BOOK OF THE WEEK
FICTION BREASTS AND EGGS
by Mieko Kawakami, Picador, £14.99, ebook £12.99 HHHHH LEGENDARY author Haruki Murakami has already given Mieko Kawakami his seal of approval, even if Breasts And Eggs is deemed too scandalous for many in Japan.
The first part of the novel sees Natsuki – a wannabe writer living in Tokyo – visited by her sister and niece, with her ageing hostess sister having developed an obsession with breast implants.
Perhaps because the book started as a short story, the second part seems like another novel: nearly ten years on, Natsuki has become a professional writer and is trying to figure out if she can have a baby as a single woman – near-impossible in Japanese society.
It’s an interesting examination of what it means to be a parent and being a woman in Japan, but the second part could have been a lot shorter and tighter. Nevertheless, Kawakami’s writing is just as
HHHHH ONCE again we are in Naples, the setting of Elena Ferrante’s Neapolitan novels. The city is a mix of rich and poor, making the divisions between the lives of its inhabitants feel physical.
Adolescent Giovanna lives at the top of the city, while her father’s estranged relatives remain below, and through her
memorable as Murakami’s heartbreakingly beautiful prose – this is her first full-length book published in English, and there will no doubt be more to come.
US THREE
by Ruth Jones, Bantam Press, £14.99, ebook £8.49 HHHHH
RUTH JONES hit the top of bestseller lists with her debut novel Never Greener, so does the actress and writer’s second offering live up to her first? eyes, we witness the slow unravelling of the assumptions that have sustained her family’s life.
The truth, as her mother’s friend Costanza tells her, is difficult, but the novel’s thoughtful, emotionally incisive prose guides us smoothly through forthright Giovanna’s pursuit of it with all its complications.
Ferrante’s spell is as surely woven as ever, and by the time we meet much-maligned aunt Vittoria, you are hooked.
She takes a different tack for Us Three; ambitious in its scope, it follows the friendship of three Welsh women – Catrin, Judith and Lana – from their teens across the next four decades. It follows the ups, the downs and the complications after blindly promising to be BFFs forever. It feels part coming-of-age, part
HHHHH
IN this deeply honest exploration into the mind, journalist and mental health campaigner Alastair Campbell delves into his experiences with depression.
The former Downing Street advisor articulately reflects on these issues in sharp detail, creating an all-encompassing and intricate look into mental health.
This incredibly nuanced read will resonate with anyone who has experienced depression or witnessed it in anyone else, with suggestions and guidance on how to manage it.