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sophia_a_a's review
3.0
3.5 STARS!!
mandarins:
ok so i REALLY like this story but its hard to put into words how i feel about it. guy is on a train and watches as some girl fumbles with the window and he hopes that she fails because like its winter and its cold or something and then eventually she gets it open and tosses some mandarins to her younger brothers waiting for the train and all of a sudden WOAH!!! akutagawa understands why she was so desperate to get the window open and he feels a moment of peace or something.
at the seashore:
this story is even harder to describe than mandarins. i wasnt that big of a fan of it but i did like it. i dont remember much as of right now (writing this review as im nearing the end) but i think i enjoyed reading it. i know that i didnt dislike it, so do with that what you will. its kinda just an account of a day that he went through and the interactions he had.
an evening conversation:
i dont remember this one very well but i think theres like some guys just talking and near the end one of them starts to get really into the conversation and says some really interesting things that were mwah wmwham hwam kisses kissies but the other guy fell asleep. i remember really liking the last few pages and what this guys take on the topic of the conversation was.
the handkerchief:
me likey this one hehehwhheh <33 just looking through my highlights makes me want to reread this short story its one of my favorites in this collection. its really hard for me to describe this one and put into words my feelings about it but aaaaaa its so edible.
an enlightened husband:
guy is at an art museum and meets some other guy that he maybe knows i dont remember andd this guy whos apparently a viscount starts talking about his friend and his friends old relationship. apparently this guy was like getting cheated on by his wife with her cousin and he was aware of it and just allowed it to happen, hoping that she would be happier with him and believing that they really did love eachother honestly. he felt bad for putting so much expectations on her in their relationship so he just let her cheat. and then eventually he found out that the wife and her cousin actually had a "more base" relationship than he thought (?? idk?!) and he couldnt be with her anymroe or something. i really like this story!!! another favorite.
autumn:
being fr i got so confused with the dynamics of the two sisters and that one guy i was so lost. i think near the end it got really good but it was hard for me to appreciate this story because i was so confused with who was who and what their role was in the story and blah blah. NOT a bad story at all i did like and enjoy the majority of it.
winter:
having "winter" right after a story named "autumn" made me think they wuold be related in some way and that winter was a sequel to autumn but they are not actually connected!!! thisss storyy <33 this storyy is sooooo awswahahwhwhshdawah (im in LOVE)
fortune:
i remember after finishing this story i had a firm opinion of whether or not the woman was actually fortunate but as of right now i actually do not remember!! i liked this story .
kesa and morito:
HUMMINA HUMMINA AWOOGA BARKB AKRBAK ARF AWOOOOO ARAWOAFFA ABABRB HUAMNMAIMA NUMHIAN i really love this story. i think the two soliloquys from both kesa and morito were SOOOOO AAAAAAAA i could not get enough of it i was ahrahwhahha hwahwhahah i could say that this is my absolute favorite in this whole collection. i loved morito's soliloquy and didnt think it could get any better and THEN I READ KESA'S. was GRIPPING my kindle and on the verge of crushing it because i was locked in like an ipad kid watchiing skibidi toilet for the 9432849th time in a row trying to see the video through the drooled on fogged up screen dust covered screen.
the death of a disciple
what can i sayyyy what can i sayyyy simeon is NOT a loyal friend he heard that lorenzo got some girl pregnant and finger wagged him after he got thrown out of the church because of this pregnant rumor which was NOT true and was only started because a girl was angry lorenzo didnt want to date her. and then this girl actually had a baby and OHHHH WHATTT ITS NOT LORENZOS???? and then somehow the house caught on fire and the baby was still in there after everyone got out and lorenzo swoops in to save the day and everyones like "smh its because its his kid what a little rascal bastard rat munching icecream biter" and then like um the baby got saved but lorenzo died and on his death bed the girl revealed "its not your baby im sorry for what i did to you" and then OUT OF NOWHERE its all of a sudden revealed after lorenzo dies that lorenzo is a GIRL. yeah lorenzos upper garment got burned and everyone saw her chest and they found out shes a girl!! so basically that rumor never held any ground in the beginning. this whole story was good!! i liked it.
