Earthlings

I loved this book so so much!All I'm gonna say is this book isn't just "a weird book", it's so much more than thatThe book follows protagonists whose only way of rationalizing their traumatic childhood and the relentless abuse that defined them is to convince themselves that the reason they are tormented by human beings is because they, in reality, are not human.When they become adults they are so utterly disconnected and dissociated from their lived reality that the characters start doing outlandish acts and causing chaos because they want to escape "the factory" (society as we know it)What happens throughout is heartbreaking, jaw dropping, crazy, graphic and unbelievable scenes I could never have imaginedThe ending... wtf!! It left me staring at the ceiling thinking"what the HELL did I just read" and "was that real?!"OVERALL:This book is something I will never forget and is often just dismissed as a disturbing read and nothing more.However it's really a devastating story about the impact of trauma on the brain and how cataclysmic it can be to a developing child.

I'm definitely rounding this up, but honestly, this is a hard book to rate. It covers many of the same themes that Convenience Store woman: feeling totally divorced from social expectations, feeling like an extreme outsider, not wanting marriage and parenthood, etc. But this book is darker, weirder, and readers need to know that there are some very disturbing bits. Yet, I couldn't stop reading it. I didn't necessarily feel entertained, but at no point did I think about not finishing it.

3 stars because If I had to rate the book how I would have done while reading the first part, it would be much higher, but if I'd rate it for how I feel now, after reading its end, it would be lower.This is not an easy read, it has difficult and painful topics and it gets very graphic at some points. It is a book about how trauma shapes us and the way the author depicted the psyche of the abused child was incredibly moving and convincing.I really "enjoyed" (If you can say that about a book with topics like this) the first part, with its very intellingent set up; we hear about the neglect and abuse a child suffers from the words of the unaware child. She, who doesn't understand she is victim of abuse, reveals her terrible family environment so innocently, unjudgingly, feeling like she is responsible for it, she's at fault. It's very sad and, I know, very representative of how abuse shapes a young mind in reality. The innocent narrator voice really creates this shocking contrast with what the character has to endure, and the way the child distances herself from reality is masterfully represented even in the writing.The story gets to a very significant episode, which I won't mention, and I genuinely started feeling dirty reading it, and it made be feel almost physically sick. It was a bit too much for my taste but I was aware it was meant to make you feel this way, so in truth, is a perfect depiction of a hugely traumatic episode: the way the MC becomes "broken" and the way she talks about it, manages to really make you feel the horror, the anger, the unfairness... that was all masterful.It's the second part of the book...the second part was really a mess for me I get it the characters are broken, and are a mess, (so again the writing conveys it by becoming more confused and messy) but I was expecting a more meaningful resolution. What happens at the end is fine, in the sense it can make sense for where the story is going, but I found the last chapter was too rushed and some important characters turned weirdly flat and empty, flip flopping all over the place. I felt what in earlier chapters was lyrical, experimental writing, becomes "too experimental" and bizarre and took me out of it.At first, on finishing the book, I felt confused, not sure what I had just read or if I was missing something, but after a while this all turned into a certain level of dissatisfation, of non resolution which did not do it for me.At the same time, I can't stop thinking about it, especially the first part of it, as that feels like it went deep under my skin, so I know this could be a novel that marks the start of a whole literary movement.For the most, this is a difficult, painful, powerful and worthwhile read, but the ending leaves you emptier than it should, given how shocking it is written to be. It could have felt sweetly tragic (as I feel it wants to be) but for me it stopped conveying feelings the way the first part could. Although the ending doesn't invalidate the value of the first part, it just felt like this could have been so much more...

