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A review by sweetsxrrxw
Where the Wild Ladies Are by Aoko Matsuda
mysterious
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
for context, a couple months ago a friend of mine proposed me to join a japan-themed book club, since i mentioned i loved before the coffee gets cold. but the thing is that, unlike everyone in that club, i am not really into japan; i just enjoy occasionally reading some japanese literature.
maybe if i was more into japanese culture i could have recognized some of the original yokai stories that are retold. that's why i am actually grateful for whoever decided to put some context of the traditional stories.
the book takes these traditional stories and gives them a more modern and feminist twist. if you're a woman you'll probably relate to many things the characters are going through and i'm sure that you'll find at least a quote that will feel super relatable.
i really enjoyed reading some stories and i have a fair ammount of highlighted parts throughout the book. but other stories just were not for me and made me space out a little ngl. and there has been a cpuple times where i don't think i could fully understand what the author was trying to say or the meaning of the story, but that's probably because of my lack of knowledge about japan.
oh, i would also like to add that, as sometimes it seemed impossible for me to get over my reading slump, i listened to some parts of the audiobook while reading. and i have to say the narrator was really good, her tones and accents and intonations were genuinely good!
anyways, everytime i finsihed reading some story i wrote down a little review, my thoughts or feelings about it and you can find them under the cut (many of them have spoilers so beware of it!)
the peony lanterns
the whole thing of tsuyuko almost immediately being in love with shinzaburo threw me off a little, not gonna lie. but, to be fair, i felt confused since i learnt the original legend was meant to stop people from sleeping with ghosts. anyways, i guess the saleswomen's actuation is usually the same in order to enjoy people's suffering or get some money out of them and, who am i to be against scamming men? plus they're dramatism was fun, idk. all in all, i don't think the ghosts were that bad, since they pushed him to get a new job.
smartening up
i guess i could understand this story a bit better than the firat one. and i think i really liked it and that it delievers an important message. im so glad the main character realized she didn't need to become someone else or change parts of her in order to become the best version of herself. however, although i know this book is about ghosts i was surprised when i realized the aunt was a ghost. but maybe my initial shock was because i understood that the mc was dead, not her aunt. anyways, i suppose her aunt's trick was to grow body hair on her niece to make her accept it.
my superpower
i think this is definitely one of my favorite stories too. not only it tackles society superficiality but i think it was such a creative way to link the ghost stories with the character's situation. oh and, by the way, my jaw double dropped at oiwa's story.
anyways, although this may be one of the shortest stories in the book, it has just left me deep in thought.
quite a catch
i am not 100% sure if i understood the original story but this adaptation was genuinely sweet. i even highlighted a quote or two in pink (that's the color i use for fluffy, cute stuff) i didn't want to deeply root for them in case something terrible were to happen, but i am glad they had a happy ending!
the jealous type
the original story made me totally gasp again. oh my god, why does everyone have such miserable lifes, not even cats are safe? woah.
but let's focus on the main story. i think that writing it in second person was actually kind of a smart move from the author, in order to make readers feel some kind of empathy towards the mc. i also think it was a smart choice because of the last twist, since this story is kind of a letter for the mc from some council of jealous ghosts? i do not necessarily agree with most of the things in this short story but i do believe it's so witty.
where the wild ladies are
hmmm i don't feel like the highlight of this story were ghosts at all. i feel like it revolves more around the mc's grief and the void his mid-twenties life crisis caused mainly by his mom's death. i am guessing maybe she got to contact him somehow via his job? anyways, some of his inner monologue was actually relatable, btw.
loved ones
wait this story was actually really cute. many times we take for granted our senses, so i think it was interesting to read about someone who can't properly smell. anyways, you just gotta support women who love their cats more than anything tbh. im so glad that by the end she got to somehow learn the smell of that one flower and to see her cat again after so many years <3
a fox's life
this story depicts in a great way the glass ceiling concept and how, alongside gender roles, it affects both men and women. i think it's sad how kuzuha had to pretend to be so much more less than she is since she was small but im glad that after discovering her true self she allowed herself to be more powerful, to hide less.
ps: the fox / foxy women thing was also interesting tbh.
