09/2016 In the Miso Soup Group Read

[Selena]

It is just before New Year's. Frank, an overweight American tourist, has hired Kenji to take him on a guided tour of Tokyo's sleazy nightlife on three successive evenings. But Frank's behavior is so strange that Kenji begins to entertain a horrible suspicion...

Discuss In the Miso Soup Here

Reading Schedule
9/11-9/24: Chapter 1
9/25-10/8: Chapter 2
10/9-10/22: Chapter 3

Warning: this book contains Sexual Content
Warning: this book contains graphic depictions of murder and torture

[Terrence]

Getting my copy from the library. I'll probably just MS Word some thoughts as I go to avoid not finishing it before return date. Never read this author.

Edit: Ah, they wrote that IQ84 book or whatever that looks intriguing cover wise.

[Quantum]

I'm in.

[Quantum]

I put it on hold at the library. I've been waiting to do a group read of this work for a while. I'm so happy now.

[Selena]

Terrence wrote: "Getting my copy from the library. I'll probably just MS Word some thoughts as I go to avoid not finishing it before return date. Never read this author.

Edit: Ah, they wrote that IQ84 book or what..."

I think this is a different author than the 1Q84 guy. He just has the same last name

[Terrence]

I like the way the plot is treating the reader and characters so far in the few pages I've read.

My soundtrack for this one? Hotline Miami Soundtrack. Lots of clubbing music and zen background noise in that one.

Selena wrote: "Terrence wrote: "Getting my copy from the library. I'll probably just MS Word some thoughts as I go to avoid not finishing it before return date. Never read this author.

Edit: Ah, they wrote that ..."

Ah, oops. I just searched Murakami I think. xD

[H.]

Hiya, I've been a total lurker lately but noticed that "In the Miso Soup" was the group read. Looking forward to reading other peoples comments on this one.

[Terrence]

Can't wait to hear some thoughts on Chapter 1 this Sunday. Anything in that chapter I assume is fair game to discuss once the clocks strikes midnight Saturday night into Sunday morning.

[Quantum]

I'm on p16. I'd be quite interested in hearing ppl's views on the narrator's opinion of Americans.

[Selena]

You can discuss early. Just tag spoilers appropriately.

[Terrence]

Selena wrote: "You can discuss early. Just tag spoilers appropriately."

Ah, ok. My humongous MS Word set of thoughts (don't remove the tags unless you finished chapter 1).

Chapter 1

So starting this one up, I knew it’d probably be a culture shock book. What’s funny is Kenji mentions after talking to Frank how Americans (view spoiler)[have a sort of sweet / annoying innocence, that doing something they disapprove of in their country is looked down on. Smoking on the job for instance. He compares American behavior to that of a child.

Kenji is almost immediately suspicious of Frank, which was good because I thought maybe reading the blurb above in this thread was maybe too much knowledge going in if I wanted to read it as blind as possible. He even connects dots to Frank and the deceased from the newspaper immediately, so this shows an intelligence of characters and a respect for the reader who is at least piecing this together almost as quickly. Always appreciate that.

Frank wants to get into Japan, while Kenji wants to get out of Japan (into America), so a bit of juxtaposition there. Frank talks about how great everything seems on the surface.
The exchanges between Frank and people that make him peeved are odd, but it’s not like he’s the only character a bit off (Satoshi who makes castle figures out of blocks on a train is a pretty odd duck). My jury was out on him being a culprit after 30+ pages. Frank seems to have a past in New York, but maybe not a present there (I’ve never heard people talk about wanting to go to some place that sells Nikes sneakers)? The girlfriend of Kenji being alive was a happy relief, though I’m guessing that won’t last forever (I could even see her investigating into Frank since I think Kenji dropped his name when she asked and he has a photobooth picture now).

So Frank had some sort of inhuman look during the scene where Madoka or whatever she was going by went to his “booth”. The way she described him made it sound like he had some past trauma that affected him physically.