over a withered moor:
basically just how some disciples react to their master dying. ummmumumm icant explain it any better than that but MY GOD THIS WAS AMAAZINGGNNGNGN
the garden:
STOP IT RN. this story actually has a great happy ending and they successfully fix the garden! i am akutagawa ryunosuke! trust me!
the life of a fool:
this silly little story never gets old ohohohogoghohhofhhsahah hahahwauhuheheh ehjskjfkesjfs l thats all i gotta say
the villa of the black crane:
idk what to say to be honest there was so many characters i got really lost really fast but WOOEHEUHH WEEEYHHUH WOOHOHHHH i really like how this story ended and how wel each character was written (even if I didn’t remember who was who)!!!
cogwheels:
WHAT CAN I SAYYYY gotta be one of his BEST stories EVER oh my GODDODHSHAJAHAIEHAJAMM could i pease get the name and house address of the guy with the complete dostoevsky collectionn thanks!! <3 i LOVE this story i think it really showcases akutagawas mental state that his other works dont show as well.
OVERALL:
there was some REALLYYYYY good stories but others were just kinda there and didn’t really stick with me.
mandarins:
ok so i REALLY like this story but its hard to put into words how i feel about it. guy is on a train and watches as some girl fumbles with the window and he hopes that she fails because like its winter and its cold or something and then eventually she gets it open and tosses some mandarins to her younger brothers waiting for the train and all of a sudden WOAH!!! akutagawa understands why she was so desperate to get the window open and he feels a moment of peace or something.
at the seashore:
this story is even harder to describe than mandarins. i wasnt that big of a fan of it but i did like it. i dont remember much as of right now (writing this review as im nearing the end) but i think i enjoyed reading it. i know that i didnt dislike it, so do with that what you will. its kinda just an account of a day that he went through and the interactions he had.
an evening conversation:
i dont remember this one very well but i think theres like some guys just talking and near the end one of them starts to get really into the conversation and says some really interesting things that were mwah wmwham hwam kisses kissies but the other guy fell asleep. i remember really liking the last few pages and what this guys take on the topic of the conversation was.
the handkerchief:
me likey this one hehehwhheh <33 just looking through my highlights makes me want to reread this short story its one of my favorites in this collection. its really hard for me to describe this one and put into words my feelings about it but aaaaaa its so edible.
an enlightened husband:
guy is at an art museum and meets some other guy that he maybe knows i dont remember andd this guy whos apparently a viscount starts talking about his friend and his friends old relationship. apparently this guy was like getting cheated on by his wife with her cousin and he was aware of it and just allowed it to happen, hoping that she would be happier with him and believing that they really did love eachother honestly. he felt bad for putting so much expectations on her in their relationship so he just let her cheat. and then eventually he found out that the wife and her cousin actually had a "more base" relationship than he thought (?? idk?!) and he couldnt be with her anymroe or something. i really like this story!!! another favorite.
autumn:
being fr i got so confused with the dynamics of the two sisters and that one guy i was so lost. i think near the end it got really good but it was hard for me to appreciate this story because i was so confused with who was who and what their role was in the story and blah blah. NOT a bad story at all i did like and enjoy the majority of it.
winter:
having "winter" right after a story named "autumn" made me think they wuold be related in some way and that winter was a sequel to autumn but they are not actually connected!!! thisss storyy <33 this storyy is sooooo awswahahwhwhshdawah (im in LOVE)
fortune:
i remember after finishing this story i had a firm opinion of whether or not the woman was actually fortunate but as of right now i actually do not remember!! i liked this story .
