written by a non-native English-speaker. Perhaps this was a deliberate style choice?
Overall I really enjoyed this book. The only reasons for giving it 4 instead of 5 stars are that I could easily have put it down after any one of the stories and not read more; and I found the language a little bit awkward at times. I would recommend it to anyone who enjoys thought-provoking stories and learning more about other cultures but not to people who like a quick easy read - the stories are not hard to read but deserve consideration. If you start to read the book do persevere: the stories are varied and well written.

[Oskar Leonard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting.

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Racism, the specific overwhelming of the modern city ("hyper-reality"), economic and family pressure, handled subtly and desperately.

[Simon Bate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Stories of Japan that you can dip into....I like the cover ( Geez, am I superficial or what!!)