Anyways, on to baseball batting cages and the awful smell of babies (what?). That scene seemed both poignant and disturbing. Frank is just telling too many lies at this point too. I almost want to believe he’s a character in Kenji’s head or something, or maybe he has some form of brain disease that’s affecting his memory? Split personality syndrome? Alien pretending to be human? Time Traveler? I don’t know. (hide spoiler)]

Can I ask a question? What year does this story take place in? They mentioned (view spoiler)[ Hideo Nomo, so I guess that dates it. And is the sex scene in Japan as ever present today in areas or outlawed? I feel super naive reading this, certainly a culture shock. Also, I feel like a crazy person for wanting to try to learn all the butchered Romanizations Frank spoke out loud at the club. xP (hide spoiler)]

Alex G wrote: "I'm on p16. I'd be quite interested in hearing ppl's views on the narrator's opinion of Americans."

I finished Chapter 1, but yeah, the perspective and assumptions are interesting.

I can't find it, but there's one line I think people today would find pretty offensive. Something about (view spoiler)[how an American would just settle for being gay if they couldn't get a woman to love them (this makes it sound like being gay is a consolation) (hide spoiler)]. I kind of cringed myself, but it isn't like the characters in this story are super "likable", so I'm ok with them being a bit offensive I guess. Even touching a subject like (view spoiler)[homosexuality (hide spoiler)] is a big deal in Japnese lit, right (pretty sure (view spoiler)[gay marriage is illegal there (hide spoiler)])?

[Selena]

So I've started reading this... It's a quicker read than I thought it would be. Not sure it's my cup of tea, but at least it's not difficult to get through.

I don't know who all is reading along with this group read, so let me know if you guys think I should speed up the reading schedule a bit.

@ Terrence: Judging by the way it's written, I think the romaji is correct, though it's stated that he's mispronouncing things. I don't speak enough Japanese to know for sure, and I don't think I want to know for sure, tell you the truth.

[Terrence]

I'm done with Chapter 2. Yeah, it's fast, and I'll probably be able to read through Chapter 3 tomorrow if I can. I still don't quite know where the story is going right now.

Story and the language is a bit unnerving at times though for sure, but I'm trying to challenge myself a bit with my reading lately, so I'm ok with that. I got Nozaki-Kun to read for a laugh if I need one afterwards.

[Quantum]

argghh! too much stuff going on this weekend to get past p.16. i'll try and catch up to you guys during the week.

[Selena]

Alex G wrote: "argghh! too much stuff going on this weekend to get past p.16. i'll try and catch up to you guys during the week."

I'm still somewhere in the middle of chapter 1, so you're not too far behind. Terrence is just an overachiever lol

[Terrence]

LOL. My library rental ends too quickly, so I've got to finish it. xC

Take your time guys. I don't have too many thoughts right now anyways besides what I posted earlier.

[Quantum]

Terrence wrote: "LOL. My library rental ends too quickly, so I've got to finish it. xC

Take your time guys. I don't have too many thoughts right now anyways besides what I posted earlier."

what? you mean you gotta pay to rent it? it's not a public library?

[Terrence]

Alex G wrote: "Terrence wrote: "what? ..."

It gets shipped from another public library to mine, so I would have to put in another hold (at the counter or online), the book would get shipped back, checked back in wherever it was from, then shipped back to my local library. I don't want to wait the week or so if I can help it.

[Quantum]

Terrence wrote: "Alex G wrote: "Terrence wrote: "what? ..."

It gets shipped from another public library to mine, so I would have to put in another hold (at the counter or online), the book would get shipped back, ..."

got it. i use Link+ interlibrary loan--usually, i can check out for 21 days and get 1 renewal.

[Terrence]

Yeah, our statewide library loan is a bit better. 30+ days if you use that, but the system is a bit annoying there (I cancelled two books, and they're stuck on my record; you can only take out 10 things at a time, and the checkouts are also slow to be removed from the account when you return them).