kesa and morito:
HUMMINA HUMMINA AWOOGA BARKB AKRBAK ARF AWOOOOO ARAWOAFFA ABABRB HUAMNMAIMA NUMHIAN i really love this story. i think the two soliloquys from both kesa and morito were SOOOOO AAAAAAAA i could not get enough of it i was ahrahwhahha hwahwhahah i could say that this is my absolute favorite in this whole collection. i loved morito's soliloquy and didnt think it could get any better and THEN I READ KESA'S. was GRIPPING my kindle and on the verge of crushing it because i was locked in like an ipad kid watchiing skibidi toilet for the 9432849th time in a row trying to see the video through the drooled on fogged up screen dust covered screen.
the death of a disciple
what can i sayyyy what can i sayyyy simeon is NOT a loyal friend he heard that lorenzo got some girl pregnant and finger wagged him after he got thrown out of the church because of this pregnant rumor which was NOT true and was only started because a girl was angry lorenzo didnt want to date her. and then this girl actually had a baby and OHHHH WHATTT ITS NOT LORENZOS???? and then somehow the house caught on fire and the baby was still in there after everyone got out and lorenzo swoops in to save the day and everyones like "smh its because its his kid what a little rascal bastard rat munching icecream biter" and then like um the baby got saved but lorenzo died and on his death bed the girl revealed "its not your baby im sorry for what i did to you" and then OUT OF NOWHERE its all of a sudden revealed after lorenzo dies that lorenzo is a GIRL. yeah lorenzos upper garment got burned and everyone saw her chest and they found out shes a girl!! so basically that rumor never held any ground in the beginning. this whole story was good!! i liked it.
over a withered moor:
basically just how some disciples react to their master dying. ummmumumm icant explain it any better than that but MY GOD THIS WAS AMAAZINGGNNGNGN
the garden:
STOP IT RN. this story actually has a great happy ending and they successfully fix the garden! i am akutagawa ryunosuke! trust me!
the life of a fool:
this silly little story never gets old ohohohogoghohhofhhsahah hahahwauhuheheh ehjskjfkesjfs l thats all i gotta say
the villa of the black crane:
idk what to say to be honest there was so many characters i got really lost really fast but WOOEHEUHH WEEEYHHUH WOOHOHHHH i really like how this story ended and how wel each character was written (even if I didn’t remember who was who)!!!
cogwheels:
WHAT CAN I SAYYYY gotta be one of his BEST stories EVER oh my GODDODHSHAJAHAIEHAJAMM could i pease get the name and house address of the guy with the complete dostoevsky collectionn thanks!! <3 i LOVE this story i think it really showcases akutagawas mental state that his other works dont show as well.
OVERALL:
there was some REALLYYYYY good stories but others were just kinda there and didn’t really stick with me.
avacadosocks's review
challenging
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
3.0
bradleys's review
3.0
The good stories are great, but the middling stories are of such a mediocre quality as to border on the vapid. My favorite stories were Fortune, O’er a Withered Moor, and The Garden, with Kesa and Morito, The Life of a Fool, and The Villa of the Black Crane as close contenders.
augustimely's review
4.0
“What good is intelligence if you cannot discover a useful melancholy?”
Mandarins is a selection of short stories from one of Japan’s early modern literary giants, Ryunosuke Akutagawa. My acquaintance with Akutagawa came (unsurprisingly) from a little anime series called ‘Bungo Stray Dogs’ (lit. Literary Stray Dogs). When I found out that the characters were named and loosely based on real-life Japanese authors, I immediately scoured the web for their biographies and most especially, their books.
My romance with Akutagawa was something of a literary slow-burn; I took my time with this collection, intentionally did not devour these stories in a two-day binge. And it’s the space and breaks in-between that allowed me to savor the intelligence and ruminate on the melancholic irony of Akutagawa’s plots and characters.
Often the stories serve as social commentary in the guise of human dramas. At times, they veer towards the bleakly autobiographical. But they are all tied together by the genius of Akutagawa’s pen.
I’m still thinking about the last story; it’s so painful, so human. I’m glad I watch anime.
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