what she can do
ahhh, i love stories about women supporting women <3 i think this story is one of the shortest in the book but its social commentary is very strong. basically its just about society's hypocrisy and judgement when it comes to single mothers who escape from terrible marriages and who will accept any job to be able to give their children a good life. not many people realize the sacrifices that this implies but the ghost in this story does and not only she takes care of the baby when her mom is working but she is also willing to become friends with the family and make their lives easier <3
enoki
i think this was an interesting way to talk about the sexualization of women while also tackling the conversation about breast feeding. i think its funny (in an ironic way) how the main character is basically a mushroom who feels grossed out about people sexualizing her.
silently burning
there isnt any character playing as a ghost in this story, right? anyways i dont have much to say about it but i liked the theme of women on the workplace always being kinda overlooked at.
a new recruit
this was kind of a sweet story about nostalgia. once again, i dont think i have much to say about it but im glad that the mc is trying to enjoy the places she goes to before they die, idk.
team sarashina
i guess this story is about not giving up and having dedication basically for everything? i think it is true that when women come together they can achieve anything they want.
anyways, i admire the sarashinas tbh cause most of the time i cant find motivation to do anything, lmao.
a day off
tbh at first i thought gum was some kind of cat but so it was lowkey disappointing to find out she's a toad. anyways, this story is pretty sad and raw and it just depicts how awful is to be a woman in a world of horrible men who will take any chance to take advantage of you :( i can totally get how the main character has been affected by that and just doesn't even feel like giving them a second chance anymore or even getting out of bed. but at the end of the day she knows she has to, in order to protect other women.
ps: i loved kuzuha's cameo!
having a blast
okay i think this might be one of my favorite stories. i really loved the three different povs and the different topics each one portrays. i'm so glad that the husband was not a total asshole and that he ended up becoming somehow better, and that both his wives didn't really mind about him not checking up on them once they died. i love that they could both find who they really were, after their period of grief and i love that they have come at peace with who they are.
the missing one
i have a love-hate relationship with this story. so, i really do relate a lot to the main character: i also do that thing of always expecting the worse in order to not get that hurt if things don't end up turning out well. and the meet cute by the end, well, was indeed cute! but honestly, the descriptions of the town made me zone out a bit. of course i think it was interesting and it kinda reminded me of "the new recruit" but idk, i perosnally think it could have been a bit shorter.
on high
this was kind of a sadder story but i think it was a good choice to make it the last one of the book. it follows a ghost who wathces over a famous castle but who feels kinda tired and lonely by doing so and starts thinking about quitting her job, since she knows now it's gonna be safe. but she is aware that even if she leaves, that castle will still be hers. if you think about it, it is kind of a parallelism to some women's work nowadays, idk.
maybe if i was more into japanese culture i could have recognized some of the original yokai stories that are retold. that's why i am actually grateful for whoever decided to put some context of the traditional stories.
the book takes these traditional stories and gives them a more modern and feminist twist. if you're a woman you'll probably relate to many things the characters are going through and i'm sure that you'll find at least a quote that will feel super relatable.
i really enjoyed reading some stories and i have a fair ammount of highlighted parts throughout the book. but other stories just were not for me and made me space out a little ngl. and there has been a cpuple times where i don't think i could fully understand what the author was trying to say or the meaning of the story, but that's probably because of my lack of knowledge about japan.
oh, i would also like to add that, as sometimes it seemed impossible for me to get over my reading slump, i listened to some parts of the audiobook while reading. and i have to say the narrator was really good, her tones and accents and intonations were genuinely good!
anyways, everytime i finsihed reading some story i wrote down a little review, my thoughts or feelings about it and you can find them under the cut (many of them have spoilers so beware of it!)
the whole thing of tsuyuko almost immediately being in love with shinzaburo threw me off a little, not gonna lie. but, to be fair, i felt confused since i learnt the original legend was meant to stop people from sleeping with ghosts. anyways, i guess the saleswomen's actuation is usually the same in order to enjoy people's suffering or get some money out of them and, who am i to be against scamming men? plus they're dramatism was fun, idk. all in all, i don't think the ghosts were that bad, since they pushed him to get a new job.
smartening up
i guess i could understand this story a bit better than the firat one. and i think i really liked it and that it delievers an important message. im so glad the main character realized she didn't need to become someone else or change parts of her in order to become the best version of herself. however, although i know this book is about ghosts i was surprised when i realized the aunt was a ghost. but maybe my initial shock was because i understood that the mc was dead, not her aunt. anyways, i suppose her aunt's trick was to grow body hair on her niece to make her accept it.
my superpower
i think this is definitely one of my favorite stories too. not only it tackles society superficiality but i think it was such a creative way to link the ghost stories with the character's situation. oh and, by the way, my jaw double dropped at oiwa's story.