I can't complain too much about a free system that's saving me tons in video game, film, and book costs, plus ships their stuff from all across the state (I got the latest Kirby game last month, and I get to keep it out for 30 days; I think that's insane you can borrow stuff like that for free, late fee not withstanding).

[Terrence]

Finished. I kind of rushed through the ending, so I'm sure I'll be a bit vague when talking about chapter 3 stuff.

Needless to say *Huge Spoiler Warning for any chapter 3 material here (if you want me to remove it until you get there let me know; I'll just copy paste):

Chapter 3 (Big Spoilers)

(view spoiler)[There's a lot of interesting discussions to be had from stuff Frank said in this one. Like Kenji says, even if he's messed up, there's something about the way he argues for stuff that almost turns you toward his side of things (like against his treatment by his family and the mental hospital). Until he does something awful. xC

I liked learning about the Bonno, simplified down to the Japanese version of the seven deadly sins.

I knew this narrative would end more philosophical or up in the air instead of a slam bang finale of action and suspense. It just had that feeling about it. I do wonder if you're supposed to wonder if post Frank Kenji will be more like Frank now; can he go back to his domestic life with Jun? What will happen to him from here? When Frank finishes hearing the bells, would he be cleansed? Is the reader supposed to feel cleansed of the narrative as they walk away from it with the bells about to chime? And what was the deal with the swan feather? Overall, I enjoyed it. (hide spoiler)]

As I got to the end of the narrative, I was thinking about how great it would be to complement this story with an audio version in English. You get a lot of Kenji thinking and on edge, and I think hearing somebody voice that (besides myself reading out loud) would be great.

[Selena]

So I don't think I ever got an answer to my question regarding the reading schedule. Should I shorted the schedule? I know I read chapter 1 in the last few days pretty easily.

What say you guys?

[Terrence]

Anyone else finish Chapter 1? I wonder if this is a tough one to get into or if people are busy.

[Selena]

I finished chapter 1, but I hesitate to speed up the schedule until everyone says yay or nay. :)

Since I haven't heard anything one way or the other, I'm going to assume you all want me to just leave the schedule alone for this week and have it as Chapter 1 through this week as well.

[Terrence]

I'm thinking of looking into some of the other books by the author. This one has a bunny on the cover, how cute.. and a screwdriver? How not cute (fair warning, some of the other covers are a bit more explicit, but the bunny one is in my library system).



I've got some other book commitments for the month (including one advanced copy book I got from a giveaway), so I don't know when I'll read this.

Also, removing the spoiler tags shortly on my first post since today is the last day for Chapter 1 readings.

[Selena]

I'm about halfway through Chapter 2.

I don't think Frank's the killer. It's too obvious.

What do you guys (who haven't read the final chapter :p) think?

[Tiffany]

I'm still on chapter one. xD I'll catch up tomorrow possibly. I started it and got distracted. Whoops.

[Megha]

Just noticed you guys are reading this book. I read it months earlier and was very impressed. It was my first book by Ryu Murakami. Impressed and yearning for more, I picked his first book - 'Almost transparent blue' and was so dissapointed (disgusted?) that I never picked another book written by him.
But -- I do like this book. Would like to hear final thoughts from you guys on completion.

[Terrence]

I think I'm desensitized to a lot of content these days because of mainstream media (Southpark, Twin Peaks, Tarentino movies, video game Catherine, Another anime, Bayonetta, etc). This book read of Miso Soup (view spoiler)[did honestly did make my skin crawl during two specific moments though (I think both in Chapter 2). (hide spoiler)]

[Selena]

Don't know why you spoiler tagged that Terrence. :) Not really a spoiler there.

So far, I've been kind of... bored. I like creepy (but not scary), and this just isn't... creepy. The situations should be, but I feel like the writing isn't heightening that "creep factor."

Maybe that's just me. :-/

[Terrence]

I thought Miso Soup was more introspective about the human condition than a horror book or something meant to creep you out (though, as Megha mentioned, I've heard this is the light version of this author; he can be a lot more cruel).