Where do you begin with a review for Earthlings!There are so many elements of this book to talk about, making it if you can stomach it, a fabulous book group read.Having read and thoroughly enjoyed Convenience Store Woman, I had bought this one for the festive season, coming to it quite late. But I kept it and started it on New Year’s Day and subsequently devoured it in two days – and what a way to start the new year!Sayaka Murata just has the ability to get deep into those characters that don’t always fare well in society and, through no fault of their own, are often side-lined. Going beyond, she sees and portrays society from the other side – and nowhere is that more evident than in Earthlings.Natsuki could have very well been your usual typical little girl – but by the time she hits her teens and adulthood, it's very clear she’s suffering some form of mental health issue. However, it could also be argued that her fragile state of mind didn’t so much start out as mental health, but rather as a product of her horrible family.The way Natsuki thinks and behaves is her coping mechanism and when you meet the immediate members of her family you understand more. Her mother is a complete b***h, her sister follows her mother’s example, and the father is just useless. It’s little wonder then that Natsuki feels as though she’s a huge burden.She lives her life being told she’s useless and has simply accepted the fact that she’s a pain to anyone and everyone. Added to this, she’s being sexually abused by an adult.Little wonder then that Natsuki believes she comes from another planet - and that there must be an escape route from this life, but she has to stay strong in the meantime.During one of their family vacations, a time she lives for, an incident occurs and while yes, it may a little disturbing, the way the entire family/clan behaves afterwards towards Natsuki is truly awful.Therefore, it's little wonder that Natsuki meets her husband online, but this again is no normal standard marriage more a marriage of convenience to keep everyone out of their business (The fact they both have to resort to this type of contract clearly shows how wrong society is).The concept the book digs at here is ‘the factory,’ and how we are all products of that factory. The fact that men and women are designated to grow up, get married and produce children, and then watch as that cycle begins again is all some people believe life is about. But, for those who dare question it or decide against it, they’re considered the aliens as such.This is evident when Natsuki only becomes relevant to her family when she enters that phase of womanhood, being told what her role is and how she’s not fulfilling it by getting pregnant. At this stage, it becomes suffocating listening to all her family members give their own ideas on what Natsuki and her husband should and shouldn’t be doing, completely highlighting this concept of women/men merely being tools for the ‘baby factory.’Murata pulls you into her side of the argument so well and though we know Natsuki is mentally unbalanced by the end, the concept that she, her husband, and Yuu are fighting against, that of the factory, really does resonate.How anyone cannot feel for Natsuki is beyond belief. When her abuse is finally spoken about, she’s told by more than one person it was her fault and that she encouraged it – bearing in mind she was just an innocent child at the time (little wonder she is so unbalanced).And that ending – wow… all I will say is that you may not want to be eating or reading it on a full stomach because boy, it's brutal (and also hugely shocking as to how it all comes about!)As for the entire premise of this book, I could not stop replaying it all in my mind for days after!Sayaka Murata is my new favourite author of all time and I strongly recommend Earthlings. Yes, it's dark and brutal in places and uncomfortable at times, but for the message it is trying to convey, it is so worth the read (and a book you will not forget in a hurry!)

I devoured this in one sitting

Buen libro, definitivamente pesado emocionalmente. Recomiendo buscar los trigger warnings en caso de considerarse una persona sensible.

Trigger warning for people who have suffered extreme emotional or physical (sexual) abuse. However, in line with the theme of the book, you could argue that everyone has experienced some form of abuse from the factory we live in. It is non-conformist and shows the extremes that can be cultivated if people are pushed into a mold too much. The coping mechanisms among the characters are just on very extreme ends of the spectrum. The book makes you ponder over how restricting we are to each other. It can be read as a cautionary tale or criticism of our society. Read it in one sitting. It picks up pace after the first few chapters and barely ever slows down.

Dietro la sua maschera "kawaii" questo libro nasconde una storia che tocca profondamente, con una scrittura molto semplice, senza fronzoli, che arriva facilmente al lettore. Sono a più della metà del libro ed ho bisogno del mio tempo per finirlo, ci sono parti toccanti, disturbanti, che vorresti non capitassero a nessuno. È la storia di un'adulta rimasta bambina, una bambina dall'infanzia negata che racconta la sua versione dei fatti cercando di nascondere i suoi traumi attraverso marchingegni che la mente attua per continuare a sopravvivere. Se siete persone troppo sensibili, con disturbi dell'umore o traumi, non ne consiglio la lettura. Se siete abbastanza "cotti", vi verrà da commuovervi e riflettere sulla nostra società (o quella asiatica) e l'impatto che ha sulle nostre vite.

Earthlings, de Sayaka Murata (Trad. Ginny Tapley Takemori) é uma das coisas mais viscerais que li em muito tempo. O começo relativamente fofinho não dá ideia do que virá logo em seguida, e até onde a autora chegará nas páginas finais – cuja força e desespero me lembraram A Vegetariana. A protagonista é Natsuki, uma garota que não se encaixa nos padrões, e acredita ter vindo de outro planeta. Seu único amigo é um bichinho de pelúcia com quem conversa. Maltratada pela família, ela sofre um grande trauma, e acaba realizando um “casamento” com seu primo também adolescente. Anos mais tarde, está casada com um homem apenas por conveniência – cada um dorme no próprio quarto. Cada vez mais alienada do mundo, chama a cidade de “A Fábrica”, e espera a chegada da nave que a leve para seu planeta. Nada disso prepara para o capítulo final, que pode ser lido na chave da completa perda de contato com a realidade.