anyways, although this may be one of the shortest stories in the book, it has just left me deep in thought.
quite a catch
i am not 100% sure if i understood the original story but this adaptation was genuinely sweet. i even highlighted a quote or two in pink (that's the color i use for fluffy, cute stuff) i didn't want to deeply root for them in case something terrible were to happen, but i am glad they had a happy ending!
the jealous type
the original story made me totally gasp again. oh my god, why does everyone have such miserable lifes, not even cats are safe? woah.
but let's focus on the main story. i think that writing it in second person was actually kind of a smart move from the author, in order to make readers feel some kind of empathy towards the mc. i also think it was a smart choice because of the last twist, since this story is kind of a letter for the mc from some council of jealous ghosts? i do not necessarily agree with most of the things in this short story but i do believe it's so witty.
where the wild ladies are
hmmm i don't feel like the highlight of this story were ghosts at all. i feel like it revolves more around the mc's grief and the void his mid-twenties life crisis caused mainly by his mom's death. i am guessing maybe she got to contact him somehow via his job? anyways, some of his inner monologue was actually relatable, btw.
loved ones
wait this story was actually really cute. many times we take for granted our senses, so i think it was interesting to read about someone who can't properly smell. anyways, you just gotta support women who love their cats more than anything tbh. im so glad that by the end she got to somehow learn the smell of that one flower and to see her cat again after so many years <3
a fox's life
this story depicts in a great way the glass ceiling concept and how, alongside gender roles, it affects both men and women. i think it's sad how kuzuha had to pretend to be so much more less than she is since she was small but im glad that after discovering her true self she allowed herself to be more powerful, to hide less.
ps: the fox / foxy women thing was also interesting tbh.
what she can do
ahhh, i love stories about women supporting women <3 i think this story is one of the shortest in the book but its social commentary is very strong. basically its just about society's hypocrisy and judgement when it comes to single mothers who escape from terrible marriages and who will accept any job to be able to give their children a good life. not many people realize the sacrifices that this implies but the ghost in this story does and not only she takes care of the baby when her mom is working but she is also willing to become friends with the family and make their lives easier <3
enoki
i think this was an interesting way to talk about the sexualization of women while also tackling the conversation about breast feeding. i think its funny (in an ironic way) how the main character is basically a mushroom who feels grossed out about people sexualizing her.
silently burning
there isnt any character playing as a ghost in this story, right? anyways i dont have much to say about it but i liked the theme of women on the workplace always being kinda overlooked at.
a new recruit
this was kind of a sweet story about nostalgia. once again, i dont think i have much to say about it but im glad that the mc is trying to enjoy the places she goes to before they die, idk.
team sarashina
i guess this story is about not giving up and having dedication basically for everything? i think it is true that when women come together they can achieve anything they want.
anyways, i admire the sarashinas tbh cause most of the time i cant find motivation to do anything, lmao.
a day off
tbh at first i thought gum was some kind of cat but so it was lowkey disappointing to find out she's a toad. anyways, this story is pretty sad and raw and it just depicts how awful is to be a woman in a world of horrible men who will take any chance to take advantage of you :( i can totally get how the main character has been affected by that and just doesn't even feel like giving them a second chance anymore or even getting out of bed. but at the end of the day she knows she has to, in order to protect other women.
ps: i loved kuzuha's cameo!
having a blast
okay i think this might be one of my favorite stories. i really loved the three different povs and the different topics each one portrays. i'm so glad that the husband was not a total asshole and that he ended up becoming somehow better, and that both his wives didn't really mind about him not checking up on them once they died. i love that they could both find who they really were, after their period of grief and i love that they have come at peace with who they are.
the missing one
i have a love-hate relationship with this story. so, i really do relate a lot to the main character: i also do that thing of always expecting the worse in order to not get that hurt if things don't end up turning out well. and the meet cute by the end, well, was indeed cute! but honestly, the descriptions of the town made me zone out a bit. of course i think it was interesting and it kinda reminded me of "the new recruit" but idk, i perosnally think it could have been a bit shorter.
on high
this was kind of a sadder story but i think it was a good choice to make it the last one of the book. it follows a ghost who wathces over a famous castle but who feels kinda tired and lonely by doing so and starts thinking about quitting her job, since she knows now it's gonna be safe. but she is aware that even if she leaves, that castle will still be hers. if you think about it, it is kind of a parallelism to some women's work nowadays, idk.