What's the part of the Freudian brain that's animalistic? That's the kind of thinking this book wants you to do, become in touch with that aspect of the unconscious mind. Even the main character acts on instinct when it comes to suspecting Frank.

If you've ever played Hotline Miami, it similarly had characters acting on that part of their Freudian brain. It'll make you feel bad when you step away from the game or watch videos of people playing online. This book I believe is intended to give you ideas that you would normally instantly reject as hogwash, but read here as perhaps insightful in the back of your mind, perhaps only because the protagonist gives the ideas the time of day to hear and coalesce in his mind (the whole why do we take care of and smile at stinky babies, but similarly stinky bums on the street we ignore). The fact that we're numb to the talk in this book is maybe a sign that the book is working. xD

The more I step back from the book, the more I like it. I think I'm probably missing things and making misinterpretations, maybe my ideas even being colored by other books I'm reading (The Shining and The Weirdness).

[Terrence]

Moe wrote: "Selena wrote: "Don't know why you spoiler tagged that Terrence. :) Not really a spoiler there.

So far, I've been kind of... bored. I like creepy (but not scary), and this just isn't... creepy. Th..."

I posted my thoughts on the ending a little above on my chapter 3 thoughts. Ending was interesting I thought. I have at least two different interpretations for it now, probably more. Will discuss when we get to it in the readthrough. =)

Looking forward to trying the writer's other works.

[Selena]

I think I was under the impression it was a psychological thriller when I picked it up. ^^;;; Maybe if I hadn't gone in thinking that, I wouldn't be quite so confused.

[Selena]

Whelp, I'm out. The end if chapter two just disgusts me.

(view spoiler)[I draw the line at Torture Porn and trying to force others to rape dead prostitutes. (hide spoiler)]

There's just not enough here for me to try and power through the last chapter. Sorry guys.

[Tiffany]

Ugh after reading that I don't think I can do it either. Guess I'm gonna sell this book next time I go to McKay's. I've had trouble staying with this book anyways.

[Quantum]

pretty strong contrarian views. it's been a tough couple of weeks for me at work (on deadline) and busy w/family stuff on the weekends--i haven't even watched my fav anime series for the last two weeks!--but i'll finally be free this wkend!

[Selena]

Alex G wrote: "pretty strong contrarian views. it's been a tough couple of weeks for me at work (on deadline) and busy w/family stuff on the weekends--i haven't even watched my fav anime series for the last two w..."

I think it's all in what you like. I'm not big on slasher flicks and the like, so the end of chapter two just didn't click for me at all. ^^;;;

[Terrence]

I will just say, it doesn't get any worse than the end of Chapter 2 (and by not worse, I mean {full chapter 3 spoilers} (view spoiler)[ there is no present day story violence after that as far as I recall (hide spoiler)]). I understand abandoning though.

It was definitely a shock, and there was at least one line that truly disgusted me. I actually think I had a lower tolerance for the scene where Kenji tried to get a woman to infiltrate and espionage for him by offering a service for Frank and telling him about whether it seemed he had committed the atrocity that was in the news based on the performance (just too much info). That was my almost done point, but I stuck through to the end (it gets a lot more philosophical towards the end).

In terms of Chapter 3 stuff, the (view spoiler)[feather from Frank's first kill being given to Kenji could mean one of three things:

1. Frank is giving up killing, so he gave Kenji the feather because he doesn't need it anymore.

2. Frank is passing the torch to Kenji; Kenji has a messed up mind, so maybe he'll commit atrocities from this point forward.

3. He gives it to Kenji to signal you're next, I'll get this back after I listen to these bells and nothing in my psyche changes. (hide spoiler)]

[Quantum]

it's a setup, right? i'm on p.78 and i think all the clues are making it too obvious. Don't answer, though! ;)

[Quantum]

that was pretty gruesome, but it the narrative was detached.

[Quantum]

p.144: sounds like a critique on contemporary japanese society more than horror now.

