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A review by _charliesbooks_
The Bridegroom Was a Dog by Yōko Tawada
challenging
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Thank you to the publishers for providing me with a copy of this in exchange for an honest review.
I went into this thinking that it was going to be a super cute romance based around Asian folklore and fairytales. Boy, was I wrong.
From the get-go, this was a really easy read. I read it in one sitting, finishing the book after maybe 20 minutes. I found the style of writing interesting, but I was greatly disturbed by the story itself. There are so many trigger warnings that I'm not really sure where to start. I think one of the main ones would be the strange student/teacher relationships. Our main character makes an attachment to one specific child, shows naked parts of her own body to others, and tells probably the strangest stories to the children. There was mild homophobia, mentions of incest and, on more than one occasion, an almost beastialic relationship between the FMC and her boyfriend. There's an element of magical realism, with the love interest adopting the characteristics of a dog following being attacked and bitten by a group of them.
This was quite possibly one of the strangest books I have ever read and comes into the genre of disturbing literature like Lucas Rijenvelds 'My Heavenly Favourite' and Alison Rumfitts 'BrainWyrms'. If those are books or genres you enjoy, then this is probably a book that you would love.
4 stars.
I went into this thinking that it was going to be a super cute romance based around Asian folklore and fairytales. Boy, was I wrong.
From the get-go, this was a really easy read. I read it in one sitting, finishing the book after maybe 20 minutes. I found the style of writing interesting, but I was greatly disturbed by the story itself. There are so many trigger warnings that I'm not really sure where to start. I think one of the main ones would be the strange student/teacher relationships. Our main character makes an attachment to one specific child, shows naked parts of her own body to others, and tells probably the strangest stories to the children. There was mild homophobia, mentions of incest and, on more than one occasion, an almost beastialic relationship between the FMC and her boyfriend. There's an element of magical realism, with the love interest adopting the characteristics of a dog following being attacked and bitten by a group of them.
This was quite possibly one of the strangest books I have ever read and comes into the genre of disturbing literature like Lucas Rijenvelds 'My Heavenly Favourite' and Alison Rumfitts 'BrainWyrms'. If those are books or genres you enjoy, then this is probably a book that you would love.
4 stars.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Incest, Toxic relationship, Sexual harassment, Toxic friendship, and Sexual content