the woman in the purple skirt
If you’ve read “Convenience Store Woman” or my review of it, you’ll know what I mean when I say this book feels like acerbic Japanese existentialism. An entire novel written about the mundane. I thought maybe it was my lack of knowledge on Japanese literature that made me compare the two novels, but after a little google digging, I can confirm that Penguin Random House had the same thought. Apparently, Natsuko Imamura has been called “a second Sayaka Murata” (the author of Convenience Store Woman). So maybe I’m just as insightful as Penguin’s copyrighter.
Another first person book (my favourite), the main character is a stalker. She (thank God it was a she, made me a bit more comfortable reading) is obsessed with the woman in the purple skirt, a simple girl who works simple jobs and leads a simple life to survive. We’re led to believe this purple girl is actually a local fascination, not just her own. She helps purple girl get a job at a hotel, and watches as she rises up the ranks.
There’s a passage where stalker girl compares purple girl to people she used to know. Like “she reminds me of my old friend Mei-Chen… no wait she reminds me of…” and it was kind of sweet.
It was a simply written book. The ending… happens. It’s not particularly revolutionary or maybe that’s my experience. I think with books like these its always about some wider more important social commentary that I unfortunately don’t have the knowledge nor intelligence to clearly understand. It’s more like a subtle feeling that there’s more to it than what’s on the page. I guess it’s pushing me to think for myself. But I wish it had been slightly more explicit. I don’t know, maybe that’s beyond the point, but I always feel like I want my content to perfectly toe the line in between explicit and implicit. It should respect me as a reader enough to assume my intelligence, but not require it. If you’ve seen Gilmore Girls you might know what I mean. The inside jokes about cultural references assume that I know what they’re talking about each time (when I catch one it’s unbelievably satisfying), but if I don’t know what they said, I haven’t really lost much. The tone helps me catch the point Lorelai was making, and even if it didn’t it’s not integral to the moral or plot of that episode. Obviously that’s easier to do with audio-visual works but you know, it’s just a small remark. Anyways apparently, it’s meant to be a critique of Japan’s police response to a stalking crisis.
The ending was shocking and yet I was underwhelmed. But then again I read the book at an airport, where all senses tend to be dulled (emotion included).
But book endings are tricky. And as of yet only Sorrow and Bliss has satisfied my book ending needs.
if you enjoyed the woman in the purple skirt, you might enjoy:
convenience store woman
Sayaka Murata
before the coffee gets cold
Toshikazu Kawaguchi