Reviews

Der verbrannte Stadtplan by Kōbō Abe

Only show reviews with written explanations

smalefowles's review against another edition

3.0

Okay, I very personally am giving this three stars, because parts of it really became a slog for me, but it's most likely a four star book.

A younger me would have liked it much more--been more patient with its postmodernisms, and accepting of its male fantasies. I would recommend reading it on paper, since I think the kindle marred the reading experience. The ending was more satisfying than I expected, but I had sort of given up by that point.

In any case, a decent example of the sort of thing you'd like if you like that sort of thing.

tom_f's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

The fussy, unhurried prose underpinning Abe’s claustrophobic characterisation in this existential detective procedural obscures the novel’s insidious entropy for at least its first half. It’s only when a rank sense of desperation creeps in does it become clear that this is a hermeneutic journey in which the one asking questions comes to know less and less about the world around him, rather than gradually uncovering the truth. As the map frays so do the boundaries of individuality and consciousness, until we’re left disoriented, feeble and at the mercy of the text. Some of Abe’s cynical presentations of female heterosexuality and matrimony from Woman In The Dunes also discolour this more enigmatic novel, but it’s at least as strong as an urban and impressionistic counterpart to it.

iravkl's review against another edition

Go to review page

dark reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

flexluthor's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

A noir detective story that plays with time and identity in interesting ways. I never really fully bought into the central conceit of the story, that being that the main character finds himself subsuming the identity of the missing man. I'm not sure if I just wasn't reading deep enough or smart enough to catch the telegraphing of the ending, or if it just wasn't telegraphed enough. Though I didn't enjoy the ending, the book itself was well written and evocative, and a great noir. 3.5/5