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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “This is the first book I read from Banana Yoshimoto, though I have already known about her while doing research for one of my stories. My first impression of her (and mind you, I'm not the type that really has first impressions on every people I begin to know about or meet) is that she might be...” see full review » see other reviews » |
Didn’t Like It “This is a collection of 3 short stories with the common theme of sleep. (However, I read only the first 2). The first story was about a woman mourning for a lost lover, and who because of this, starts sleepwalking. The 2nd is about a woman who is haunted in her sleep by a woman against whom she...” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“A beautiful set of short stories. They are a pleasure to read”
Deborah K wrote this review Wednesday, February 8, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Asleep is a collection of three stories that deal with love, death, grief, and sleeping. The emotions were expressed with such sensitivity and tenderness. I feel like I know these characters and I care about them a lot.
Arya wrote this review Thursday, February 2, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
It's rare to come across a book where the writer really understands human nature-- when just reading makes you realize things about life that maybe you didn't always pay attention to before. But then you read it and think: that's exactly it! I've experienced that feeling and here is someone who is putting it into words.
This was such a beautiful, thought provoking book. It trapped me in a world of dreams and I feel dazed now that I've stopped reading. ”
“The first story is my all-time favourite of Banana Yoshimoto's works. It just has something special about it, maybe it is the atmosphere. It's lovely.”
Linnéa wrote this review Wednesday, August 31, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Best ever
“I've heard a lot about Banana Yoshimoto in recent years; her status as one of Japan's top female writers, her publication in many different languages, and the critics who either fawn over her, or call her a 'lightweight' author. 'Asleep' shows her short story skills, and my verdict is that ... she's neither as lightweight as, or as talented as her fondest critics make her out to be.
Paul H wrote this review Tuesday, October 5, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
'Night And Night's Travelers' starts off as a light, fluffy drama based around the character Shibami and her recently deceased brother Yoshihiro. The story does eventually take a dark turn, and after some distance proves its worth by the end.
'Love Songs' (again a story with no connection to its title) follows another fairly lost female character (Fumi) who has a mild drinking problem, and is haunted by a woman from her past.
The last story is by far the darkest and best of the three. Caught in a complicated relationship with a married man, Terako finds herself drifting further and further away from reality, living her life almost completely in her dream-state. 'Asleep' had a dark, cinematic quality to it and ends the book on a compelling note.
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“Read for Waggoner's contemporary literature class. Loved it in part because I sympathized with one of the main characters who can't stop sleeping so much, but also because it's great writing and very memorable.”
Catherine L wrote this review Sunday, September 19, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No1 of 1 members found this review helpful“This is the first book I read from Banana Yoshimoto, though I have already known about her while doing research for one of my stories. My first impression of her (and mind you, I'm not the type that really has first impressions on every people I begin to know about or meet) is that she might be an interesting writer, partly because she's Japanese (I have this paradigm that Japanese people are mightily ingenious) and partly because critics have been raving about her writing. Though I'm not a critic, not much of a raver, too, and I don't have much credentials to begin endorsing something as big as Banana Yoshimoto that would make people actually listen to me, I'm honest enough to admit to myself that I was enamored by "Asleep." Among the three stories presented under this title, "Love Songs" is my favorite. Miss Yoshimoto wrote it in a sense that each word grips you, each line moves you, and each moment swallows you whole.
Jovi wrote this review Thursday, September 10, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
If you find yourself wanting to read "Asleep," prepare yourself to be awake for 2-3 hours more past your bedtime ;)”“This is a collection of 3 short stories with the common theme of sleep. (However, I read only the first 2). The first story was about a woman mourning for a lost lover, and who because of this, starts sleepwalking. The 2nd is about a woman who is haunted in her sleep by a woman against whom she was once pitted in a love triangle. In both stories, other themes which surfaced were death, the belief in spirits, and the existence of a spirit world. These themes are not wholly Japanese, but somewhat Asian-inspired.
a.k.a. SHY wrote this review Tuesday, September 8, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Another common theme that surfaced was sex. In the first story, the relationship was between a woman and her first cousin. In the 2nd story, it was about a love triangle, not totally controversial, if not for the mention that both women were in love with the same man, living with him, and “sharing” him.
Of the 3 stories, I only finished reading the first 2, as I was not encouraged to continue reading after the 2nd story. It was not a story I was drawn to, or intrigued by, and I felt that the writer’s weakness was that she failed to develop her characters, so as to be someone the readers could relate to, if not understand. I also couldn't help but wondering IF facets of the story were lost in the translation as this book was originally written in Japanese. Was the translated version better than the original (japanese) version? Or was it the other way around?
Rating : 2 / 4 bookmarks”
“don't know what to say”
let's read, please. wrote this review Monday, August 10, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“this was by far my favorite banana yoshimoto collective to date. the stories were painful, haunting, beautiful, and each one connected to a different part of me. the characters were beautifully written and "night and night's travelers' in particular was so tragic and touching that I think I will be contemplating it for a long time. ”
Claudia Nicole Rose wrote this review Friday, July 10, 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