[Quantum]

oh man! i don't get it!

[Selena]

Terrence wrote: "I hope you don't mind Selena, left some comments on your review. Mostly just explaining my take and giving you some Chapter 3 info from what I recall."

If you want to comment on my review (or comment on my comments in response to your original comments--comment-ception), please comment on the review rather than in the discussion about the book as a whole.

[Terrence]

Ah, sorry. T.T

I like commentception (I can't figure out how to edit a comment in a review). xC

Yeah, that part was gruesome Alex.

Alex G wrote: "p.144: sounds like a critique on contemporary japanese society more than horror now."

What didn't you get? The ending? It was pretty "what?" when I read it.

And yeah, there were elements of critique for a lot of aspects of society, including (view spoiler)[old mental health clinics (hide spoiler)].

[Selena]

Terrence wrote: "Ah, sorry. T.T

I like commentception (I can't figure out how to edit a comment). xC"

In threads like these, you should be able to click a link that says "edit" between reply and delete. If it's a comment on a review, however, I don't think that's an option. You just have to copy your comment, delete the original, than paste it into the text box and edit however you need to. I don't recommend doing this if someone's already replied though.

[Quantum]

Terrence wrote: "What didn't you get? The ending? It was pretty "what?" when I read it."

correct. guess i'll have to wait until the 22nd to fully discuss it.

i'm going to read some of Ryu Murakami's other stuff--maybe Popular Hits of the Showa Era to get a handle on what he's attempting to communicate. from browsing his books, he seems to be a satirist.

[Terrence]

Alex G wrote: "Terrence wrote: "What didn't you get? The ending? It was pretty "what?" when I read it."

correct. guess i'll have to wait until the 22nd to fully discuss it."

You can spoiler tag it, but waiting might be better if you need to digest that ending.

Megha wrote: "Just completed In the Miso Soup
Have we read this book in this group? If not, we have to. The book takes us throught the red light area of Tokyo and throws a lot of questions on the strangeness an..."

Thanks for the suggestion for the Group Read. I had a lot of fun going through it here. =)

Megha wrote: "Just noticed you guys are reading this book. I read it months earlier and was very impressed. It was my first book by Ryu Murakami. Impressed and yearning for more, I picked his first book - 'Almos..."

Too bad the love fest did not last passed one book. xD

I saw another poster sharing in the LN suggestion thread that this book's ending / final chapter felt rushed and the existential stuff did little for them. Moe had a similar experience of disengagement with the latter half. I was ok with the pacing, but maybe I expected something different or had less expectations. Now I have some expectation for my next read of R Murakami (and expectation that it will get worse if this book was R Murakami light).

[Miri]

I came to this thread when I finished the book and the schedule was still on chapter one, so I waited and now there are so many comments to get through! I thought it was fantastic. Chapter two was pretty horrifying, bordering on traumatic for me, but I actually really liked the way it was treated in chapter three. Just so much to think about.

Megha - this was my first of his books too, and I was really impressed, but I was about to pick up Almost Transparent Blue next and now I am concerned. Is it that bad?

[Quantum]

Miri wrote: "I was about to pick up Almost Transparent Blue next and now I am concerned. Is it that bad?"

Almost Transparent Blue is his first book to have popular acclaim. as with any artist, Murakami will go through different stages of development. so, if you liked In the Miso Soup, then i'd think that you'd want another book that is in-line w/his current style and thinking. that's why i was thinking to read Popular Hits of the Showa Era (in the GR list the translator is the same as well, so i think that there'd be some consistency in the english text as well.)

[Terrence]

Alex G wrote: "if you liked In the Miso Soup, then i'd think that you'd want another book that is in-line w/his current style and thinking. that's why i was thinking to read Popular Hits of the Showa Era (in the GR list the translator is the same as well, so i think that there'd be some consistency in the english text as well.) ."

Good idea. Let me know when you get it, as my library system has it too [I've got quite a few books on my plate, so no rush here].